Introduction
Alta Allen (born Alta Crowin) (September 6, 1904 – July 24, 1998) was an American actress.
Biography
Allen was born in Oakland, California in 1904 to a Scottish mother, Jessie Robertson, and W. J. Crowin, who hailed from the West Coast. She made her first professional performance at an Oakland theater in a production of Louisa May Alcott's Little Women. Allen's role in this production was as Beth March. She was ten years old at the time.
In November 1920, Allen married the actor, screenwriter and director Hampton Del Ruth (the couple would later divorce). The same year, William Fox, the founder of the Fox Film Corporation, observed Allen as she performed the leading role at a musical revue within the Fairmont Hotel. Subsequently, she signed a contract with his studios, although she would only perform one role in any silent film released by Fox Film: the 1921 comedy Skirts. She would subsequently sign a contract with Universal Studios, and later appeared in several films released by this corporation, including The Marriage Chance (1922), and A Self-Made Failure (1924). Her final credited screen appearance occurred in 1926, as Thora Barton in the cast of The Set-Up.
Alta Allen died of natural causes at her Boonsboro home on June 24, 1998 the age of 93.
Filmography
| Year | Film | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1921 | A Shocking Night | Bessie Lane | |
| Seven Years Bad Luck | Betty | Max's Fiancée | |
| Be My Wife | Mary | The subject of the main characters' affections | |
| Skirts | Kidnapped girl | ||
| 1922 | The Marriage Chance | Eleanor Douglas | |
| 1924 | A Self-Made Failure | Mrs. Spike Malone | Alternative title: The Goof |
| Daring Chances | Agnes Rushton | ||
| 1926 | The Set-Up | Thora Barton | Daughter of Cliff Barton, the murder victim |
| Raggedy Rose | Rose's former co-worker | Uncredited role |