Janet Chandler; Actress Starred in 1930s Films

Janet Chandler, a sultry blonde actress of the 1930s who starred in such films as “The Three Musketeers” with Douglas Fairbanks Sr. and “The Golden West” with George O’Brien, has died. She was 78.

Miss Chandler died March 16 at UCLA Medical Center of heart failure after a stroke.

She began her career as a child and portrayed the young actress Anna Q. Nilsson in “Inez of Hollywood.”

Born Lillian Guenther in Pine Bluffs, Ark., Miss Chandler moved to Los Angeles as a child. She attended Harter School for Girls and Orton School for Girls. Years later, in 1952, she earned a bachelor’s degree in English from UCLA.

In her teen-age years, Miss Chandler was a popular model for Southern California fashion shows and exclusive shops.

During the 1932 Olympics in Los Angeles, she was designated to represent Arkansas as a junior hostess.

Among Miss Chandler’s films were “Now or Never” with Richard Talmadge, “Cowboy Holiday” with Big Boy Williams, “House of Danger” with Onslow Stevens, “Cyclone of the Saddle” with Rex Lease, “Show Girls” and “The Drunkard.”

She retired abruptly in the mid-1930s after an accident while making a film.

Miss Chandler married New York investment broker George E. Barrett in 1935, and spent some time working on radio shows in New York. After their divorce in 1947, she returned to Hollywood and enrolled at UCLA.

She was also married briefly to playwright Joseph A. Kramm.

Miss Chandler, who used the name Lillian Barrett in her private life, is survived by three daughters.