Abby Connolly
Have you ever heard of an actress from the silent film era named Virginia Rappe? If you have, it’s most likely because of her mysterious and untimely death.
If you haven’t, you should know that before she died, she was a bright and promising silent film actress.
Virginia was born in New York in 1894 to a part-time showgirl named Mabel. Her mother died when she was only 11-years-old, so she ended up living with family in Chicago.
By the time she was a teenager, she worked as a model for artists and even was hired as a commercial actress for a few local department stores.
Virginia has been described as having striking brown eyes and beautiful hair, a young woman made for the silver screen.
By the time she was in her late teenage years, Virginia knew that she wanted to be a performer. During the mid-1910s, she moved to Hollywood and began working at Keystone studios.
It was at Keystone that she began her career as a promising silent film actress. Throughout her career, it’s estimated that she worked on at least 10 films and began meeting all sorts of different people in the industry. Virginia worked for directors like Fred Balshofer and Henry Lehrman.
One of Virginia’s most prominent roles was in Balshofer’s Paradise Garden, a silent romantic comedy.
After starring in another film for Balshofer, titled Over The Rhine, she was named the “Best Dressed Girl In Pictures.”
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