Chloe Carter was a Ziegfeld Follies showgirl who found true love with actress Jean Acker
She was born Lillian Chloe Carter on June 21, 1903 in Tennessee. Her father, Zeb Carter, worked as a laborer, and her mother, Minnie, was a housewife.. Chloe had an older sister and a younger brother. The family moved to Illinois when she was a child. During the early 1920s she moved to New York City and started dancing in the Ziegfeld Follies. She used the stage name "Cleo Cullen". The lovely blonde appeared in numerous Broadway shows including She's My Baby, Lady Fingers, and Show Girl. On September 9, 1930 she married Harry Ruby, a songwriter. The couple moved into a home on in North Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills. Then in 1933 she met actress Jean Acker, who had once been married to Rudolph Valentino.
The two women fell madly in love. When Chloe told her husband she was leaving he punched her in the jaw. She filed for divorce in January of 1934. Jean escorted her to the court hearing the following month. Chloe was granted a divorce and received a settlement of $6000. Over the next few years she occasionally worked as a film extra. She and Jean bought an apartment building on Fox Hills Drive in Los Angeles. They remained a devoted couple until 1978 when Jean passed away. Chloe continued live a quiet life in Los Angeles. On October 28, 1993 she died at the age of ninety. She was buried next to Jean at Holy Cross Cemetery in Culver City, California.
