1894–1932: Early life and Vitagraph films Griffith was born Corinne Griffin on November 21, 1894 in Waco, Texas, one of two daughters born to John Lewis "Jack" Griffin, a Methodist minister and train conductor of the
Texas & Pacific railway, her maternal grandmother, Maria Anthes, also an immigrant, was a native of Darmstadt, Germany. At the time of Griffith's birth, her mother Amboline was in her early 20s, while her father, John, was nearly 40. Griffith's parents had married in 1887, and the wedding was a celebrated event among local high society. before the family moved to Texarkana, Texas, where Griffith lived until age 10; she moved to New Orleans, Louisiana to attend the Sacred Heart Convent school. Her father died in Mineral Wells, Texas on March 20, 1912. After completing her primary education, Griffin enrolled at the University of Texas at Austin for the 1912–1913 semester year. She also worked as a dancer before she began her acting career. Accounts of Griffith's entry into the film industry vary. At some point after her father's death, Griffith left Texas and relocated with her mother and sister, Augusta, to Southern California. Some sources claim she was urged by
Vitagraph Studios director
Rollin S. Sturgeon to pursue an acting career after winning a beauty contest in Santa Monica, California, in which Sturgeon was a judge. According to another account, Griffith met Sturgeon at a high-society event in Crescent City, California, and he offered her a film contract on the spot. In a 1919 newspaper article, Griffith said she was approached by Sturgeon in New Orleans after she won a pageant during the
Mardi Gras festival. According to Griffith, Sturgeon suggested she become an actress, and several months later she traveled to California to meet with executives at Vitagraph. She made her screen debut in a short film titled
La Paloma, opposite
Earle Williams.
1923–1932: First National contract In 1923, after three years of marriage, Griffith divorced Campbell, whom she claimed was an abusive alcoholic. The same year, Griffith left Vitagraph Studios, signing a more lucrative contract of $10,000 a week with
First National, Griffith's first full sound film was
Lilies of the Field, a remake of her 1924 silent film in the same role. Griffith's voice, which was regarded as
nasal, and then left the public eye completely.
1933–1964: Post-film career After her retirement from film, Griffith divorced Morosco in 1934. Two years later, she married businessman and
Washington Redskins owner
George Preston Marshall. In December 1941, the couple adopted two daughters, Pamela and Cynthia. In the early years of her marriage to Marshall, she wrote the lyrics to the original fight song, "
Hail to the Redskins". In the 1940s, Griffith began investing in real estate in the Los Angeles area. The construction of the buildings, each named after her, proved lucrative, and she turned down an offer of $2.5 million for them in 1950. The same year, she spoke at the inaugural National Association of Real Estate Boards convention in Florida. Commenting on her dedication to the topic, she stated: "We have no substitute of other taxes because we have no substitute for waste, graft and corruption. If the federal government will eliminate only part of its waste, just 40 billions of dollars a year of its waste... I can prove to you in dollars and cents that the government does not need the income tax." The following year, her memoir ''Papa's Delicate Condition'' was made into a biographical
feature film of the same name starring
Jackie Gleason.
1965–1979: Claims about identity and final years In February 1965, she married her fourth husband, Broadway actor Danny Scholl in Alexandria, Virginia. Scholl was 44 years old, more than 25 years younger than Griffith. In court, Scholl's attorney proposed that Griffith had falsified her age in the couple's marriage documents as well as failed to disclose her previous two marriages. She published another collection of personal non-fiction stories titled ''This You Won't Believe
in 1972. Her final book I'm Lucky at Cards'' (1974) was a book of her essays. ==Screen and public image==