Maryland Morne

Maryland Morne
Morne pictured in 1921.
Born(1900-07-15)July 15, 1900
Baltimore
DiedJuly 18, 1935(1935-07-18) (aged 35)
Los Angeles
OccupationActress
Years active1919–1930
SpouseEugene Strong (married 1934)

Maryland Morne (sometimes credited as Mary Morne;[1][2] c. July 15, 1900 – July 18, 1935) was an American stage and silent film actor.[3][2][4] During her life and after her death, she was believed to have inspired the depiction of Lady Liberty on the peace dollar, earning her the nickname of "Peace Dollar Girl."[1][5][6]

Early life

Morne was born Mae Jones around the year 1900[2][7][8] in Baltimore,[1] though she was marketed as having been born in England.[9] Her paternal ancestry was French,[10] and contemporary media claimed that she was also a relative of Stonewall Jackson through her maternal line.[5][7] Her father was a successful lumber merchant in New York City.[7]

Morne attended a convent school in Chicago.[9] Her first acting role was in a stage production of Alice in Wonderland at the age of seven.[9] In 1917, Morne volunteered with the Red Cross, fundraising to purchase tobacco for American troops serving in Europe during the First World War.[11]

Career

Morne began her career as a professional model.[12][13] Her first known screen role was as Ann Montgomery in The Boomerang (1919), directed by Bertram Bracken.[3][14] The next year, she was cast by Allan Dwan in his now-lost movie, In the Heart of a Fool.[15][16]

In 1921, Morne appeared as Ariel in a stage production of The Tempest at the Hollywood Bowl,[17][18] having studied under Gwendolyn Logan.[19] Her casting as Jane McKaye in Kindred of the Dust the next year, playing the sister of Ralph Graves, marked her third appearance on screen.[8][20][21] Directed by Raoul Walsh, the film was based upon a novel of the same name by Peter B. Kyne.[22] The film's production, which also starred Walsh's wife Miriam Cooper, was complicated for its cast and crew by the clear breakdown of Walsh and Cooper's relationship during filming.[20]

Morne appeared in an early 1923 run of the John L. Hobble play, Daddies, starring Vincent Coleman.[23] Later that year, she played at the Ritz Theatre alongside Robert Strange in a production of In Love With Love.[24] The production, which also featured Lynn Fontanne, Henry Hull, and Berton Churchill,[25] was deemed one of the best plays of the 1923–24 season by Burns Mantle.[26]

In 1930, Morne was cast in the mystery film The Last of the Lone Wolf, starring Bert Lytell and Patsy Ruth Miller.[27][28] She played the Queen of Saxonia opposite on-screen partner Alfred Hickman.[27]

1921 peace dollar.

Peace dollar

In 1921, the United States Mint invited artists to submit designs for the peace dollar, a coin intended to celebrate the ending of the First World War.[29] The winner, Anthony de Francisci, submitted a design featuring the Goddess of Liberty in profile.[6] Though his primary model was his wife, Teresa de Francisci, he described the face as a "composite [that] typified something of America,"[6][30] leading to speculation that another influence for the coin had been Maryland Morne.[1][5][31] The media referred to Morne by variations of the moniker "peace dollar girl," such as "million dollar girl."[13][32][33][34][35]

Other creative endeavours

Morne enjoyed writing.[16][36] Over the course of filming In the Heart of a Fool, she met William Allen White, the writer whose novel formed the basis of director Dwan's screenplay.[16] He shared an idea for a novel with Morne, and gave her his blessing to write the work on his behalf.[16] Morne also wrote poetry in her spare time.[36]

Personal life

Morne married three times. Her first husband was Herbert Hughes, a real estate agent and rancher.[37][38][34] They married in 1914 against the wishes of Morne's family, and claimed to have met while attending college together, though Morne was around 15 years old at the time.[7] They divorced in May 1918, after Hughes refused to support her and their child financially.[39] Her second husband was Joel Benito Revira; they married on July 28, 1924.[5][40]

Morne married actor Eugene Strong in December 1934,[41] shortly before she died from tuberculosis complications in Los Angeles in July 1935.[3][6][35][34] She was cremated and interred at the Abbey of the Psalms mausoleum at Hollywood Forever Cemetery.[3][42] She was survived by her daughter, Barbara Rovira.[40][42] After briefly working in the film industry herself, Rovira ran a ranch (Rancho Rovira) in Crestline and bred purebred Morgan horses.[43][44]

Filmography

In the Heart of a Fool (1920).

Extant media

Other appearances

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "MRS. EUGENE STRONG.; Known in Motion Pictures as 'Peace Dollar' Girl". The New York Times. 1935-07-21. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2026-04-03.
  2. 1 2 3 Vazzana, Eugene Michael (1995). Silent Film Necrology: Births and Deaths of Over 9000 Performers, Directors, Producers, and Other Filmmakers of the Silent Era, Through 1993. McFarland. p. 236. ISBN 978-0-7864-0132-1.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 Wilson, Scott (2016-09-05). Resting Places: The Burial Sites of More Than 14,000 Famous Persons, 3d ed. McFarland. p. 532. ISBN 978-0-7864-7992-4.
  4. ↑ "Maryland Strong". Variety. July 24, 1935. p. 62.
  5. 1 2 3 4 "Revira-Morne". The Billboard. August 9, 1924. p. 114.
  6. 1 2 3 4 Chorba, Terence (2018). "Peace, Liberty, Mycobacteria, and Tuberculosis Mortality". Emerging Infectious Diseases. 24 (3): 611–612. doi:10.3201/eid2403.AC2403. ISSN 1080-6040. PMC 5823360.
  7. 1 2 3 4 "Romantic Wedding for Camarillo Youth". The Oxnard Daily Courier. Vol. 8, no. 54. 23 March 1914. p. 1.
  8. 1 2 Ragan, David (1992). Who's Who in Hollywood . The Largest Cast of International Film Personalities Ever Assembled. Vol. 2. p. 1188. ISBN 978-0816020119.
  9. 1 2 3 Motion Picture Studio Directory. Motion Picture News, Incorporated. 1921. p. 233.
  10. ↑ "MAY CHANGE HER NAME TO PLEASE ANCESTORS". Los Angeles Herald. 19 September 1921. p. 6.
  11. ↑ "L A. OPENS DRIVE TO GAIN TOBACCO FOR U. S. SOLDIERS". Los Angeles Herald. 7 November 1917. p. 1.
  12. ↑ The Picture Show. Vol. 6. May 13, 1922. p. 4.
  13. 1 2 "Looks Like Goddess". The Telegraph-Herald. The Telegraph-Herald. February 2, 1922.
  14. ↑ AFI Catalog. "Maryland Morne". catalog.afi.com. AFI Catalog of Feature Films. Retrieved 2026-04-04.
  15. 1 2 "Allan Dwan's "In the Heart of a Fool," Problem Play, Is Set for Fall Release". Moving Picture World. July 3, 1920. p. 116.
  16. 1 2 3 4 "Dwan Star in New Feature". The Los Angeles Times. 1920-11-17. p. 23.
  17. ↑ ""Tempest" Charms With Its Magicry". The Los Angeles Times. 1921-06-03. p. 4.
  18. ↑ "Skilled Players in "The Tempest" Cast". The Los Angeles Times. 1921-05-29. p. 2.
  19. ↑ "MARYLAND MORNE TO HAVE PARTY AT BOWL OPENING". Los Angeles Herald. 12 September 1921. p. 12.
  20. 1 2 3 Moss, Marilyn (2011-06-01). Raoul Walsh: The True Adventures of Hollywood's Legendary Director. University Press of Kentucky. pp. 77, 417. ISBN 978-0-8131-3394-2.
  21. 1 2 The Silent Picture. 1969. p. 15.
  22. ↑ Rainey, Buck (2014-02-28). The Reel Cowboy: Essays on the Myth in Movies and Literature. McFarland. p. 125. ISBN 978-0-7864-9365-4.
  23. ↑ "Stock Chatter". The Billboard. April 14, 1923. p. 27.
  24. ↑ Whyte, Gordon (18 August 1923). ""In Love With Love"". The Billboard. pp. 36–37.
  25. ↑ Allen, Kelcey (July 10, 1923). "Amusements". Women's Wear. Vol. 27, no. 8. p. 8.
  26. ↑ Mantle, Burns (1924). The Best Plays of 1923–4. Dodd, Mead & Co. p. 295.
  27. 1 2 3 Brewer, Conde (1930-10-11). "Last of the Lone Wolf". The Billboard. p. 11.
  28. ↑ Wid's Year Book. Film and Television Daily. 1932. p. 412.
  29. ↑ Roach, Steve (September 18, 2015). "The intriguing history of the Peace Dollar". CoinWorld. Retrieved 2026-04-03.
  30. ↑ Keane, Maribeth; Quinn, Brad. "Controversial Coin: The Peace Dollar". Collectors Weekly. Retrieved 2026-04-03.
  31. ↑ Dean, Daisy (4 February 1922). "Maryland Morne, the "Dollar Girl."". The Rock Island Argus. p. 10.
  32. ↑ Dean, James W. (6 February 1922). "A New Standard of Beauty is Introduced to the Movies". Fresno Bee. p. 6.
  33. ↑ "Maryland Morne, the "Dollar Girl."". Sacramento Daily Union. Vol. 224, no. 25904. 19 February 1922. p. 23.
  34. 1 2 3 "Ex-Camarillo Girl Dies in Los Angeles". The Oxnard Daily Courier. 24 July 1935. p. 1.
  35. 1 2 Spitzzeri, Paul R. (2020-10-09). "That's a Wrap with a Program from the Kinema Theater, Los Angeles, 2–8 October 1920". The Homestead Museum. Retrieved 2026-04-04.
  36. 1 2 "Film Flickers". Los Angeles Herald. 21 October 1921. p. 7.
  37. ↑ "ACTRESS IS GRANTED DIVORCE ON PLEA OF MAKING OWN LIVING". Los Angeles Herald. Vol. 43, no. 161. 8 May 1918. p. 1.
  38. ↑ "Herbert A. Hughes, Ex-Camarillan, Dies". Oxnard Press-Courier. 15 March 1952. p. 2.
  39. ↑ Price, Guy (May 24, 1918). "Coast Picture News". Variety. p. 39.
  40. 1 2 Who's who of American Women: A Biographical Dictionary of Notable Living American Women. Marquis-Who's Who. 1961. p. 852.
  41. ↑ County Recorder (Los Angeles County). "Los Angeles, California, United States records". FamilySearch. Catalog Collection California, County Marriages, 1849–1957.
  42. 1 2 "The Final Curtain". The Billboard. 1935-08-03. p. 28.
  43. ↑ Tetley, Rhea-Frances (2005). Crestline. Arcadia Publishing. p. 59. ISBN 978-0-7385-3083-3.
  44. ↑ Baxter, Clint (1991). The Umbrella Breed History. Blackjack Enterprises. p. 25.
  45. ↑ Institute, American Film (1997). The American Film Institute Catalog of Motion Pictures Produced in the United States. University of California Press. p. 422. ISBN 978-0-520-20969-5.
  46. ↑ "In the Heart of a Fool". Camera!. 17 April 1920. p. 5.
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