Classic Movie Travels June: Helen Chandler
Helen Chandler was born on February 1, 1909, in New York, New York, to Leland and Frances Chandler. Across different census records and documents, her year of birth, however, has been widely disputed, documented as 1906, 1909, and 1911. Her father worked as a salesman and club manager and her mother was a housewife, raising two children: Helen and Leland Jr.
Chandler’s mother wanted her children to have careers as actors. As a result, Chandler attended the Professional Children’s School in New York before making her Broadway debut in 1918 at the Globe Theatre in Penrod. She frequently appeared in various renditions of Shakespeare’s tragedies.
After appearing in over twenty Broadway plays, she made her film debut in The Music Master (1927). She also performed alongside the likes of Leslie Howard and Douglas Fairbanks Jr., in Outward Bound (1930). Chandler received critical praise for her performances and continued her film career with The Last Flight (1931), Vanity Street (1932), and Christopher Strong (1933). At the same time, she made frequent appearances on the radio and in stage performances in Los Angeles, New York, and abroad in London. Despite many more performances in films, her best-remembered role is that of Mina in Dracula (1931).
In the late 1930s, Chandler struggled with alcoholism and a reliance on sleeping pills as her acting roles waned. This also led to several instances in which she was hospitalized and committed to a sanitarium.
Chandler was married a total of three times. In 1930, Chandler married writer Cyril Hume. They divorced in 1934. Her next marriage was to actor Bramwell Fletcher in 1935, which ended in a 1940 divorce. Her final marriage was to merchant seaman Walter Piascik, which lasted from 1943 until her passing.
In 1950, Chandler fell asleep while smoking in her apartment, leading to a devastating fire that left her disfigured. Her issues with alcoholism became much worse from this point on as she navigated this difficult period.
Chandler passed away on April 30, 1965, after a surgery. Per her wishes, she was cremated. Her initial inurnment site was a private vault at Chapel of the Pines Crematory in Los Angeles, California. After a major fundraising effort led by Jessica Wahl and Arthur Dark and permission from her surviving family, Chandler’s ashes were relocated to the Cathedral Mausoleum at Hollywood Forever Cemetery in Los Angeles on July 13, 2023, where they can be viewed by the public.
In 1920, Chandler and her family resided at 1306 Nicholas Ave., New York, New York. This apartment building stands today.
In 1930, she and Hume lived at 331 22nd St., Santa Monica, California. In 1940, she and Fletcher lived at 2 E. 56th St., New York, New York. Both of these buildings have since been razed.
Chandler and Fletcher were married at Riverside Church in 1935, which stands at 490 Riverside Dr., New York, New York.
In 1950, Chandler and Piascik resided at 223 ½ Santa Anita Ct., Sierra Madre, California. This home also stands.
Of course, the strongest testament to her legacy is her new resting place, courtesy of her fans. Today, visitors can pay their respects to her at Hollywood Forever Cemetery.
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–Annette Bochenek for Classic Movie Hub
Annette Bochenek pens our monthly Classic Movie Travels column. You can read all of Annette’s Classic Movie Travel articles here.
Annette Bochenek of Chicago, Illinois, is a PhD student at Dominican University and an independent scholar of Hollywood’s Golden Age. She manages the Hometowns to Hollywood blog, in which she writes about her trips exploring the legacies and hometowns of Golden Age stars. Annette also hosts the “Hometowns to Hollywood” film series throughout the Chicago area. She has been featured on Turner Classic Movies and is the president of TCM Backlot’s Chicago chapter. In addition to writing for Classic Movie Hub, she also writes for Silent Film Quarterly, Nostalgia Digest, and Chicago Art Deco SocietyMagazine.
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