Kathlene Martyn was a British actress and dancer known as The Butterfly Girl
She was born Kathleen Winifred Martyn in England in 1900. When she was a teenager she started performing on stage in London. The beautiful blonde made headlines when she went out on several dates with the Prince of Wales. Kathlene moved to New York City in 1919 and joined Ziegfeld's Midnight Frolic. At the 1920 New York air show she posed in silk pajamas to promote the first "sleeper plane” Then she performed in the Ziegfeld Girls show and the Nine O'Clock Frolic. Her nickname was "The Butterfly Girl" because she often wore a costume with butterflies on it. She also appeared in ads for Coca-Cola. In 1923 she was signed by film producer C.C. Burr. Kathlene starred in a series of comedy shorts including Dog Sense and Fearless Flannagan.
She returned to the stage in 1925 starring in a production of Lady Be Good. When she wasn't working she enjoyed swimming, roller skating, and dancing. Her younger sister, Marjorie Martyn, also became a successful stage star. Kathlene landed smalls roles in the films When Love Grows Cold and The Highbinders. By the late 1920s she had grown tired of show business and decided to retire. She married character actor Walter Catlett in 1932. The couple, who never had children, lived in California. They remained happily married until 1960 when Walter died. In 1971 Kathlene passed away at the age of seventy-one. She is buried at Holy Cross Cemetery in Culver City, California.
