Alice Mann (October 10, 1899 – March 2, 1986) was an American

silent film A silent film is a film with no synchronized Sound recording and reproduction, recorded sound (or more generally, no audible dialogue). Though silent films convey narrative and emotion visually, various plot elements (such as a setting or era) ...

actress.

Biography

Mann began her film career in late 1915 with the Lubin Manufacturing Company, appearing in six shorts before the production company ceased operations the following year. She then moved to

Vitagraph Studios Vitagraph Studios, also known as the Vitagraph Company of America, was a United States motion picture studio. It was founded by J. Stuart Blackton and Albert E. Smith in 1897 in Brooklyn, New York, as the American Vitagraph Company. By 1907, ...

, appearing in ten shorts in 1916 and 1917, many with veteran vaudeville actor

Jimmy Aubrey Jimmy Aubrey (23 October 1887 – 2 September 1983) was an English actor who worked with both Charlie Chaplin and Laurel and Hardy, having gone with Fred Karno's theatrical company to America in 1908. However he left to start on his own in v ...

and nine of which were directed by nascent film comedian/director

Larry Semon Lawrence Semon (February 9, 1889 – October 8, 1928) was an American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter during the silent film era. In his day, Semon was considered a major movie comedian, but he is now remembered mainly for working ...

. Roscoe Arbuckle then cast her in three of his early Comique shorts (produced by Joseph M. Schenck) made with Buster Keaton. Her best-known film appearances are with Arbuckle and Keaton in '' Coney Island,'' ''

His Wedding Night ''His Wedding Night'' is a 1917 American two-reel silent comedy film written, directed by, and starring Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle. Plot Arbuckle plays a drug store clerk, soda jerk, and gas station attendant, who can be both lazy and dishonest. ...

,'' and '' Oh Doctor!'' when she was only 17 years of age. When the Comique production company relocated to California in late 1917, Mann remained in the New York City metro area. In addition to Lubin, Vitagraph and the Comique Comedy Paramount film unit, she also worked with New York-based McClure Productions. She received top billing in the film drama '' The Water Lily'', released by Triangle Pictures in 1919. and directed by

George Ridgwell George Ridgwell (1867–1935) was a British screenwriter and film director of the silent film era. His name was sometimes spelt as George Ridgewell. He was born in Woolwich in 1867. He directed around 70 films including a series of adaptations of ...

. Ridgwell also directed Alice and her older sister, actress Frances (Frankie) Mann, in '' Fruits of Passion'' (1919). Frankie's husband

Donald Hall Donald Andrew Hall Jr. (September 20, 1928 – June 23, 2018) was an American poet, writer, editor and literary critic. He was the author of over 50 books across several genres from children's literature, biography, memoir, essays, and includin ...

also appeared in the film. Subsequent appearances include ''

Scrambled Wives ''Scrambled Wives'' is a lost 1921 American silent comedy film produced by and starring Marguerite Clark. It was directed by Edward H. Griffith and released through Associated First National. This film had one color sequence, presumably a 1-st ...

'', the last movie by famed screen and stage waif

Marguerite Clark Helen Marguerite Clark (February 22, 1883 – September 25, 1940) was an American theatre, stage and silent film actress. As a movie actress, at one time, Clark was second only to Mary Pickford in popularity. All but five of her films are co ...

. Alice Mann's film career apparently ended in 1925 and, like many early cinema actresses, she vanished into history. Only seven of her credited thirty films are known to survive. In 1921, she married Sidney G. Ash.

Selected filmography

*''There and Back'' (1916) -- extant *''Rips and Rushes'' (1917) -- extant *''

The Third Ingredient "The Third Ingredient" is a short story by O. Henry, notable for its ironic take on the "Stone Soup" theme. The story was originally published in the December 1908 issue of ''Everybody's Magazine'' with illustrations by Frederic Dorr Steele Frede ...

'' (1917) -- presumed lost *''Worries and Wobbles'' (1917) -- extant *''

'' (1917) -- extant *'' Oh Doctor!'' (1917) -- extant *'' Coney Island'' (1917) -- extant * ''

A Pair of Sixes ''A Pair of Sixes'', originally titled ''The Party of the Second Part'', is a farce in three acts by Edward Peple that made its Broadway debut at the Longacre Theatre on March 17, 1914. The piece was produced by Harry Frazee and achieved a run ...

'' (1918) -- presumed lost *'' Help! Help! Police!'' (1919) -- presumed lost *'' The Water Lily'' (1919) -- extant *'' Fruits of Passion'' (1919) -- presumed lost *''

'' (1921) -- presumed lost *''Perjury'' (1921) -- presumed lost *''

The Family Closet ''The Family Closet'' is a 1921 American silent mystery film directed by John B. O'Brien and starring Holmes Herbert, Alice Mann and Kempton Greene.Goble p.362 Cast * Holmes Herbert as Alfred Dinsmore * Alice Mann as Louise Dinsmore * Kempton ...

'' (1921) *'' West of the Water Tower'' (1923) -- presumed lost * ''

Unrestrained Youth ''Unrestrained Youth'' is a 1925 American silent film, silent drama film directed by Joseph Levering and starring Brandon Tynan, Gardner James and Alice Mann.Nash p.544 Cast * Brandon Tynan as John Powers * Gardner James as Jamie Powers * Mildred ...

'' (1925) -- presumed lost

References

Sources

* Young, Jr., Robert. ''Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle : a bio-bibliography''. Westport, Conn. : Greenwood Press, 1994. * Nunn, William Curtis. ''Marguerite Clark, America's Darling of Broadway and the Silent Screen." Ft. Worth, TX: Texas Christian University Press, 1981.

External links

* 1899 births American film actresses American silent film actresses 20th-century American actresses 1986 deaths Place of death missing {{US-screen-actor-stub