Zita Moulton

Zita Moulton (1883 – December 25, 1987), also known as Zita Gordon, was an American model and actress who appeared in theatre and film in the 1920s and 30s. She was featured in fashion photographs throughout the period[1][2][3] and performed in Duffy stage productions.[4]

Zita Moulton
Born1883
Boston, Massachusetts, US
DiedDecember 25, 1987 (aged 104)
El Paso, Texas, US
Other namesZita Gordon
Alma materRadcliffe College
Occupation(s)Actress, model, dress seller
Years active1921–1937
SpouseHarvey M. Gordon
Children2
From a 1923 clothing advertisement

A Bostonian, Moulton began performing on stage after a bet from her fiancé at the time that she would be able to get an acting job within 24 hours. Performing in productions starting in 1921, she had a number of main roles before being cast in multiple films alongside Francis X. Bushman starting in 1923. These shows increased her popularity and she was featured in many fashion magazines of the time, including Vogue. She continued in theatre and film roles until she left acting in 1937 before moving to El Paso, Texas, and becoming a dress shop owner and spending her time caring for stray and sick animals.

Career

Born in Boston, Moulton graduated from Radcliffe College. At the age of 16 while engaged, she made a bet with her fiancé that she would be able to get hired for the theatre within 24 hours.[5] She went to a local Boston booking agency and asked for a part in a stage play, and was assigned to a theatre company located in Toronto, Canada, for two weeks before being assigned to another company for a longer five-month contract. She later had a major role in a 1921 production of Leo Ditrichstein's Toto as Baroness de Verdiere, one of the six main cast members. Then she was given the lead role in Smooth as Silk that same year and kept on with the production until 1922. She was contracted beginning in 1923 to films involving Francis X. Bushman and Beverly Bayne, starring in their 1923 release of Modern Marriage.[5] After the film's premiere, she and the other actors went on tour across the United States and acted out the first scene of the film on theatre stages across the country. This promotional tour was the first "personal appearance" done by film actors.[6]

Her theatre roles resulted in her being featured in glamour magazines, including Vogue, Town & Country, and Theatre Weekly. Throughout the 1920s, she was shown in advertisements as a "clothes horse" for presenting clothing styles and brands.[5] In 1932, she was signed for roles in Sinners in the Sun and alongside George Arliss in A Successful Calamity.[7]

Personal life

During her initial contract in Toronto, Moulton met a Canadian officer named Captain Harvey M. Gordon and they married six years afterwards. He became sick in 1953 and, in order to stay near him and his hospital, Moulton opened a dress shop in El Paso, Texas.[5] Harvey Gordon died from his illness on May 10, 1955.[8] Moulton continued living in El Paso until her death on December 25, 1987, at the age of 104.[6]

Moulton's personal hobby was caring for animals, ranging from dogs to seagulls to seals, and she frequently had healing animals in her home. She considered the most important event in her life was her 1939 radio appearance on the Dave Elman's Hobby Lobby show where she discussed her hobby referred to as "Kindness To Animals".[9][10][11]

Theater
  • Toto (1921) as Baroness de Verdiere[12]
  • Smooth as Silk (1921) as Rosina[13]
  • The Common Law (1922) as Rita Tevis[14]
  • Johnny Walker (1922) as Margery Dawes[15]
  • His Chinese Wife (1926) as Cecelia Sturgis[16]
  • This Thing Called Love (1929)[17]
  • The Skull (1929)[18]

Filmography

References
  1. Thorold, W. J.; Hornblow, Arthur; Maxwell, Perriton; Beach, Stewart, eds. (1922). "Originality And Distinction Are Combined In The Personal Frocks of Zita Moulton". Theatre Magazine. Vol. 36. Theatre Magazine Company. p. 47. Archived from the original on July 30, 2022. Retrieved July 30, 2022.
  2. "Fashion As Interpreted By The Actress". Theatre Magazine. Vol. 37. Theatre Magazine Company. 1923. p. 48. Archived from the original on September 19, 2022. Retrieved July 30, 2022.
  3. "Smart Accessories Which Denote Distinctive Fashion". Arts & Decoration. Vol. 18. Hewitt Publishing Company. 1922. p. 58. Archived from the original on July 30, 2022. Retrieved July 30, 2022.
  4. "Zita Moulton Hurt In Crash". The San Francisco Examiner. November 5, 1930. Archived from the original on August 24, 2022. Retrieved August 23, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. Webb, Mary Margaret (March 5, 1953). "Actress Tells How She Ran Up Stairs, Got Breathless Start In Show Business". El Paso Herald-Post. Archived from the original on August 24, 2022. Retrieved August 24, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. Davis, Mary Margaret (December 29, 1987). "Ex-actress, 104, dies in El Paso". El Paso Times. Archived from the original on August 28, 2022. Retrieved August 28, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. Kingsley, Grace (February 22, 1932). "Zita Moulton Signed". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on August 25, 2022. Retrieved August 24, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. Carroll, Ann (February 15, 1957). "Remedy for 'Track Blues' Can Be Had in Court Suit". El Paso Herald-Post. Archived from the original on August 28, 2022. Retrieved August 28, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. Bird, Drury (July 23, 1954). "El Paso Woman Has Hobby Of Being Kind To Animals". El Paso Times. Archived from the original on August 28, 2022. Retrieved August 28, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. Bird, Drury (November 9, 1958). "Animals Age Quickly, Need Special Treatment". El Paso Times. Archived from the original on August 28, 2022. Retrieved August 28, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. Bird, Drury (November 19, 1961). "Story Moral: Don't Give Up All Hope When Dog Is Lost". El Paso Times. Archived from the original on August 28, 2022. Retrieved August 28, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. "Is That So!". Dramatic Mirror and Theatre World. Vol. 83. Dramatic Mirror Incorporated. 1921. p. 617. Archived from the original on July 31, 2022. Retrieved July 31, 2022.
  13. Thorold, W. J.; Hornblow, Arthur; Maxwell, Perriton; Beach, Stewart, eds. (1921). "Mr. Hornblow Goes To The Play". Theatre Magazine. Vol. 33. Theatre Magazine Company. p. 342. Archived from the original on July 30, 2022. Retrieved July 30, 2022.
  14. "Two New Players Join Payton Stock Company". The Scranton Times-Tribune. January 9, 1922. Archived from the original on July 31, 2022. Retrieved July 31, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  15. "At The Theatre: "Johnny Walker" At Broadway". The Daily Record. September 8, 1922. Archived from the original on August 25, 2022. Retrieved August 24, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  16. ""His Chinese Wife" At The Castle SQ". The Boston Globe. November 2, 1926. Archived from the original on July 31, 2022. Retrieved July 31, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  17. "In Stage and Screen Comedies". Los Angeles Evening Post-Record. May 8, 1929. Archived from the original on July 31, 2022. Retrieved July 31, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  18. "'Skull' Now In Second Week". The San Francisco Examiner. February 26, 1929. Archived from the original on August 28, 2022. Retrieved August 27, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  19. "Old Favorites In Person at Miller Monday". The Wichita Eagle. June 24, 1923. Archived from the original on July 31, 2022. Retrieved July 31, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  20. American Film Institute (1997). The American Film Institute Catalog of Motion Pictures Produced in the United States, Part 1. University of California Press. p. 58. ISBN 9780520209695. Archived from the original on April 22, 2022. Retrieved July 24, 2022.
  21. Nollen, Scott Allen; Nollen, Yuyun Yuningsih (December 26, 2019). Chester Morris: His Life and Career. McFarland & Company. p. 270. ISBN 9781476677293. Archived from the original on July 31, 2022. Retrieved July 24, 2022.
  22. Cameron, Kate (May 21, 1932). "Joe E. Brown Cavorts In Slick Comedy At Strand". New York Daily News. Archived from the original on August 28, 2022. Retrieved August 27, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  23. "Department Store Life Revealed On Screen In "Employees' Entrance"". The Paducah Sun-Democrat. February 16, 1933. Archived from the original on August 28, 2022. Retrieved August 27, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  24. Marill, Alvin H. (December 8, 2004). Mickey Rooney: His Films, Television Appearances, Radio Work, Stage Shows, and Recordings. McFarland & Company. p. 94. ISBN 9780786420155. Archived from the original on July 31, 2022. Retrieved July 24, 2022.
  25. Kinnard, Roy; Crnkovich, Tony (July 11, 2015). The Films of Fay Wray. McFarland & Company. p. 151. ISBN 9781476604152. Archived from the original on July 31, 2022. Retrieved July 24, 2022.
  26. "State and Orpheum: "The Awful Truth"". The Boston Globe. November 12, 1937. Archived from the original on August 28, 2022. Retrieved August 28, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
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