Barbara Kent

Barbara Kent (née Cloutman; December 16, 1907 – October 13, 2011) was a Canadian film actress, prominent from the silent film era to the early talkies of the 1920s and 1930s. In 1925, Barbara Kent won the Miss Hollywood Beauty Pageant.

Career Barbara Cloutman was born on December 16, 1907, in Gadsby, Alberta, Canada, to Lily Louise Kent and Jullion Curtis Cloutman. Sources differ on surname as Klowtmann or Cloutman and birth year as 1907 or 1906. In 1925, she graduated from Hollywood High School and went on to win the Miss Hollywood Pageant. It was also the year in which she began her Hollywood career with a small role for Universal Studios, which signed her to a contract. A petite brunette who stood less than five feet tall, Kent became popular as a comedian opposite such stars as Reginald Denny. She made a strong impression as the heroine pitted against Greta Garbo's femme fatale in Flesh and the Devil in 1926 after Universal had lent the actress to MGM to make the film.

Kent then attracted the attention of audiences and censors in the 1927 production No Man's Law by appearing to swim nude. She actually wore a flesh-colored moleskin bathing suit in scenes that were considered very daring at the time. The popularity of that film led to her selection as one of the WAMPAS Baby Stars for 1927. She made a smooth transition into talking pictures opposite Harold Lloyd in the 1929 comedy Welcome Danger. Kent was also featured with Lloyd in his iconic Feet First. Over the next few years, she remained popular and received critical praise in 1933 for her role in the film version of Oliver Twist.

In 1932 she starred in "The Perfect Alibi," based on a play by A. A. Milne, at the Harold Lloyd co-founded Beverly Hills Little Theatre for Professionals. Kent married talent agent Harry Edington in Yuma, Arizona later that same year, on December 16, 1932 — her 25th birthday.

Personal life Kent had a great love for the outdoors. Always active, she enjoyed golf, fly fishing, hunting, and gardening. She was a longtime member of Marakkesh, Sunland, and Thunderbird Country Clubs. She was known as a talented cook and loved entertaining friends and family.

Following the death of her husband Harry in 1949, Kent retreated from public life.

She married again in 1954, to Jack Monroe, a Lockheed aircraft engineer. Her second husband gave her flying lessons, and Kent continued to fly light aircraft until her 85th birthday, and was still playing golf well into her mid-90s. The couple resided initially in Sun Valley, Idaho, but later relocated to Palm Desert, California. There Kent lived until her death, at the age of 103, on October 13, 2011.

Filmography Film Year Title Role Notes1926 Flesh and the Devil Hertha Prowlers of the Night Anita Parsons Lost film1927 The Peace Deputy Short film The Lone Eagle Mimi Lost film No Man's Law Toby Belcher featuring Barbara Kent swimming The Small Bachelor Molly Waddington The Drop Kick Cecily Graves Stop That Man! Muriel Crawford Lost film1928 Modern Mothers Mildred Lost film That's My Daddy Molly Moran His Destiny Betty Baker Lonesome Mary Fun in the Clouds Self Short film, cameo, uncredited1929 Welcome Danger Billie Lee The Shakedown Marjorie1930 Night Ride Ruth KearnsLost film Dumbbells in Ermine Faith Corey Lost film Feet First Barbara What Men Want Betty 'Babs' Joyce1931 Freighters of Destiny Ruth Mercer Chinatown After Dark Lotus Grief Street Jean Royce Indiscreet Joan TrentIndiscreet (1931) at Internet Archive; starred Gloria Swanson, Monroe Owsley, and Kent1932 Self Defense Nona Devoux Emma Gypsy The Pride of the Legion Martha Tully No Living Witness Carol Everett Beauty Parlor Sally Dale Vanity Fair Amelia Sedley Exposed Ruth1933 Marriage on Approval Beth MacDougall Her Forgotten Past Doris Maynard Oliver Twist Rose Maylie1935 Swellhead Mary Malone Guard That Girl Jeanne Martin Old Man Rhythm Edith Warren 1941 Under Age Jackie 1970 4 Clowns Toby Belcher from No Man's Law Archive Footage, uncredited

Television Year Title Role Notes 2011 TCM Remembers Self Archive Footage, posthumously release

References

Barbara Kent

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