Actress. Born Dorothy Irene Boucher into a close knit family in London, Chili Bouchier went to work at Harrods as a model at the age of 15. After being fired for being seduced by one of the store’s floorwalkers, she responded to a newspaper advertisement offering help getting into movies. Bouchier, started working in the film industry by appearing in “Shooting Stars” in 1927. In 1929 she married actor Harry Milton whom she eventually divorced in 1937. With a dozen silent films to her credit, she soon became known as Britain’s first sex symbol. The press gave her such taglines as “England’s Clara Bow.” Mostly was found cast in the role of a vamp as most alluring women of her day were, but after her appearance in 1931’s “Carnival,” her status as a star was firmly established. She appeared in “The Blue Danube” in 1932 and had a starring role as an exotic dancer in “Gypsy” in 1936. Boucher also achieved notoriety for reportedly turning down a marriage proposal, accompanied by a $1m settlement, from the reclusive billionaire Howard Hughes. One of the last survivors of the silent era, made her final film in 1960. Chili Bouchier passed away just a few days before her 90th birthday. Her body was discovered in her flat by police in her ground floor flat in Marylebone, central London. (bio by: MC)