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Kathleen Key

Kathleen Key

Acting

April 1, 1903 — December 22, 1954Buffalo, New York, USA

From Wikipedia: Kathleen Key (April 1, 1903 – December 22, 1954) was an American actress who achieved a brief period of fame during the silent era. She is best remembered for playing Tirzah in the 1925 film Ben-Hur. Key was the great-great granddaughter of Francis Scott Key, composer of "The Star Spangled Banner", and a distant cousin of author F. Scott Fitzgerald. Born Kitty Lanahan in Buffalo, New York, she debuted in films in 1920 in the film The Jackeroo of Coolabong, playing a lead role. From that point on to the end of the 1920s, Kathleen Key, sometimes credited as Kathleen Keys, starred in several films, but never really reached stardom, and was never given much credit for the roles she had, although there were some exceptions. In the early '20s, Key had a well-known love affair with silent-film actor Buster Keaton, who was married at the time. As told in Keaton's biography, the actor attempted to call off the relationship, but Key flew into a jealous rage and ransacked his MGM dressing room, which caused her to be virtually blacklisted afterward by the movie industry. It is also stated that Keaton refused to give Key a monetary loan. A telegram, sent by one of Keaton's friends who had heard about the argument, comically read: "Congratulations. Hear you are off Key." After her retirement in 1936, Keys spent the rest of her days in moderate comfort at the Motion Picture Country House in Woodland Hills, California, where she died at the age of 51 in 1954. Her interment was located at Valhalla Memorial Park Cemetery.

Known for

Klondike Annie1936

Klondike Annie

Thunder in the Night1935

Thunder in the Night

Party Guest

Golf Widows1928

Golf Widows

Ethel Dixon

Hey! Hey! Cowboy1927

Hey! Hey! Cowboy

Emily Decker

Irish Hearts1927

Irish Hearts

Clarice

The Flaming Frontier1926

The Flaming Frontier

Lucretia

Under Western Skies1926

Under Western Skies

Milly Lewis

Money Talks1926

Money Talks

Vamp

The Desert's Toll1926

The Desert's Toll

Muriel Cooper

The Big Parade1925

The Big Parade

Miss Apperson (uncredited)

Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ1925

Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ

Tirzah

1925 Studio Tour1925

1925 Studio Tour

Self

A Lover's Oath1925

A Lover's Oath

Sherin

The Trouble Shooter1924

The Trouble Shooter

Nancy Brewster

Revelation1924

Revelation

Madonna

The Sea Hawk1924

The Sea Hawk

Andalusian Slave Girl

Hell's Hole1923

Hell's Hole

Mabel Grant

The Man from Brodney's1923

The Man from Brodney's

Neenah

Reno1923

Reno

Yvette - The Governess

North of Hudson Bay1923

North of Hudson Bay

Estelle MacDonald

The Rendezvous1923

The Rendezvous

Varvara

Bells of San Juan1922

Bells of San Juan

Florrie Engel

West of Chicago1922

West of Chicago

Señoria Gonzales

The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse1921

The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse

Georgette (uncredited)