Diminutive red-headed actress, playwright and screenwriter. Her
marriage to star actor Basil Rathbone was
one of the most enduring in show business, lasting from 1926 until his
death in 1967. The Rathbones were legendary in the 1930's for giving
the most lavish Hollywood parties at their luxurious mansion in the Los
Feliz Hills, replete with a 60-foot dining hall. The villa had once
been home to famed heavyweight boxer
Jack Dempsey and his wife, actress
Estelle Taylor.
Ouida was of Spanish, French and English extraction and moved to
America in her early teens. After completing her education, she joined
the Shubert Stock Company in Brooklyn. Having gained experience in
vaudeville, she starred in the 1911 Broadway melodrama
'The Stranger'
with Wilton Lackaye
at the Bijou. A multi-faceted woman, she ran a talent agency during
World War I, whose illustrious clients included
Adolphe Menjou,
Lionel Atwill and
Alla Nazimova. From 1915, she forsook the
stage for a career as a writer, at once doing articles and short
stories for The New York Herald and scenarios/screenplays for motion
pictures. In 1921, she wrote the script and designed the costumes for
'Peter Ibbetson'. Her screen writing career lasted until 1923 and
included work for Goldwyn, Pathe, First National and Paramount (at one
time heading their scenario department).
In 1921, Ouida saw Basil Rathboon on stage in the Broadway play 'The
Czarina' and was smitten. After meeting at a party two years later, the
feeling turned out to be decidedly mutual and Ouida forthwith retired
from films to become Hollywood's premier socialite, and, after 1926,
Mrs. Basil Rathbone. She continued to write occasional plays, notably
'Sherlock Holmes' in 1953, as a vehicle for her husband.
