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Barbara Kent (December 16, 1907 – October 13, 2011) was a Canadian-born, U.S.-based film actress of the 1920s and '30s. Following the death of Miriam Seegar, she was the last surviving North American actor to have achieved substantial fame during the silent film era as an adult. Born as Barbara Cloutman in Gadsby, Alberta, to Jullion Curtis and Lily Louise (née Kent) Cloutman, she won the 21-year-old Miss Hollywood Pageant in 1925, the same year she graduated from Hollywood High School. She began her Hollywood career in 1925, aged 18, in a small role for Universal Studios, which signed... MORE

Barbara Kent (December 16, 1907 – October 13, 2011) was a Canadian-born, U.S.-based film actress of the 1920s and '30s. Following the death of Miriam Seegar, she was the last surviving North American actor to have achieved substantial fame during the silent film era as an adult. Born as Barbara Cloutman in Gadsby, Alberta, to Jullion Curtis and Lily Louise (née Kent) Cloutman, she won the 21-year-old Miss Hollywood Pageant in 1925, the same year she graduated from Hollywood High School. She began her Hollywood career in 1925, aged 18, in a small role for Universal Studios, which signed her to a contract that year. A brunette who stood less than five feet tall, Kent became popular as a comedienne opposite such stars as Reginald Denny. She made a strong impression as the heroine pitted against Greta Garbo's femme fatale in Flesh and the Devil in 1926 after Universal had loaned Kent to MGM to make the film. She attracted attention in the 1927 film No Man's Law by appearing to swim nude. She wore a flesh-coloured moleskin bathing suit in scenes that were considered very daring at the time. The popularity of this film led to her selection as one of the WAMPAS Baby Stars for 1927. She LESS