29 Facts About Alma Rubens

Alma Rubens quickly rose to stardom in 1916 after appearing opposite Douglas Fairbanks in The Half-Breed.

Alma Rubens died of lobar pneumonia and bronchitis shortly after being arrested for cocaine possession in January 1931.

Alma Rubens's father, John Reubens, born in 1857 in Germany, was Jewish, and emigrated to the United States in 1890.

Alma Rubens and her elder sister, Hazel was born on 1893 and were raised in their mother's faith and attended Sacred Heart Convent in San Francisco.

Alma Rubens was chosen to take her place and joined the troupe as a regular performer.

Alma Rubens later convinced Rubens to leave the troupe and try film acting.

Later the same year, Alma Rubens was re-teamed with Fairbanks for cocaine comedy The Mystery of the Leaping Fish, The Half-Breed and The Americano.

The next year, Rubens co-starred in two westerns, Truthful Tolliver with William S Hart and The Firefly of Tough Luck with Charles Gunn.

In 1920, Alma Rubens signed with William Randolph Hearst's Cosmopolitan Productions.

The studio promoted Alma Rubens as its newest starlet, falsely claiming she was a descendant of Flemish painter Peter Paul Alma Rubens.

Alma Rubens returned to the screen in 1922 with roles in Find the Woman and The Valley of Silent Men.

Alma Rubens had roles in The Gilded Butterfly with Bert Lytell and Siberia, the latter of which re-teamed Rubens with Edmund Lowe and Lou Tellegen.

In February 1929, Alma Rubens' addiction became known publicly when she attempted to stab a physician who was taking her to a sanatarium for treatment.

Alma Rubens was ordered to undergo treatment at the Spadra facility shortly thereafter.

Alma Rubens later escaped despite being under the watch of four nurses and two male guards.

Alma Rubens then was admitted to a sanatorium in Pasadena but left after 10 days.

Alma Rubens was released from Patton State Hospital in late December 1929.

Alma Rubens made her first public appearance after her release on January 30,1930, in a role in a play produced at the Writer's Club in Hollywood.

Alma Rubens's performance was well received by the audience, and she received eight curtain calls.

In early February 1930, Alma Rubens traveled to New York where she announced she was now free of drug addiction and planning a comeback with a vaudeville tour in the East.

Alma Rubens made an appearance on stage with her husband, but returned to California the same month.

Alma Rubens was there less than two weeks when, on January 5,1931, she was arrested by Federal officers in San Diego for cocaine possession and conspiracy to smuggle morphine from Mexico into the United States.

Alma Rubens claimed she was being framed, and physicians attested to her statements that she was not taking drugs.

Alma Rubens later was released on $5,000 bail, and appeared for a preliminary hearing the second week of January 1931.

At the time of her death, Alma Rubens was suing Cortez for divorce.

Shortly after her release from jail on charges of cocaine possession, Alma Rubens contracted a cold that quickly developed into lobar pneumonia and bronchitis.

Alma Rubens fell into a coma at the Los Angeles home of her friend, Dr Charles J Pflueger.

Alma Rubens died on January 21,1931, at the age of 33 having never regained consciousness.

Alma Rubens is interred in a mausoleum at Mountain View Cemetery in Fresno.