Vola Vale facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Vola Vale
Publicity photo from Motion Picture Magazine (August, 1915)
Born	Vola Smith (1897-02-12)February 12, 1897 Buffalo, New York, U.S.
Died	October 17, 1970(1970-10-17) (aged 73) Hawthorne, California, U.S.
Occupation	Actress
Spouse(s)	Albert Russell ​ ​ (m. 1918; div. 1926)​ John. W. Gorman ​ (m. 1926)​ Lawrence McDougal ​ ​ (m. 1932; his death 1970)​
Children	1

Vola Vale (born Vola Smith) was a famous actress from the silent film era. She was born on February 12, 1897, and passed away on October 17, 1970. She starred in many movies during a time when films had no sound.

Becoming an Actress

Vola Vale was born in Buffalo, New York. She grew up in Rochester, New York, where her friends knew her as Vola Smith. She went to school in Chevy Chase, Maryland. Vola started acting in plays just for fun in Rochester. Later, she joined professional theater groups called stock companies.

In 1916, Vola began working in movies for a company called Biograph. She learned a lot from the famous director D.W. Griffith. At first, she played small background roles. After about a month, she got a real part. She even wore a fancy velvet dress and a feathered hat!

Soon, Vola was appearing in many short films for Biograph. She acted alongside well-known stars like William S. Hart, Sessue Hayakawa, Harry Carey, and William Russell. Vola was very good at playing characters from different cultures, like Spanish, Italian, French, and Romani people. Besides Biograph, she also worked for big studios like Fox Film, Universal Pictures, and Paramount Pictures.

A Serious Performer

Vola Vale had big dreams for her acting career. She especially wanted to play the lead role in Madame Butterfly with a Japanese acting group. She also hoped to play Lorna Doone, a famous book character. Vola was very inspired by Sessue Hayakawa, who she worked with on the movie Each To His Kind (1917). She wanted to learn to act with deep inner feelings, just like he did.

Before filming Each To His Kind, people decided that "Smith" was too common a last name for a movie star. So, Vola changed her professional name to Vola Vale.

In the early 1920s, Vola thought a lot about how important it was for an actress to observe things. She believed that a good actress notices small details in life. Then, she stores these details in her mind. This helps her use them at the perfect moment when acting in front of the camera. Vola started doing this when she was young, working with director D.W. Griffith. She noticed how he paid attention to everything the actors did.

Modeling Clothes

Vola Vale also worked as a model. She modeled clothes for the Broadway Department Store in Los Angeles, California. In 1916, a photo in the Los Angeles Times showed her wearing a special Betty Wales dress from the store. These dresses were very popular with college women back then.

Vola's Family Life

Vola Vale was married three times. Her first husband was film director and producer Albert Russell. They had one son together. Later, on December 8, 1926, Vola married director John W. Gorman. They kept their wedding a secret for a while. Her third marriage was to Lawrence McDougal. They stayed together until he passed away in February 1970.

Vola was also part of a special group called Our Club. This group had seventeen young Hollywood movie stars. The famous actress Mary Pickford was their honorary president. Other members included Mildred Davis, Colleen Moore, and ZaSu Pitts.

Vola Vale passed away in Hawthorne, California, in 1970. She was 73 years old and died from heart disease. She is buried at Roosevelt Memorial Park in Los Angeles County, California.

Filmography