Virginia Brown Faire

Virginia Brown Faire (born Virginia Cecelia Labuna;[1] June 26, 1904 – June 30, 1980) was an American silent film actress, appearing in dramatic films and, later, in sound westerns.

Virginia Brown Faire
Portrait by Albert Witzel, 1920s
Born
Virginia Cecelia Labuna

(1904-06-26)June 26, 1904
Brooklyn, New York, U.S.
DiedJune 30, 1980(1980-06-30) (aged 76)
Laguna Beach, California, U.S.
Other namesVirginia Faire Brown
Virginia Brown Fair
Virginia Browne Faire
OccupationActress
Years active1920–1935
Spouse(s)
​
​
(m. 1927; div. 1928)​

​
​
(m. 1930; died 1933)​

William Bayer
​
(m. 1935)​

Early years

Virginia Cecelia Labuna was born in Brooklyn, New York, the daughter of Joseph Labuna and Martha Delsand.[2] Other sources have her last name as La Buna.[3][4] She attended Wadleigh High School for Girls.[2]

She was brought to Hollywood in 1919 after being one of the four winners of the Motion Picture Classic magazine's "Fame and Fortune" contest, which she had entered as Virginia Brown, using her stepfather's last name.[4]

Film

Not long after she turned 15 years old that she presented herself at the Metro studio where she was almost immediately put on. Shortly after she appeared in pictures for Fox, she was with Universal.[5] Between 1920 and 1935, she appeared in some 75 films. Her first film credit was the 1920 film Runnin' Straight, a Hoot Gibson short western at Universal. Faire was the leading lady of John Gilbert in Monte Cristo (1922). She was selected as one of the WAMPAS Baby Stars in 1923 and appeared with Wallace and Noah Beery in Stormswept that same year. She is most remembered for her role as Tinker Bell in the 1924 film Peter Pan.[2]

In 1926 she had a small role in the Greta Garbo film The Temptress. She made it through the transition of sound, making a successful talkie in Frank Capra's The Donovan Affair (1929), but was soon appearing in more low-budget films. Faire appeared in several westerns, opposite Hoot Gibson, Buck Jones, John Wayne and Ken Maynard. Faire left Hollywood for Chicago, Illinois in the late 1930s. She worked in radio and several films for industries prior to retiring to the west coast.[6]

Personal life

Faire married actor Jack Dougherty on February 6, 1927. They separated in September of that year and reconciled briefly, but they separated again by April 5, 1928,[7] and she filed for divorce on June 22, 1928.[8]

She married director Duke Worne on January 29, 1930.[9] Worne died in 1933.[10] In 1935, she married furniture manufacturer William Bayer, and they remained wed until her death.[3]

Death

Faire died of cancer on June 30, 1980 in Laguna Beach, California, aged 76.[6]

Selected filmography
Gleb W. Derujinsky with Faire as his model in 1920

References
  1. Staff Writer (February 9, 1930). "Another Marriage". Detroit Free Press. 99 (281). Detroit, Michigan. Part 4, p.3 – via Newspapers.com. In taking out the license Miss Faire gave her off-stage name, Virginia Cecilia Labuna, and her age as 25 years.
  2. Katchmer, George A. (2002). A Biographical Dictionary of Silent Film Western Actors and Actresses. McFarland. p. 110. ISBN 978-0786446933. Retrieved 12 November 2016.
  3. Wagner, Laura (Fall 2016). "Virginia Brown Faire: B Western Leading Lady". Films of the Golden Age (86): 72–73.
  4. Slide, Anthony (2010). Silent Players: A Biographical and Autobiographical Study of 100 Silent Film Actors and Actresses. University Press of Kentucky. pp. 121–125. ISBN 978-0813137452. Retrieved 12 November 2016.
  5. Fox, Charles Donald; Silver, Milton L., eds. (1920). Who's Who on the Screen. New York City: Ross Publishing Company. p. 212.
  6. Staff Writer (July 11, 1980). "Virginia Brown Faire, 75, Actress, Starred in 1922 'Monte Cristo'". New York Times. 129 (44641). p. A15.
  7. Staff Writer (April 6, 1928). "Screen Pair Decides on Separation". The Los Angeles Times. 47. Part II, p. 10 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. Staff Writer (June 23, 1928). "Suit Filed by Actress for Divorce". The Los Angeles Times. 47. Part II, p. 3 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. Staff Writer (January 29, 1930). "Movie Couple to Wed in Mountains". Santa Ana Register. 25 (53). Santa Ana, California. p. 1 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. Staff Writer (October 15, 1933). "Duke Worne, Veteran Film Actor and Director, Dies". Chicago Tribune. 92 (42). Chicago, Illinois. Part 1, p. 22 – via Newspapers.com.
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