[2] Her acting career began with a few silent movie roles at the Vitagraph Studios in Brooklyn as early as 1916; for her artistic pursuits Hervey adopted the professional name "Wilna Wilde.

[3][4] Much of the slapstick comedy in the series revolves around Hervey's imposing physical stature—she stood 6 feet 3 inches—in contrast with her diminutive male co-stars.

She and Nan Mason split their time between painting and farming in Woodstock, New York, and pursuing acting opportunities in California, from 1922 to 1929.

[2] After years of declining health in the 1970s, Hervey died at the Manatee Memorial Hospital near her Bradenton, Florida home on March 6, 1979.

[6] Hervey's personal papers, which include an unpublished manuscript of her memoirs, are held at the Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.