Fredericka Berneice "Fritzi" Ridgeway (April 8, 1898 – March 29, 1961) 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, vaudeville performer, and
hotelier
A hotel manager, hotelier, or lodging manager is a person who manages the operation of a hotel, motel, resort, or other lodging-related establishment. Management of a hotel operation includes, but is not limited to management of hotel staff, bu ...
. Though she starred in numerous films, she is perhaps best known for her work in silent
Western film
The Western is a genre set in the American frontier and commonly associated with folk tales of the Western United States, particularly the Southwestern United States, as well as Northern Mexico and Western Canada. It is commonly referred ...
s.
A native of
Montana
Montana () is a state in the Mountain West division of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North Dakota and South Dakota to the east, Wyoming to the south, and the Canadian provinces of Alberta, British Columb ...
, Ridgeway worked as both a
vaudeville
Vaudeville (; ) is a theatrical genre of variety entertainment born in France at the end of the 19th century. A vaudeville was originally a comedy without psychological or moral intentions, based on a comical situation: a dramatic composition ...
performer and a professional
trick rider
Trick riding refers to the act of performing stunts while horseback riding, such as the rider standing upright on the back of a galloping horse, using a specially designed saddle with a reinforced steel horn, and specialized kossak loops for h ...
before making her film debut in 1916. She appeared in 63 films between 1916 and 1934, with prominent roles in Western films populating much of her early career. Other notable roles include supporting parts in
Tod Browning
Tod Browning (born Charles Albert Browning Jr.; July 12, 1880 – October 6, 1962) was an American film director, film actor, screenwriter, vaudeville performer, and carnival sideshow and circus entertainer. He directed a number of films of vari ...
's drama ''
The Unpainted Woman
''The Unpainted Woman'' is a 1919 American drama film directed by Tod Browning that is based upon a story by Sinclair Lewis. It is not known whether the film currently survives, which suggests that it is a lost film.
Plot
As described in a film ...
'' (1919) and ''
The Enemy'' (1927).
Ridgeway officially retired from acting in 1934, making her final screen appearance in
Rouben Mamoulian
Rouben Zachary Mamoulian ( ; hy, Ռուբէն Մամուլեան; October 8, 1897 – December 4, 1987) was an American film and theatre director.
Early life
Mamoulian was born in Tiflis, Russian Empire, to a family of Armenian descent. ...
's ''
We Live Again
''We Live Again'' is a 1934 film directed by Rouben Mamoulian and starring Anna Sten and Fredric March. The film is an adaptation of Leo Tolstoy's 1899 novel ''Resurrection'' (''Voskraeseniye''). The screenplay was written by Maxwell Anderson with ...
''. She spent the latter half of her life managing the Hotel del Tahquitz in
Palm Springs, California, a hotel she built in 1928. She remained the proprietor of the Hotel del Tahquitz until her death in 1961. She was married to Russian composer
Constantin Bakaleinikoff
Constantin Romanovich Bakaleinikov (also spelled Bakaleynikov and Bakaleinikoff; russian: Константин Романович Бакалейников; 26 April 1896 – 3 September 1966) was a Russian-born composer who worked in Hollywood, Cal ...
. In ''L.A. Exposed: Strange Myths and Curious Legends in the City of Angels'', historian Paul Young noted Ridgeway as an "
iconoclast
Iconoclasm (from Greek: grc, εἰκών, lit=figure, icon, translit=eikṓn, label=none + grc, κλάω, lit=to break, translit=kláō, label=none)From grc, εἰκών + κλάω, lit=image-breaking. ''Iconoclasm'' may also be conside ...
ic silent film star."
Early life
Ridgeway was born Frederick Berneice Hawkes on April 8, 1898 in
Missoula, Montana
Missoula ( ; fla, label= Séliš, Nłʔay, lit=Place of the Small Bull Trout, script=Latn; kut, Tuhuⱡnana, script=Latn) is a city in the U.S. state of Montana; it is the county seat of Missoula County. It is located along the Clark Fork ...
, later moving with her family to
Butte, Montana, where she attended primary school.
Prior to establishing herself as a film actress, Ridgeway worked as both a
vaudeville
Vaudeville (; ) is a theatrical genre of variety entertainment born in France at the end of the 19th century. A vaudeville was originally a comedy without psychological or moral intentions, based on a comical situation: a dramatic composition ...
performer and as a
trick rider
Trick riding refers to the act of performing stunts while horseback riding, such as the rider standing upright on the back of a galloping horse, using a specially designed saddle with a reinforced steel horn, and specialized kossak loops for h ...
.
[ As a teenager, Ridgeway traveled with her family between Montana and California, and attended Hollywood High School in ]Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...
. She was also educated in Chicago
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
, image_map =
, map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago
, coordinates =
, coordinates_footnotes =
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name ...
.
Career
Early films
She made her film debut in the short ''The Bridesmaid's Secret'' (1916), and appeared the following year in her first feature film role in the Western
Western may refer to:
Places
*Western, Nebraska, a village in the US
*Western, New York, a town in the US
*Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia
*Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia
*Western world, countries that id ...
''The Hero of the Hour
''The Hero of the Hour'' is a 1917 American silent Western film directed by Raymond Wells. It stars Jack Mulhall, Wadsworth Harris, and Fritzi Ridgeway. '' (1917). Ridgeway would appear in several silent Western shorts after, including ''The Wrong Man
''The Wrong Man'' is a 1956 American docudrama film noir directed by Alfred Hitchcock and starring Henry Fonda and Vera Miles. The film was drawn from the true story of an innocent man charged with a crime, as described in the book ''The True St ...
'' (1917) and '' The Soul Herder'' (1917). Her appearances in Westerns earned her the name of the "cowgirl star" early in her career. She appeared as Evelyn Hastings in the 1917 picture ''The Learnin' of Jim Benton'' opposite Roy Stewart
Roy Stewart (15 May 1925 – 27 October 2008) was a Jamaican-born British actor. He began his career as a stuntman and went on to work in film and television.
In 1954 he founded Roy Stewart's Gym in Powis Square, North Kensington, and ran t ...
, and was noted in a review for her "delightful" performance in the film.
In 1919, Ridgeway appeared in Victor Schertzinger
Victor L. Schertzinger (April 8, 1888 – October 26, 1941) was an American composer, film director, film producer, and screenwriter. His films include '' Paramount on Parade'' (co-director, 1930), ''Something to Sing About'' (1937) with James C ...
's comedy ''When Doctors Disagree
''When Doctors Disagree'' is a 1919 comedy film directed by Victor Schertzinger, written by Anna F. Briand, photographed by Percy Hilburn, and starring Mabel Normand. The movie was released by the Goldwyn Pictures Corporation with a running time ...
'', followed by a supporting part in Tod Browning
Tod Browning (born Charles Albert Browning Jr.; July 12, 1880 – October 6, 1962) was an American film director, film actor, screenwriter, vaudeville performer, and carnival sideshow and circus entertainer. He directed a number of films of vari ...
's drama ''The Unpainted Woman
''The Unpainted Woman'' is a 1919 American drama film directed by Tod Browning that is based upon a story by Sinclair Lewis. It is not known whether the film currently survives, which suggests that it is a lost film.
Plot
As described in a film ...
'' (1919) for Universal Pictures
Universal Pictures (legally Universal City Studios LLC, also known as Universal Studios, or simply Universal; common metonym: Uni, and formerly named Universal Film Manufacturing Company and Universal-International Pictures Inc.) is an Ameri ...
. She would continue to play in silent pictures into the late 1920s, including roles in the drama '' The Old Homestead'' (1922), the Western ''Ruggles of Red Gap
''Ruggles of Red Gap'' is a 1935 American comedy western film directed by Leo McCarey and starring Charles Laughton, Mary Boland, Charlie Ruggles, and ZaSu Pitts and featuring Roland Young and Leila Hyams. It was based on the best-selling 1915 ...
'' (1923), and the drama '' The Enemy'' (1927), opposite Lillian Gish.
Later work and retirement
In 1932, she appeared in ''Ladies of the Big House
''Ladies of the Big House'' is a 1931 American pre-Code drama film directed by Marion Gering and written by Ernest Booth, William Slavens McNutt and Grover Jones. The film stars Sylvia Sidney, Gene Raymond, Wynne Gibson, Earle Foxe, Rockl ...
'', which received positive critical acclaim with a review in ''The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...
'' noting: "the film manages to convey this terror with a fair measure of success." In 1934, she appeared in a supporting part in the horror film ''House of Mystery
''The House of Mystery'' is the name of several horror, fantasy, and mystery
Mystery, The Mystery, Mysteries or The Mysteries may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional characters
*Mystery, a cat character in ''Emily the Strang ...
'' (1934) opposite Verna Hillie Verna or Virna may refer to:
People
* Verna Aardema (1911–2000), American author of children's books
* Verna Bloom (1939–2019), American actress
* Virna De Angeli (born 1976), Italian former sprinter
* Virna Dias (born 1971), Brazilian retire ...
and John Sheehan. Ridgeway made her final screen appearance in a minor uncredited role in ''We Live Again
''We Live Again'' is a 1934 film directed by Rouben Mamoulian and starring Anna Sten and Fredric March. The film is an adaptation of Leo Tolstoy's 1899 novel ''Resurrection'' (''Voskraeseniye''). The screenplay was written by Maxwell Anderson with ...
'' (1934), an adaptation of Leo Tolstoy
Count Lev Nikolayevich TolstoyTolstoy pronounced his first name as , which corresponds to the romanization ''Lyov''. () (; russian: link=no, Лев Николаевич Толстой,In Tolstoy's day, his name was written as in pre-refor ...
's ''Resurrection
Resurrection or anastasis is the concept of coming back to life after death. In a number of religions, a dying-and-rising god is a deity which dies and is resurrected. Reincarnation is a similar process hypothesized by other religions, whic ...
'', before retiring from acting.
Ridgefield spent her remaining years managing the Hotel del Tahquitz, a 100-room hotel which she had built in Palm Springs, California in 1928.
Personal life
Ridgeway married Russian composer Constantin Bakaleinikoff
Constantin Romanovich Bakaleinikov (also spelled Bakaleynikov and Bakaleinikoff; russian: Константин Романович Бакалейников; 26 April 1896 – 3 September 1966) was a Russian-born composer who worked in Hollywood, Cal ...
in Cincinnati, Ohio
Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wi ...
on December 23, 1925. In March 1928, Ridgeway commissioned architect Anthony Miller to design a home for her, which was built in Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
. She would later marry Walter D. Simm, whom she remained married to until her death of a heart attack
A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which ma ...
in 1961.
She is interred at Forest Lawn Memorial Park, Glendale
Forest Lawn Memorial Park is a privately owned cemetery in Glendale, California. It is the original and current flagship location of Forest Lawn Memorial-Parks & Mortuaries, a chain of six cemeteries and four additional mortuaries in Southern Cal ...
, California.
Filmography
References
Works cited
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Further reading
*
*
External links
*
Fritzi Ridgeway
at the American Film Institute Catalog
Fritzi Ridgeway
at the British Film Institute
The British Film Institute (BFI) is a film and television charitable organisation which promotes and preserves film-making and television in the United Kingdom. The BFI uses funds provided by the National Lottery (United Kingdom), National Lot ...
*
Fritzi Ridgeway
library search at WorldCat
WorldCat is a union catalog that itemizes the collections of tens of thousands of institutions (mostly libraries), in many countries, that are current or past members of the OCLC global cooperative. It is operated by OCLC, Inc. Many of the O ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ridgeway, Fritzi
1898 births
1961 deaths
American film actresses
American hoteliers
Women hoteliers
American silent film actresses
Actresses from Butte, Montana
Actresses from Palm Springs, California
Burials at Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Glendale)
Hollywood High School alumni
People from Missoula, Montana
20th-century American actresses
Vaudeville performers