Claire McDowell

Personal Info

Birthday

October 31, 1877

Day of Death

1966-10-23

(88 years old)

Place of Birth

New York City, New York, USA

Also Known As

Claire MacDowell

Clare Mc Dowell

Doris Carlton

Claire McDowell

Biography

Claire McDowell (2 November 1877 – 23 October 1966) was an American actress. She appeared in 360 films between 1908 and 1945.

Still somewhat of a youthful beauty when she started in early silent films, McDowell appeared in numerous films, eventually graduating to playing character and mother types. She can be seen to good advantage in Douglas Fairbanks's 1920 The Mark of Zorro. McDowell appeared in two of the biggest films of the silent era, The Big Parade (1925) and Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ (1925), both in which she played mothers.

Known For

It Happened One Night

Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ

The Golden Fleecing

The Mark of Zorro

The Strange Love of Molly Louvain

Song of Revolt

Boys Town

The Big Parade

Filmography

1945
Adventure
as Woman in Library (uncredited)
1944
Andy Hardy's Blonde Trouble
as Dr. Standish's Servant (uncredited)
Men on Her Mind
as Mother Goodwin
1943
Du Barry Was a Lady
as Subway Passenger
This Land Is Mine
as Woman in Bathroom
Presenting Lily Mars
as Dowager
Hangmen Also Die!
as Counterwoman (uncredited)
1941
Lady Scarface
as Mrs. Tuckerman
Whispers
as Gossip (uncredited)
1940
Dr. Kildare Goes Home
as Nurse for Mr. Winslow (uncredited)
The Golden Fleecing
as Pedestrian (uncredited)
A Failure at Fifty
as Minor Role (uncredited)
Young Tom Edison
as Woman at Station
1939
Joe and Ethel Turp Call on the President
as Gossiper
Thunder Afloat
as Nurse (uncredited)
One Against the World
as Jane Todd Crawford (uncredited)
Miracles for Sale
as Jack of Diamonds Woman
Angel of Mercy
as Mother (uncredited)
Idiot's Delight
as Crying Mother
Stand Up and Fight
as Woman
1938
Boys Town
as Nun (uncredited)
The Man on the Rock
as Napoleon's Mother (uncredited)
They're Always Caught
as Mrs. Fletcher (uncredited)
Three Comrades
as Landlady Frau Zalewski (uncredited)
Test Pilot
as Funeral Home Associate (uncredited)
1937
A Night at the Movies
as Movie Patron (uncredited)
Two-Fisted Sheriff
as Miss Herrick - Molly's Aunt
Song of Revolt
as Artistocratic Dowager (uncredited)
1936
Small Town Girl
as Woman in Bed (uncredited)
August Week End
as Alma Washburne
1935
Murder by Television
as Mrs. Houghland
1934
Imitation of Life
as Teacher Outside Classroom (uncredited)
Two Heads on a Pillow
as Mrs. Helen Gorman
British Agent
as Woman Saying 'Lenin will Live' (uncredited)
Dr. Monica
as Miss Bryerly (uncredited)
Journal of a Crime
as Sister at Hospital (uncredited)
It Happened One Night
as Mother on Bus (uncredited)
Bedside
as Nurse
1933
Wild Boys of the Road
as Mrs. Smith
By Appointment Only
as Mrs. Mary Carroll
The Working Man
as Benjamin's Secretary
Central Airport
as Mrs. Blaine
1932
Lawyer Man
as Gilmurry's Secretary (uncredited)
A Successful Calamity
as Struthers' Secretary (uncredited)
The Phantom Express
as Ma Nolan
Cornered
as Jane's Aunt
The Strange Love of Molly Louvain
as Ann Marie's Caregiver Mrs. Schiller (uncredited)
The Famous Ferguson Case
as Brooks' Landlady (uncredited)
Union Depot
as Little Boy's Mother (uncredited)
Under Eighteen
as Seamstress (uncredited)
1931
Manhattan Parade
as Nancy - the Maid
An American Tragedy
as Mrs. Samuel Griffiths
1930
Mothers Cry
as Mary's Mother
Brothers
as Bess Naughton
Wild Company
as Mrs. Laura Grayson
The Big House
as Mrs. Marlowe
Young Desire
as Mrs. Spencer
The Second Floor Mystery
as Aunt Hattie
Redemption
as Anna Pavlovna
1929
The Quitter
as Mrs. Abbott
Silks and Saddles
as Mrs. Calhoun
The Flying Fleet
as Mrs. Hastings (uncredited)
1928
The Viking
as Lady Editha (as Claire MacDowell)
Don't Marry
as Aunt Abigail Bowen
The Tragedy of Youth
as Mother
1927
Almost Human
as Mrs. Livingston
The Shield of Honor
as Mrs. MacDowell
Winds of the Pampas
as Doña Maria Casandos
Tillie the Toiler
as Ma Jones
The Black Diamond Express
as Martha Foster
The Taxi Dancer
as Aunt Mary
The Auctioneer
as Mrs. Tim Eagan
A Little Journey
as Aunt Louise
1926
The Flaming Forest
as Mrs. McTavish
The Show Off
as Mom Fisher
The Unknown Soldier
as John Phillips' sister
The Shamrock Handicap
as Molly O'Shea
The Dixie Merchant
as Josephine Fippany
The Devil's Circus
as Mrs. Peterson
1925
Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ
as Princess of Hur
The Midnight Flyer
as Liza Slater
The Big Parade
as Mrs. Apperson
The Tower of Lies
as Katrina
The End of the World
as Mrs. Joyce
Waking Up the Town
as Mrs. Joyce
The Reckless Sex
as Concha
1924
Those Who Dare
as Mrs. Rollins
Secrets
as Elizabeth Channing
Thy Name Is Woman
as Juan's Mother
Judgment of the Storm
as Mrs. Heath
1923
Enemies of Children
as Godfrey sister
Ponjola
as Mrs. Hope
Ashes of Vengeance
as Margot's Aunt
Circus Days
as Martha
Human Wreckage
as Mrs. Brown
Michael O'Halloran
as Nancy Harding
The West~Bound Limited
as Mrs. Bill Buckley
1922
Quincy Adams Sawyer
as Mrs. Putnam
Heart's Haven
as May Caroline
Nice People
as Margaret Rainsford
Penrod
as Mrs. Schofield
Rent Free
as Countess de Mourney
1921
Love Never Dies
as Liz Trott
What Every Woman Knows
as Comtesse de la Brière
Midsummer Madness
as Mrs. Osborne
Prisoners of Love
as Her Mother
1920
The Mark of Zorro
as Dona Catalina Pulido
Something to Think About
as Housekeeper
The Jack-Knife Man
as Lize Merdin
Through Eyes of Men
as Mrs. Virginia All
The Gift Supreme
as Lalia Graun
The Woman in the Suitcase
as Mrs. James B. Moreland
1919
The Feud
as Mary Lynch
Heart o' the Hills
as Martha Hawn
Prudence on Broadway
as Miss Grayson
The Follies Girl
as Nina
1918
You Can't Believe Everything
as Grace Dardley
Captain of His Soul
as Annette
1917
The Empty Gun
as Mary
The Clean-Up
as Vera Vincent
The Bronze Bride
as A-Che-Chee
The Gates of Doom
as Indore / Agatha
Avarice
as The Miserly Old Woman
The White Raven
as Daisy
1916
The Right to Be Happy
as Mrs. Cratchit
Mixed Blood
as Nita Valyez
A Stranger from Somewhere
as Olga
1915
As It Happened
as The Ranchman's Daughter
Old Offenders
as Joe's Wife
Her Convert
as The Old Inventor's Daughter
The Way Out
as The Young School Teacher
Her Dormant Love
as The Discontented Wife
Truth Stranger Than Fiction
as Crook
The Canceled Mortgage
as The Widowed Mother
A Day's Adventure
as Hogan's Moll
The Gambler's I.O.U.
as Nell - Daddy Wilson's Daughter
The Miser's Legacy
as The Crook's Wife
The Sheriff's Dilemma
as Molly
The Heart of a Bandit
as Claire
1914
Men and Women
as Mrs. Stephen Rodman
Her Hand
as Olga
A Nest Unfeathered
as Kate
His Fireman's Conscience
as Mrs. Daily
Concentration
as The Mother
1913
The Abandoned Well
as The Widow
The House of Discord
as The Sister-in-Law
All for Science
as Detective
The Detective's Stratagem
as Kate, the Bank Clerk's Sweetheart
The Stopped Clock
as The Antique Dealer's Daughter
The Van Nostrand Tiara
as Kate
A Tender-Hearted Crook
as Edith
The Law and His Son
as Marguerite, Manning's Sister
The Stolen Treaty
as Olga
The Strong Man's Burden
as Ida Glynn, The Nurse
The Crook and the Girl
as The Uncle's Adopted Daughter
The Work Habit
as The Daughter in the City
Under the Shadow of the Law
as John Haywood's Sister
I Was Meant for You
as Lavina
The Vengeance of Galora
as Galora
A Misappropriated Turkey
as Mrs. Fallon / Widow Logan
The Mirror
as Daisy
A Gambler's Honor
as Beth
A Gamble with Death
as Kate
The Switchtower
as The Switchman's Wife
The Well
as The Farmer's Wife
The Enemy's Baby
as Miller's Wife
The Ranchero's Revenge
as The Schemer's Associate
Olaf—An Atom
as A Parent
The House of Darkness
as The Doctor's Wife
The Stolen Loaf
as The Rich Woman
The Tenderfoot's Money
as The Prospector's Wife
The Wanderer
as The Female Lover
The Stolen Bride
as The Wife
The Unwelcome Guest
as The Wife
The Wrong Bottle
as The Blind Sister
The Telephone Girl and the Lady
as The Lady
1912
The God Within
as The Woodsman's Wife
A Cry for Help
as The Thief's Wife - the Charity Patient
The Massacre
as Stephen's Belle - In Prologue
The New York Hat
as The Main Gossip
A Sailor’s Heart
as The Sailor's Third Sweetheart
In the Aisles of the Wild
as The Elder Daughter
So Near, Yet So Far
as Rich Woman in Other Town
Two Daughters of Eve
as The Mother
Man's Genesis
as Cave Woman
The School Teacher and the Waif
as The Street Fakir's Sweetheart
Lena and the Geese
as Lena's Mother
A Temporary Truce
as Mexican Jim's Wife
When the Fire-Bells Rang
as An Actress
The Old Actor
as At Audition
The Female of the Species
as The Miner's Wife
A String of Pearls
as The Italian Shoemaker's Wife
The Sunbeam
as The Spinster
Under Burning Skies
as The Friend
The Sands of Dee
as Artist's fiancee
Billy's Stratagem
as Billy's Mother
The Baby and the Stork
as The Mother
1911
A Woman Scorned
as The Doctor's Wife
The Long Road
as Ned's Wife
The Adventures of Billy
as Rich Woman
The Squaw's Love
as Silver Fawn
Swords and Hearts
as Irene Lambert
A Country Cupid
as The Half-Wit's Mother
The Primal Call
as The Woman
The Manicure Lady
as Lunchroom Hostess
A Decree of Destiny
as A Nun
Fisher Folks
as At Fair
What Shall We Do with Our Old?
as The Old Carpenter's Wife
Fate's Turning
as At Hotel/At Wedding
His Trust Fulfilled
as Mrs. Frazier
His Trust
as Col. Frazier's wife
1910
The Golden Supper
as Lady-in-Waiting
Waiter No. 5
as The Chief of Police's Wife
The Message of the Violin
as The Other Woman's Servant
The Oath and the Man
as Rebel
Muggsy Becomes a Hero
as One of the Sisters Frost
Wilful Peggy
as Housemaid
The Usurer
as Despairing Mother / One of the Third Debtors
A Flash of Light
as At First Party
1908
The Call of the Wild
as Party Guest
The Planter's Wife
as Mrs. John Holland