Texas-born, Philadelphia-bred beauty-contest winner Hope Hampton, was discovered by U.S. silent cinema pioneer Jules Brulatour while working as an extra for director Maurice Tourneur. She made her screen debut in 1920’s A Modern Salome, and went on to feature prominently in several Brulatour-financed films. Her last starring role was in The Road to Reno (1938), with Randolph Scott and Glenda Farrell. In 1923, Hope Hampton wed her manager Brulatour, and they remained married until his death in 1946. After retiring from motion pictures at the dawn of sound, Hampton turned to opera and made her debut with the Philadelphia Opera in Manon. The idea that she ever toured with the Metropolitan Opera is belied by a look at the company’s online archives. She returned to the screen in The Road to Reno (1938), a film directed by her husband. Later she was known as The Duchess of Park Avenue, a leading member of New York’s social set. In 1978, she was crowned Queen of the Beaux Arts Ball. She presided with King Arthur Tracy. Hope Hampton died of a heart attack at the age of 84. Hope Hampton and Brulatour took a honeymoon trip to Egypt, there a Sheikh offered Brulatour £10,000 British pounds to buy his wife. Brulatour smiled at the Sheikh and told him that Mrs. Brulatour’s jewels were worth more than that.