Silent film child star Diana Serra Cary, best known as Baby Peggy, has died. She was 101.
The actress, who shot to fame in the early 1920s, died Monday in Gustine, California, The Hollywood Reporter confirmed.
Born Peggy-Jean Montgomery, she later became known as Baby Peggy before later changing her name to Diana Serra Cary while pursuing a career as a writer, according to IMDB.
The silent film icon was just 19 months old when she was first noticed while visiting Century Studios lot on Sunset Boulevard with her mother.
She went on to appear in nearly 150 silent short films and nine features between 1920 and 1924, before retiring at age 8 after being blackballed in Hollywood following dozens of arguments between her father and producers, The Hollywood Reporter noted.
Diana attempted to later revive her career but studios were no longer interested in a silent-film actress. It was not the last time she would be in the limelight though.
In the 1970s Diana achieved success as an author, writing about her acting career and the years that followed. She also wrote an autobiography, "Whatever Happened to Baby Peggy?," which was released in 1996, IMDB noted.
Diana is survived by her son Mark, and granddaughter, Stephanie. Her husband, Robert, whom she was married to for 48 years, died in 2003 and two years later her sister, Louise, died.
"I am proud of how she was able to come to terms with what happened to her from when she was just a toddler and re-create her life anew," Mark said in a statement. "She learned to love herself and her unusual childhood so she could focus on telling her story to educate others in how to avoid the same negative things that she had experienced in her life and career as Baby Peggy."
Zoe Papadakis ✉
Zoe Papadakis is a Newsmax writer based in South Africa with two decades of experience specializing in media and entertainment. She has been in the news industry as a reporter, writer and editor for newspapers, magazine and websites.
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