Olive Borden

Olive Borden
Olive Borden in 1929
Born(1907-07-14)July 14, 1907
DiedOctober 1, 1947(1947-10-01) (aged 40)
Resting placeForest Lawn Memorial Park, Glendale, California
Other namesThe Joy Girl
OccupationActress
Years active1924–1934
Spouses
Theodore Spector
(m. 1931; ann. 1932)
John Moeller
(m. 1934; div. 1941)
RelativesNatalie Joyce (cousin)

Olive Mary Borden (July 14, 1907 – October 1, 1947) was an American film and stage actress who began her career during the silent film era.[1] She was nicknamed "the Joy Girl",[2] after playing the lead in the 1927 film of that same title.[3] Borden was known for her jet-black hair and stunning overall beauty.

At the peak of her career in the mid-1920s, Borden was earning $1,500 a week. In 1927, she walked out on her contract with Fox after refusing to take a pay cut. By 1929, her career began to wane due to her rumored reputation for being temperamental[4] and her difficulty transitioning to sound films. She made her last film, Chloe, Love Is Calling You, in 1934 and moved on to stage work for a time. By the late 1930s, she had declared bankruptcy and stopped acting. During World War II, she joined the Women's Army Corps. She was later honorably discharged with distinction after sustaining a foot injury during service. Borden attempted a comeback in films, however, she was hindered by her alcoholism and health problems.

In 1945, she began working at the Sunshine Mission, a home for impoverished women located in the skidrow section of Los Angeles. She died there in October 1947 of a stomach ailment and pneumonia at the age of 40.

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference obit was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ (Liebman 2000, p. 323)
  3. ^ Lowe, Denise (2014). An Encyclopedic Dictionary of Women in Early American Films: 1895-1930. Routledge. ISBN 9781317718963. Retrieved October 1, 2018.
  4. ^ "olive borden released temperamental". Jefferson City Post-Tribune. December 22, 1929. p. 38. Retrieved December 24, 2019.