Mickey Starling
reporter3@greenepublishing.com
Madison County has a pretty good list of famous athletes, actors and singers whose laurels are resting in the history books. From Ray Charles to Jessie Solomon, Chris Thompson and Lorenzo Cain, many success stories span the pages of Madison’s finest.
The silver screen is no exception for local talents making it big. One local product to see her name in lights was Elizabeth Patterson Dial, who was born in 1902, the daughter of William Dial, a hardware merchant. Their home is located across from Four Freedoms Park, in Madison.
Dropping her first name, Dial left Madison at a young age, making her way to Hollywood, finding the success and glamour she sought as an actress on the silent screen. At 14, she appeared in her first film, “Gloria’s Romance.” Dial went on to appear in 13 more films, including “Secrets,” which can be viewed on Amazon Prime.
At the age of 22, Dial’s beauty caught the attention of movie director and novelist Rupert Hughes, the uncle of billionaire Howard Hughes. They soon married, though Hughes was 23 years her senior. Marriage caused Dial to leave acting and pursue writing.
Twenty years into their marriage, Dial mysteriously died in her sleep. She had taken sleeping pills, perhaps resulting in an overdose. The cause of death was never confirmed as an accident or suicide, though some historical sites state suicide as the cause of death.
Hughes adamantly defended his wife against that proposition, saying she was in good spirits the night of her death and they had made plans for the following day. However, he admitted she suffered from bouts of depression when her writing wasn’t up to her standards.
Just a few years before Dial made it big, Madison’s own Gladys Thornton began paving the path to stardom in 1905, when she stole the show in a play entitled “Young Mrs. Winthrop.” The play ran for only one night locally but successfully ran for over a year on Broadway. Thornton was only six years old at the time and went on to enjoy a brilliant career on Broadway, in radio and acting in Hollywood.
Thornton was gifted with the ability to use voice inflections masterfully. Thornton was well-known by radio listeners, as she was a regular on commercials and numerous broadcasts. Thornton voiced Aunt Jemima for “The Aunt Jemima Show,” Aunt Addie, on “One Man’s Son” and many others.
Thornton continued her success in Hollywood, where she debuted at the age of 55, though working much less than during her radio days. She had the opportunity to work with singer Bobby Darin, Sandra Dee and Lee Marvin, among others.
Thornton passed away in 1964, after a lengthy illness and was buried in Hollywood Memorial Park, in Hollywood, Calif.