Background
Florence was born to James H. and Ellen Frances (née McNamara) Ryan.
Florence was born to James H. and Ellen Frances (née McNamara) Ryan.
She began her acting career in 1907 and had her first hit in 1912 as Aggie Lynch in Within the Law. She was a noted theater actor and comedian in vaudeville until the 1930s (appearing in sketches including In 1999), when she moved to Hollywood to try her luck with films. Her most notable role was as "Nancy Blake" in the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer 1939 blockbuster, The Women.
She also was the author of a book of verse, June Dusk, published in 1918.