Olive Hasbrouck

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Wikipedia

Olive Hasbrouck
Hasbrouck, from a 1929 advertisement
BornJanuary 23, 1907
Lewiston, Idaho, U.S.
DiedJanuary 1, 1976
San Diego, California, U.S.
Other namesOlive Whittier
OccupationActress
Years active1924-1929 (film)
RelativesSol Hasbrouck (grandfather)
Max Whittier (father-in-law)

Olive Elizabeth Hasbrouck Whittier (January 23, 1907 – January 1, 1976) was an American film actress of the silent era.[1] She appeared in dozens of films, mostly Westerns, between 1924 and 1929.[2]

Early life

Hasbrouck was born in Lewiston, Idaho, the daughter of Van Wagenen Hasbrouck and Ladia Marguerite Pingree Hasbrouck. Her father was an attorney.[3] Her grandfather was Sol Hasbrouck, an Idaho pioneer and politician.[4] She and her mother moved from Boise to Hollywood for her health.[5] Hasbrouck attended Hollywood High School until she started getting film roles.[6]

Career

Hasbrouck began working in films as an extra at Universal City.[7] When she was 17, she won the lead female roles in Ridgeway of Montana (1924)[5] and in Big Timber (1924) opposite William Desmond.[8] By 1925 she was considered a star, leading the cast in Two Blocks Away.[6][9] She was a skilled rider,[10] athletic and willing to do stunts,[6] so most of her roles were in silent Westerns.[2][11] She also appeared in an early sound comedy[12] set at sea, Clear the Decks (1929) with Reginald Denny.[13] Louella Parsons described Hasbrouck as resembling Norma Talmadge.[14]

In January 1929, Hasbrouck signed with First National; she co-starred with Philippe de Lacy and Ken Maynard in The Royal Rider (1929), which turned out to be her last film.[15][16][17]

Later life

A poster for a silent Western film from 1926
Olive Hasbrouck (right) on the poster for The Two-Gun Man (1926)

Hasbrouck's younger brother died in an explosion in 1926.[18] She retired from the movie industry just as sound films were introduced,[19] when she married Nelson Paul Whittier (son of oil executive and real estate developer Max Whittier) in 1930.[20] They had children, Laddia[21] and Peter,[22] and lived on a cattle ranch in Yucaipa,[23] and in a penthouse in Westwood.[24] She died in 1976, at the age of 68, in San Diego.[25]

Partial filmography

References

  1. ↑ Katchmer, George A. A Biographical Dictionary of Silent Film Western Actors and Actresses (McFarland, 2009): 156.
  2. 1 2 Rainey, Buck (2004). The strong, silent type: Over 100 screen cowboys, 1903-1930. Internet Archive. McFarland. ISBN 978-0-7864-1286-0.
  3. ↑ 1910 United States census, via Ancestry.
  4. ↑ "On Bridal Tour". The Idaho Statesman. April 24, 1904. p. 5. Retrieved June 26, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. 1 2 Hagerman, Arthur Q. (February 29, 1924). "Rides Her Way Into the Movies". Los Angeles Evening Post-Record. p. 8. Retrieved January 23, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. 1 2 3 "Olive Hasbrouck Rises to Jewel Lead in Year". Universal Weekly: 27. October 17, 1925 – via Internet Archive.
  7. ↑ "Olive Hasbrouck Has Clever Role at Broadway Palace". Daily News. March 16, 1927. p. 16. Retrieved June 27, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ↑ "William Desmond in Leading Role; Olive Hasbrouck Plays Opposite Star in 'Big Timber' Strand Picture". The Montgomery Advertiser. October 5, 1924. p. 32. Retrieved June 26, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. ↑ "Universal Player Gets Lead Role". The Los Angeles Times. August 23, 1925. p. 59. Retrieved June 27, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ↑ "Rides Her Way into the Moview". Los Angeles Evening Post-Record. February 29, 1924. p. 8. Retrieved June 27, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. ↑ Braff, Richard E. (1999). The Universal silents : a filmography of the Universal Motion Picture Manufacturing Company, 1912-1929. Internet Archive. Jefferson, N.C. : McFarland. ISBN 978-0-7864-0287-8.
  12. ↑ "Olive Hasbrouck Signed". The Film Mercury: 13. February 15, 1929 – via Internet Archive.
  13. ↑ "Clear the Decks" (advertisement), Universal Weekly (March 2, 1929): 152. via Internet Archive.
  14. ↑ Parsons, Louella O. (September 24, 1928). "Gertrude Olmstead Picked for 'Lone Wolf's Daughter'". The San Francisco Examiner. p. 19. Retrieved June 27, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  15. ↑ "Olive Hasbrouck Signs". Los Angeles Times. January 9, 1929. p. 10. Retrieved January 23, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  16. ↑ "The Royal Rider (review)". Variety. 97 (8): 31. December 4, 1929 – via Internet Archive.
  17. ↑ "Olive Hasbrouck with Cruze". The Los Angeles Times. February 22, 1929. p. 32. Retrieved June 27, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  18. ↑ "Rites Held Today for Blast Victim". Los Angeles Evening Express. 1926-12-24. p. 9. Retrieved 2025-06-27 – via Newspapers.com.
  19. ↑ Wollstein, Hans J. "Olive Hasbrouck". AllMovie. Archived from the original on May 28, 2020. Retrieved January 23, 2022.
  20. ↑ "Marriage Licenses". The Morning Press. January 19, 1930. p. 21. Retrieved 2025-06-26 – via Newspapers.com.
  21. ↑ "Laddia Ann Whittier Speaks Vows with Nikolaus G. Ehn". The Los Angeles Times. 1956-04-20. p. 69. Retrieved 2025-06-27 – via Newspapers.com.
  22. ↑ "Philanthropist Paul Whittier Dies". The Los Angeles Times. 1991-08-23. p. 352. Retrieved 2025-06-27 – via Newspapers.com.
  23. ↑ "Whittier's Cow is Grand Champ". Redlands Daily Facts. 1944-12-04. p. 2. Retrieved 2025-06-27 – via Newspapers.com.
  24. ↑ McKnight, Margaret (February 8, 1956). "Whittiers Plan Annual Vacation". The Los Angeles Times. p. 74. Retrieved June 27, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  25. ↑ "Whittier, Olive H. (death notice)". The Los Angeles Times. January 6, 1976. p. 11. Retrieved June 27, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  26. ↑ "Olive Hasbrouck Has Clever Role at Broadway Palace" Daily News (March 16, 1927): 16. via Newspapers.com