Volume III: Biographies

BENHAM, Dorothy **

Actress (1912-1916)

Thanhouser Career Synopsis: Dorothy Benham, young daughter of Thanhouser players Harry Benham and Ethyle Cooke Benham, was a well known Thanhouser child player during the 1912-1916 period.

Biographical Notes: Born on September 6, 1910 in Boston, Massachusetts (one account says New York City), Dorothy Lucille Benham was the daughter of Harry Benham and Ethyle Cooke, who later became prominent Thanhouser players. Little Dorothy spent most of her early life in New Rochelle and appeared in Thanhouser films as early as 1912. She received wide publicity for being able to cry instantly upon receiving a signal from her mother. She worked with Thanhouser through 1916, although not on an exclusive basis.

The New Rochelle Pioneer, November 7, 1914, printed this item: "Dorothy's first work was last year in Princess' Law of Humanity, just before she was three years of age, and she was irresistible in it. It was the opening wedge for the little mite and she's been in many pictures since, but her famous parents do not want to rush her screen appearance." (Note: The Law of Humanity was far from being her first film.)

On Saturday, August 7, 1915, her father left Thanhouser to act for Famous Players. This did not work out as planned, and soon he and his two children, Dorothy and Leland, were working for the Universal studio in Coytesville, New Jersey. For Universal Dorothy appeared in several films, including the February 1916 release of The Path of Happiness. She maintained her relationship with Thanhouser, however, and was seen in several later New Rochelle films.

Dorothy Benham remained in films through the late teens, including in a series of children's plays produced by the Atlas Film Corporation. In 1917 she was seen in Weavers of Life (Edward Morris Productions for Renowned Pictures, states rights release) and Edward Warren's production of The Warfare of the Flesh. She became the wife of Jack Tutton. Dorothy Benham died of Hodgkin's disease in Watertown, Wisconsin on September 19, 1956.

Thanhouser Filmography:

1912: The Wrecked Taxi (8-16-1912), The County's Prize Baby (11-12-1912)

1913: The Girl of the Cabaret (8-8-1913), Their Great Big Beautiful Doll (11-23-1913), The Law of Humanity (Princess 12-19-1913)

1914: A Circumstantial Nurse (Princess 1-9-1914), Her First Lesson (Princess 4-3-1914)

1915: The Commuted Sentence (11-2-1915), Mr. Meeson's Will (11-6-1915)

1916: The Whispered Word (3-15-1916), The Fugitive (8-13-1916)

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