Carleton Hildreth

Carleton A. Hildreth (February 25, 1908 – March 12, 1977) was an American actor, writer, researcher, and copy editor whose career encompassed Broadway performance, collaborative playwriting, and editorial work.

Hildreth's connection to the stage grew out of his partnership with writer Harry Hervey (1900–1951), whom he met in the 1920s. Together the two collaborated on plays and screenplays, including Congai (1928), which was produced by Sam H. Harris and featured Valerie Bergere, as well as Devil Dance (1927), Barracoon (1931), The Iron Widow (1931), and Black Orchid. Beyond co-writing, Hildreth typed and researched many of Hervey's novels and travel books. His Broadway acting credits span 1927 to 1929 and include We All Do (1927), Congai (1928), and Diana (1929).

The two men lived together for nearly thirty years. In the early 1920s they resided in Charleston, South Carolina, at 89 East Bay Street, one of the Rainbow Row houses. They traveled together through Southeast Asia and the Orient in the mid-1920s. During the Great Depression they lost the Rainbow Row house and relocated to 141–145 Church Street, known as the Pirate Houses, before eventually moving to Hollywood, California, where Hervey worked as a screenwriter.

Following Hervey's death in 1951, Hildreth returned to editorial work, ultimately serving as a proofreader for the Savannah Morning News. He lived in Savannah, Georgia, and died on March 12, 1977. He is buried at Bonaventure Cemetery in Savannah alongside his mother, Mary McLendon Hildreth; Hervey is also interred in the same cemetery. The Carleton Hildreth and Harry Hervey papers are held by the Georgia Historical Society in Savannah, Georgia.