Claire McDowell
Born: 1877-10-31 in New York City, New York, USA
Died: 1966-10-23
Known For: Acting
Biography
Claire McDowell (2 November 1877 – 23 October 1966) was an American actress. She appeared in 360 films between 1908 and 1945. Still somewhat of a youthful beauty when she started in early silent films, McDowell appeared in numerous films, eventually graduating to playing character and mother types. She can be seen to good advantage in Douglas Fairbanks's 1920 The Mark of Zorro. McDowell appeared in two of the biggest films of the silent era, The Big Parade (1925) and Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ (1925), both in which she played mothers. She was married to silent screen character actor Charles Hill Mailes from 1906 to his 1937 death. The couple appeared in numerous silent films together, including The Mark of Zorro. They had two sons, Robert Mailes and Eugene Mailes. Claire McDowell died, aged 88, in Hollywood, California. From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Filmography
1955
- MGM Parade as Self
1945
- Adventure as Woman in Library (uncredited)
1944
- Andy Hardy's Blonde Trouble as Dr. Standish's Servant (uncredited)
- Men on Her Mind as Mother Goodwin
1943
- Hangmen Also Die! as Counterwoman (uncredited)
- This Land Is Mine as Woman in Bathroom
- Keeper of the Flame
- Presenting Lily Mars as Dowager
- Du Barry Was a Lady as Subway Passenger (uncredited)
1941
- Lady Scarface as Mrs. Tuckerman
- Whispers as Gossip (uncredited)
1940
- Young Tom Edison as Woman at Station
- Dr. Kildare Goes Home as Nurse for Mr. Winslow (uncredited)
- The Golden Fleecing as Pedestrian (uncredited)
- A Failure at Fifty as Minor Role (uncredited)
1939
- Idiot's Delight as Crying Mother
- Stand Up and Fight as Woman
- Joe and Ethel Turp Call on the President as Gossiper
- Miracles for Sale as Jack of Diamonds Woman
- One Against the World as Jane Todd Crawford (uncredited)
- Angel of Mercy as Mother (uncredited)
- Thunder Afloat as Nurse (uncredited)
1938
- Test Pilot as Funeral Home Associate (uncredited)
- Boys Town as Nun (uncredited)
- Three Comrades as Landlady Frau Zalewski (uncredited)
- They're Always Caught as Mrs. Fletcher (uncredited)
- The Man on the Rock as Napoleon's Mother (uncredited)
1937
- Song of Revolt as Artistocratic Dowager (uncredited)
- Two-Fisted Sheriff as Miss Herrick - Molly's Aunt
- A Night at the Movies as Movie Patron (uncredited)
1936
- Small Town Girl as Woman in Bed (uncredited)
- August Week End as Alma Washburne
1935
- Murder by Television as Mrs. Houghland
1934
- It Happened One Night as Mother on Bus (uncredited)
- Imitation of Life as Teacher Outside Classroom (uncredited)
- Dr. Monica as Miss Bryerly (uncredited)
- Bedside as Nurse
- Journal of a Crime as Sister at Hospital (uncredited)
- British Agent as Woman Saying 'Lenin will Live' (uncredited)
- Two Heads on a Pillow as Mrs. Helen Gorman
1933
- Wild Boys of the Road as Mrs. Smith
- Central Airport as Mrs. Blaine
- The Working Man as Benjamin's Secretary
- By Appointment Only as Mrs. Mary Carroll
1932
- Under Eighteen as Seamstress (uncredited)
- The Strange Love of Molly Louvain as Ann Marie's Caregiver Mrs. Schiller (uncredited)
- Union Depot as Little Boy's Mother (uncredited)
- Lawyer Man as Gilmurry's Secretary (uncredited)
- The Famous Ferguson Case as Brooks' Landlady (uncredited)
- A Successful Calamity as Struthers' Secretary (uncredited)
- Cornered as Jane's Aunt
- The Phantom Express as Ma Nolan
1931
- An American Tragedy as Mrs. Samuel Griffiths
- Manhattan Parade as Nancy - the Maid
1930
- The Big House as Mrs. Marlowe
- Redemption as Anna Pavlovna
- Mothers Cry as Mary's Mother
- Brothers as Bess Naughton
- The Second Floor Mystery as Aunt Hattie
- Wild Company as Mrs. Laura Grayson
- Young Desire as Mrs. Spencer
1929
- The Flying Fleet as Mrs. Hastings (uncredited)
- Silks and Saddles as Mrs. Calhoun
- The Quitter as Mrs. Abbott
- When Dreams Come True as Martha Shelby
1928
- 4 Devils as Woman
- The Viking as Lady Editha (as Claire MacDowell)
- The Tragedy of Youth as Mother
- Don't Marry as Aunt Abigail Bowen
- Marriage by Contract as Mother
1927
- Almost Human as Mrs. Livingston
- The Shield of Honor as Mrs. MacDowell
- Tillie the Toiler as Ma Jones
- The Auctioneer as Mrs. Tim Eagan
- The Taxi Dancer as Aunt Mary
- A Little Journey as Aunt Louise
- The Black Diamond Express as Martha Foster
- Winds of the Pampas as Doña Maria Casandos
1926
- The Flaming Forest as Mrs. McTavish
- The Shamrock Handicap as Molly O'Shea
- The Devil's Circus as Mrs. Peterson
- The Unknown Soldier as John Phillips' sister
- The Show Off as Mom Fisher
- The Dixie Merchant as Josephine Fippany
1925
- Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ as Princess of Hur
- The Big Parade as Mrs. Apperson
- The Tower of Lies as Katrina
- The End of the World as Mrs. Joyce
- The Reckless Sex as Concha
- Dollar Down as Mrs. Meadows
- Waking Up the Town as Mrs. Joyce
- The End of the World as Mrs. Joyce
- The Midnight Flyer as Liza Slater
1924
- Those Who Dare as Mrs. Rollins
- Judgment of the Storm as Mrs. Heath
- Secrets as Elizabeth Channing
- Thy Name Is Woman as Juan's Mother
1923
- Ashes of Vengeance as Margot's Aunt
- The West~Bound Limited as Mrs. Bill Buckley
- Human Wreckage as Mrs. Brown
- Black Oxen as Agnes Trevor
- Michael O'Halloran as Nancy Harding
- Ponjola as Mrs. Hope
- Enemies of Children as Godfrey sister
- Circus Days as Martha
1922
- Quincy Adams Sawyer as Mrs. Putnam
- Penrod as Mrs. Schofield
- Nice People as Margaret Rainsford
- Rent Free as Countess de Mourney
- Heart's Haven as May Caroline
- The Ragged Heiress as Sylvia Moreton
1921
- Wealth as Mrs. Dominick
- Prisoners of Love as Her Mother
- What Every Woman Knows as Comtesse de la Brière
- Love Never Dies as Liz Trott
- Midsummer Madness as Mrs. Osborne
- Mother o' Mine as Mrs. Sheldon
1920
- The Mark of Zorro as Dona Catalina Pulido
- Blind Youth as Elizabeth Monnier
- Something to Think About as Housekeeper
- The Jack-Knife Man as Lize Merdin
- The Woman in the Suitcase as Mrs. James B. Moreland
- The Devil's Riddle as Mrs. Potts
- Through Eyes of Men as Mrs. Virginia All
- The Gift Supreme as Lalia Graun
1919
- Heart o' the Hills as Martha Hawn
- The Feud as Mary Lynch
- Rosalind at Redgate
- Chasing Rainbows as Mrs. Walters
- Prudence on Broadway as Miss Grayson
- The Follies Girl as Nina
1918
- You Can't Believe Everything as Grace Dardley
- Captain of His Soul as Annette
- The Return of Mary as Mrs. John Denby Sr.
1917
- Avarice as The Miserly Old Woman
- The Gates of Doom as Indore / Agatha
- The White Raven as Daisy
- The Clean-Up as Vera Vincent
- The Bronze Bride as A-Che-Chee
- The Storm Woman
- The Empty Gun as Mary
1916
- Mixed Blood as Nita Valyez
- The Right to Be Happy as Mrs. Cratchit
- A Stranger from Somewhere as Olga
1915
- Her Dormant Love as The Discontented Wife
- As It Happened as The Ranchman's Daughter
- A Day's Adventure as Hogan's Moll
- The Miser's Legacy as The Crook's Wife
- The Heart of a Bandit as Claire
- The Way Out as The Young School Teacher
- The Sheriff's Dilemma as Molly
- Truth Stranger Than Fiction as Crook
- Her Convert as The Old Inventor's Daughter
- The Gambler's I.O.U. as Nell - Daddy Wilson's Daughter
- Old Offenders as Joe's Wife
- The Canceled Mortgage as The Widowed Mother
1914
- Men and Women as Mrs. Stephen Rodman
- Waifs
- The Fatal Wedding
- Concentration as The Mother
- A Nest Unfeathered as Kate
- Her Father's Silent Partner
- Her Hand as Olga
- The Cracksman's Gratitude
- His Fireman's Conscience as Mrs. Daily
1913
- The Well as The Farmer's Wife
- The Enemy's Baby as Miller's Wife
- The Stolen Treaty as Olga
- Under the Shadow of the Law as John Haywood's Sister
- The Abandoned Well as The Widow
- The Stolen Bride as The Wife
- The Switchtower as The Switchman's Wife
- A Misappropriated Turkey as Mrs. Fallon / Widow Logan
- The Mirror as Daisy
- The House of Discord as The Sister-in-Law
- The Strong Man's Burden as Ida Glynn, The Nurse
- The House of Darkness as The Doctor's Wife
- The Wanderer as The Female Lover
- A Gambler's Honor as Beth
- The Ranchero's Revenge as The Schemer's Associate
- The Wrong Bottle as The Blind Sister
- A Tender-Hearted Crook as Edith
- Olaf—An Atom as A Parent
- The Tenderfoot's Money as The Prospector's Wife
- The Telephone Girl and the Lady as The Lady
- The Law and His Son as Marguerite, Manning's Sister
- A Gamble with Death as Kate
- The Vengeance of Galora as Galora
- I Was Meant for You as Lavina
- The Van Nostrand Tiara as Kate
- The Unwelcome Guest as The Wife
- The Stopped Clock as The Antique Dealer's Daughter
- The Stolen Loaf as The Rich Woman
- For Her Government
- The Work Habit as The Daughter in the City
- The Crook and the Girl as The Uncle's Adopted Daughter
- All for Science as Detective
- The Detective's Stratagem as Kate, the Bank Clerk's Sweetheart
1912
- The Sunbeam as The Spinster
- The Massacre as Stephen's Belle - In Prologue
- A String of Pearls as The Italian Shoemaker's Wife
- The New York Hat as The Main Gossip
- The Old Actor as At Audition
- A Temporary Truce as Mexican Jim's Wife
- So Near, Yet So Far as Rich Woman in Other Town
- The School Teacher and the Waif as The Street Fakir's Sweetheart
- The God Within as The Woodsman's Wife
- When the Fire-Bells Rang as An Actress
- The Female of the Species as The Miner's Wife
- The Sands of Dee as Artist's fiancee
- Man's Genesis as Cave Woman
- In the Aisles of the Wild as The Elder Daughter
- Under Burning Skies as The Friend
- Lena and the Geese as Lena's Mother
- A Sailor’s Heart as The Sailor's Third Sweetheart
- The Baby and the Stork as The Mother
- Two Daughters of Eve as The Mother
- A Cry for Help as The Thief's Wife - the Charity Patient
- Billy's Stratagem as Billy's Mother
1911
- The Unveiling
- His Trust Fulfilled as Mrs. Frazier
- The Primal Call as The Woman
- Fate's Turning as At Hotel/At Wedding
- What Shall We Do with Our Old? as The Old Carpenter's Wife
- A Woman Scorned as The Doctor's Wife
- Swords and Hearts as Irene Lambert
- His Trust as Col. Frazier's wife
- The Long Road as Ned's Wife
- A Decree of Destiny as A Nun
- The Manicure Lady as Lunchroom Hostess
- The Broken Cross as Kate's Mother
- A Country Cupid as The Half-Wit's Mother
- The Adventures of Billy as Rich Woman
- Fisher Folks as At Fair
- The Spanish Gypsy as Paula
- The Squaw's Love as Silver Fawn
- The Sorrowful Example as The Wife
1910
- Wilful Peggy as Housemaid
- The Iconoclast
- The Usurer as Despairing Mother / One of the Third Debtors
- Muggsy Becomes a Hero as One of the Sisters Frost
- Waiter No. 5 as The Chief of Police's Wife
- The Oath and the Man as Rebel
- Rose o' Salem Town
- The Golden Supper as Lady-in-Waiting
- His New Lid
- Love Among the Roses
- The Message of the Violin as The Other Woman's Servant
- A Flash of Light as At First Party
- A Mohawk's Way
1908
- The Call of the Wild as Party Guest
- The Planter's Wife as Mrs. John Holland
- The Devil