From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Mary Thurman (née Christiansen, April 27, 1895 – December 22, 1925) was an American actress of the silent film era. Thurman's film career began with roles in the comedies of Mack Sennett, as one of the Sennett Bathing Beauties, and featured appearances in Bombs! (1916) and The Fool (1925). Her greatest success came when she was started working with director Allan Dwan. They collaborated on several critically acclaimed films including The Sin of Martha Queed (1921) and A Broken Doll (1921). In Dwan's still extant 1923 film Zaza, Thurman is the actress Gloria Swanson fights with. She appeared in nearly sixty Hollywood films from 1915 up until her death in 1925, frequently in those made by Pathé Studios. In 1924, while working on the movie Down Upon The Suwanee River in Florida, Thurman came down with a serious case of pneumonia. She suffered from the illness and was hospitalized for nearly a year. She died, the result of pneumonia, in New York City in 1925.