Mary E. Ryan (November 11, 1885 – October 2, 1948)^[2] was an American stage and screen actress. She began acting as a child and was a popular young ingenue in the first decade of the twentieth century. She later made over 30 silent film shorts. She appeared in the 1906 hit play Brewster's Millions starring Edward Abeles. She was the leading lady to John Barrymore in his first breakout Broadway success, The Fortune Hunter (1909). In 1912 she signed with the Philadelphia-based Lubin Manufacturing Company to appear in their short films.

Ryan was married to stage director Sam Forrest from 1908 until his death in 1944. She died October 2, 1948, from undisclosed causes, at age 62.^[3]