In real life Henrietta lived a long, full life, in northern Iowa. She lost her husband, Leo on March 3, 1919 and gave birth to their second daughter, Lenora, on March 21, 1919. She lived with her husband’s family, who lived communally, for two or three years until she and two of her sisters found employment within their own homes as telephone operators. This allowed her to stay home with her children and still make a living wage. Henrietta remained an operator for more than forty years. At that time she retired and lived with her daughter, Genevieve, in that same small town in northern Iowa.
Henrietta’s daughter, Genevieve, married a local man, had two sons and was a local beautician for many years. Her second daughter, Lenora, also married a local man who transferred to a job in California, where they raised one son. Their son was a character actor in Hollywood.