Diane Ellis

Diane Ellis, born Jeanne Diane Ellis on December 20, 1909, in Los Angeles, California, was an American actress whose career, though brief, left a mark on late-1920s cinema. Her father, Walter Ellis, was a butcher. After her mother's death, she was raised by her grandparents. She attended Virgil Junior High and Fairfax High School before working as a secretary at the Film Research Bureau. A director spotted her there and offered her a role in the 1927 comedy Is Zat So?, where she was billed as Dione Ellis. That led to parts in Happiness Ahead and The Leatherneck, and her performances earned good reviews. Pathe Studios signed her, and she costarred with Carole Lombard in High Voltage.

When Pathe declined to renew her contract, she moved to New York City, appearing in the Broadway show Nine-Fifteen Review. She also had a supporting role in the 1930 comedy Laughter, starring Nancy Carroll; it would be her final film. On October 15, 1930, she married Stephen C. Millet, a wealthy businessman, in Paris, France. The couple embarked on an extended worldwide honeymoon. In early December, while in Madras, India, she fell ill with an infection. According to her grandmother, she underwent an operation there. Tragically, she died on December 15, 1930, at just twenty years old. Her ashes were taken to the Millet family estate in Milford, England.