Viola Richard ~ The Beautiful Brunette

Viola richard was a beautiful silent film actress whose career ended with the talkies

She was born Evelyn Viola Richard born on January 26, 1904 in Hamilton, Canada, Her father, John H, Richard, was a rancher. When she was a child her family moved to Los Angeles, California. Viola made her film debut in the 1926 drama Exclusive Rights. The beautiful brunette was signed by Hal Roach studios in 1927. She appeared in numerous comedies including Flying Elephants, Dumb Daddies, and Should Married Men Go Home with Laurel and Hardy. With her bright eyes and vivacious personality she was often compared to Clara Bow. On August 22, 1928 she married her manager Alexander Kempner. Unfortunately her contract with Hal Roach was cancelled in 1928 and her carer quickly stalled. In 1929 she starred in the crime drama The Line Up, her first sound film. Soon after she and her husband moved to New York City where she began working on the stage. 

Viola had a small role in the 1934 Broadway play Geraniums At My Window. It closed after just twenty-seven  performances. She returned to the screen with a bit part in the 1935 comedy Tit For Tat. This would be her final film role. Her marriage to Alexander ended in 1938. During their divorce trial she claimed he was cruel and spent all their money gambling. Viola married Sydney Rusinow, a manufacturer from New Jersey, in 1942. They started a cosmetics company together. Tragically in 1951 Sydney died in a house fire. Two years later she married Lawrence McCafferty in Las Vegas. The couple moved to Carmel, California. On December 28, 1973 she died at the age of sixty-nine. Her cause of death was not made public. She was buried at Monterey City Cemetery in Monterey, California.