Anna Luther

Anna Luther (July 7, 1897 – December 16, 1960) was an American silent film actress, born in New Jersey. She was the daughter of a New York sewing machine peddler.

Film career

She starred with William Garwood in films such as Her Moment in 1918. Among her other film credits include roles in The Lurking Peril (1919), The Fatal Plunge (1924), Sinners in Silk (1924), and Soul and Body (1921).

Newspapers described her hair as having an orange hue.

Her film career concluded with uncredited performances in Easy To Love (1953) and The Wayward Bus (1957).

Court litigation

Luther named Peggy Hopkins Joyce as a friend and Los Angeles, California mine operator and millionaire, Jack White, as a lover. White accompanied Luther to California as a theatrical producer. In June 1924 the actress brought a $100,000 breach of contract suit against White for allegedly promising to star her in four motion pictures. In a countersuit White demanded a $10,000 refund spent on the Luther film and charged Luther with having a bad reputation. White contended that he did not violate the Mann Act merely by sharing the same drawing room with Luther on their journey west.

Some of the witnesses anticipated for the trial were Charlie Chaplin, Evelyn Nesbit, Pearl White, and Mabel Normand. White's attorneys brought up the death of murdered silent film director William Desmond Taylor. They claimed Luther told White to pay or watch out for what happened to Taylor.

During court proceedings Luther admitted paying $2,500 in rent for her place in Great Neck, although she possessed a bank balance of only $141 at the time. White admitted having a contract with Luther but his lawyers succeeded in getting Luther to make a number of admissions which hurt her case. The presiding judge dropped Luther's suit because of her failure to prove a legal contract between herself and White. After the trial's conclusion Luther filed notice of motion for a new trial.

Marriage and scandal

Luther was married to Edward Gallagher of the Gallagher and Shean vaudeville comedy team. She and Gallagher separated in February 1924, with her husband continuing to play on the road and Luther returning to making motion pictures. In March 1925 she was named as co-respondent in a lawsuit brought by actress Dagmar Godowsky. Godowsky began divorce proceedings after claiming to have discovered Luther with her husband, actor Frank Mayo, in Mayo's apartment.

Death

Luther died at the Motion Picture Country Home in Woodland Hills in 1960. She was 63. She had been a California resident for twenty years. Her funeral was conducted by Pierce Brothers of Hollywood at Mount Sinai Cemetery Chapel.

Selected filmography

References

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