Babe London

Acting · 1901–1980 · Des Moines, Iowa, USA

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Babe London (born Jean Glover, August 28, 1901 – November 29, 1980) was an American actress and comedian, most remembered for her onetime-only partnership with Oliver Hardy, in the 1931 Laurel and Hardy two-reeler Our Wife.

London began her screen career as a teenager, making her film debut in The Expert Eloper in 1919. She then appeared in A Day's Pleasure, performing opposite Charlie Chaplin. London appeared in more than 50 silent films, including The Perfect Flapper, The Boob, and the 1928 version of Tillie's Punctured Romance starring W. C. Fields. She worked with many of the funny men of the day, including Harry Langdon and Chester Conklin.

At the height of her career London weighed 255 pounds. Later, a heart condition necessitated a loss of 100 pounds, and her movie offers declined along with her weight. She never regained her earlier success.

In the late 1950s London began a second career as a painter and devoted the last 20 years of her life to depicting on canvas the early years of Hollywood. She titled the series The Vanishing Era. London willed 75 of her paintings to the University of Wyoming's American Heritage Center, along with her personal belongings.