Background
Ralston was born Esther Worth in Bar Harbor, Maine.
Ralston was born Esther Worth in Bar Harbor, Maine.
Ralston later gained attention as Mistress Darling in the 1924 film version of Peter Pan. In the late 1920s she appeared in many films for Paramount, at one point earning as much as $8000 a week, and garnering much popularity, especially in Britain.
She appeared mainly in comedies, often portraying spirited society girls, but she also received good reviews for her forays into dramatic roles.
Despite making a successful transition to sound, she was mainly relegated to supporting roles by the mid-1930s. Her last leading role was in To the Last Manitoba in 1933, directed by Raoul Walsh and starring Randolph Scott.
Ralston made her final film, Tin Pan Alley, in 1940 and chose to retire from films. She continued working on the stage and in radio throughout the 1940s, including being the leading lady for part of the run of Woman of Courage She returned to the screen in the early 1950s with guest roles on television series including Kraft Television Theatre and Tales of Tomorrow.
In 1962, she had a leading role in the short-lived daytime drama, Our Five Daughters, her final onscreen role.
In 1985, Ralston released her autobiography, Some Day We"ll Laugh. On January 14, 1994, Ralston died of a heart attack at age 91 in her home in Ventura, California. Foreign her contribution to the motion picture industry, Ether Ralston had a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6664 Hollywood Boulevard.