Ashton Dearholt

Ashton Dearholt (April 4, 1894 – April 27, 1942) was an American actor of the silent film era. He appeared in 75 films between 1915 and 1938. He was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin and died in Los Angeles, California.

Spouses:

Florence Gilbert (1926-1934) (divorced)
Ula Holt (July 1935 - 27 April 1942; his death)
Helene Rosson (before 1926 - Divorced)

Dearholt worked with Universal Studios on a number of melodramas during the 1910s but usually worked outside the studio system, producing a series of "Pinto Pete" western during the 1920s in which he starred himself. He occasionally acted under the name Richard Holt.

He founded Ashton Dearholt Productions in 1924. Ten years later, Dearholt and Edgar Rice Burroughs founded the film production company Burroughs-Tarzan Enterprises when he was filming The New Adventures of Tarzan. His character in that serial was a mercenary antagonistic explorer sent to steal the valuable Green Goddess.

During its production in Guatemala, Dearholt married the leading actress, Ula Holt and Burroughs broke up with his first wife to marry Dearholt's ex-wife, Florence Gilbert.