Thelma Hill

Her big break came in 1924 when she got the lead opposite Ralph Graves in the two-reel comedy "Love's Sweet Piffle." She was the first of Sennett's famous "Bathing Girls" to don the suit, and her "mah jongg" bathing suit earned her the nickname the "Mah Jongg Bathing Girl." She was also known as "Pee-Wee" from her early days on the lot. As she matured, she doubled for Mabel Normand, who often arrived late or not at all due to a cocaine habit. Thelma became a flapper, embracing the lifestyle's drinking and casual attitudes. That drinking would later contribute to her downfall.

She was one of the few Sennett bathing beauties to make it into feature films, appearing opposite Ben Turpin in "The Prodigal Bridegroom" and taking one of the two female leads in Laurel & Hardy's "Two Tars" (1928). She starred as Toots in the film adaptation of the comic strip "Toots and Casper," which ran from 1927 through 1929. Her willingness to take on unglamorous roles set her apart; she once donned thick black-rimmed glasses and a wild hairdo for a comedy. Even a brief appearance in W. C. Fields' "The Dentist" was later lost due to film degradation.

In 1927, she left Sennett for a stint with FBO and then signed with MGM for "The Fair Coed." Around that time, she became engaged to St. Elmo Boyce, her director on the "Toots and Casper" shorts. Both struggled with drinking, and Boyce committed suicide in 1930. Thelma did not transition well to talkies. She made over 20 films in 1929, but over the next five years she worked on just seven films. Her later credits include "The Golfers," "Two Plus Fours" with Bing Crosby, "The Miracle Woman" with Barbara Stanwyck, and a short educational film with a young Shirley Temple. Her final role was in "Mixed Nuts" at Hal Roach Studios in 1934.

She married John Sinclair, W. C. Fields' stunt double and gag writer, and settled into housewife life. Her health declined due to chronic alcoholism, diagnosed in 1932, and pellagra, diagnosed in 1937. She died on May 11, 1938, at age 31, from a cerebral hemorrhage. She was cremated and interred at Forest Lawn Memorial Park.