Gerald Ames (12 September 1880 – 2 July 1933) was a

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

actor, film director and Olympic fencer. Ames was born in

Blackheath, London Blackheath is an area in Southeast London, straddling the border of the Royal Borough of Greenwich and the London Borough of Lewisham. It is located northeast of Lewisham, south of Greenwich and southeast of Charing Cross, the traditional ce ...

in 1880 and first took up acting in 1905. He was a popular leading man in the post-

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

cinema, appearing in more than sixty films between his debut in 1914 and his retirement from the screen in 1928 in a career entirely encompassing the

silent era A silent film is a film with no synchronized 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) or key lines of dialogue may, wh ...

. He was also a regular stage actor who took on many leading roles in the theatre. He competed in the individual

épée The ( or , ), sometimes spelled epee in English, is the largest and heaviest of the three weapons used in the sport of fencing. The modern derives from the 19th-century , a weapon which itself derives from the French small sword. This contains ...

event at the

1912 Summer Olympics The 1912 Summer Olympics ( sv, Olympiska sommarspelen 1912), officially known as the Games of the V Olympiad ( sv, Den V olympiadens spel) and commonly known as Stockholm 1912, were an international multi-sport event held in Stockholm, Sweden, be ...

. He died in 1933 after falling down the steps of

Knightsbridge tube station Knightsbridge is a London Underground station in Knightsbridge, London. It is on the Piccadilly line between South Kensington and Hyde Park Corner, and is in Travelcard Zone 1. History The station was opened on 15 December 1906 by the Great N ...

and suffering a heart attack. He was married to the actress

Mary Dibley Mary Dibley (21 February 1883 in London – 11 September 1968) was a British film actress. She was married to the actor Gerald Ames. Selected filmography * '' The Christian'' (1915) * '' The Shulamite'' (1915) * '' The Folly of Desire'' (1915) * ...

Partial filmography

* ''

She Stoops to Conquer ''She Stoops to Conquer'' is a comedy by Oliver Goldsmith, first performed in London in 1773. The play is a favourite for study by English literature and theatre classes in the English-speaking world. It is one of the few plays from the 18th ...

'' (1914) * '' The Black Spot'' (1914) * ''

The Difficult Way ''The Difficult Way'' is a 1914 British silent film, silent drama film directed by George Loane Tucker and starring Jane Gail, Gerald Ames and Langhorn Burton.McFarlane & Slide p.1809 Cast * Jane Gail as Nan * Gerald Ames as Roger Wentworth * L ...

'' (1914) * '' The Christian'' (1915) * ''

Love in a Wood ''Love in a Wood'' is a 1915 British silent comedy film directed by Maurice Elvey and starring Gerald Ames, Elisabeth Risdon and Kenelm Foss. The film is a contemporary-set version of William Shakespeare's play '' As You Like It''.Murphy p.178 ...

'' (1915) * '' The Shulamite'' (1915) * ''

The Prisoner of Zenda ''The Prisoner of Zenda'' is an 1894 adventure novel by Anthony Hope, in which the King of Ruritania is drugged on the eve of his coronation and thus is unable to attend the ceremony. Political forces within the realm are such that, in order ...

'' (1915) * ''

Rupert of Hentzau ''Rupert of Hentzau'' is a sequel by Anthony Hope to ''The Prisoner of Zenda'', written in 1895 but not published in book form until 1898. The novel was serialized in ''The Pall Mall Magazine'' and ''McClure's Magazine'' from December 1897 thr ...

'' (1915) * ''

Arsène Lupin Arsène Lupin (French pronunciation: ʁsɛn lypɛ̃ is a fictional gentleman thief and master of disguise created in 1905 by French writer Maurice Leblanc. The character was first introduced in a series of short stories serialized in the magazi ...

'' (1916) * '' The Hypocrites'' (1916) * ''

The King's Daughter ''The King's Daughter'' (french: Jeanne, fille du Roy) is a historical novel for young adult readers by Suzanne Martel, first published in 1974. It follows the life of Jeanne Chatel, one of the King's Daughters of New France in the seventeent ...

'' (1916) * '' The Game of Liberty'' (1916) * ''

The Ragged Messenger ''The Ragged Messenger'' is a 1917 British drama film directed by Frank Wilson and starring Violet Hopson, Gerald Ames, Basil Gill and George Foley. It was based on the 1904 novel '' The Ragged Messenger'' by W.B. Maxwell. A millionaire's mis ...

'' (1917) * ''

Masks and Faces ''Masks and Faces'' is a 1917 British silent biographical film directed by Fred Paul and starring Johnston Forbes-Robertson, Irene Vanbrugh and Henry S. Irving. The film depicts episodes from the life of the eighteenth-century Irish actress P ...

'' (1917) * ''

A Gamble for Love ''A Gamble for Love'' is a 1917 British silent sports film directed by Frank Wilson and starring Gerald Ames, James Lindsay and George Foley.Low p.182 It was based on the 1914 novel of the same title by Nat Gould, set in the horseracing wor ...

'' (1917) * '' A Peep Behind the Scenes'' (1918) * ''

Boundary House ''Boundary House'' is a 1918 British silent drama film directed by Cecil M. Hepworth and starring Alma Taylor, Gerald Ames and William Felton.Palmer p.900 Plot A man forces a woman to pose as his dead wife, who was her doppelganger. Cast ...

'' (1918) * ''

Missing the Tide ''Missing the Tide'' is a 1918 British silent drama film directed by Walter West and starring Violet Hopson, Basil Gill and Ivy Close. The film is based on a novel by Alfred Turner.Goble p.468 The screenplay concerns a woman who leaves her cr ...

'' (1918) * '' A Turf Conspiracy'' (1918) * ''

A Fortune at Stake ''A Fortune at Stake'' is a 1918 British silent drama film directed by Walter West and starring Violet Hopson, Gerald Ames and Edward O'Neill. It was based on a novel by Nat Gould. Cast * Violet Hopson as Lady Launcelot * Gerald Ames a ...

'' (1918) * ''

Adam Bede ''Adam Bede'' was the first novel by Mary Ann Evans (George Eliot), and was published in 1859. It was published pseudonymously, even though Evans was a well-published and highly respected scholar of her time. The novel has remained in print ev ...

'' (1918) * '' Red Pottage'' (1918) * ''

The Irresistible Flapper ''The Irresistible Flapper'' is a 1919 British silent comedy film directed by Frank Wilson and starring Violet Hopson, Ivy Close and Gerald Ames. Plot A flapper rescues her less worldly-wise sister from social disgrace. Cast * Violet Hopson ...

'' (1919) * ''

Comradeship Comradeship may refer to: * ''Comradeship'' (1919 film), a British silent film drama directed by Maurice Elvey * ''Kameradschaft'', or ''Comradeship'', a 1931 film directed by Georg Wilhelm Pabst See also * Comrade The term ''comrade'' (russ ...

'' (1919) * ''

Possession Possession may refer to: Law * Dependent territory, an area of land over which another country exercises sovereignty, but which does not have the full right of participation in that country's governance * Drug possession, a crime * Ownership * ...

'' (1919) * ''

The Forest on the Hill ''The Forest on the Hill'' is a 1919 British silent crime film directed by Cecil Hepworth and starring Alma Taylor, James Carew and Gerald Ames. It was based on a novel by Eden Phillpotts. Cast * Alma Taylor - Drusilla Whyddon * James Car ...

'' (1919) * ''

Sheba Sheba (; he, ''Šəḇāʾ''; ar, سبأ ''Sabaʾ''; Ge'ez: ሳባ ''Saba'') is a kingdom mentioned in the Hebrew Bible ( Old Testament) and the Quran. Sheba features in Jewish, Muslim, and Christian traditions, particularly the Ethiopian Ort ...

'' (1919) * '' Sunken Rocks'' (1919) * '' The Nature of the Beast'' (1919) * '' Missing the Tides'' (1919) * ''

Broken in the Wars ''Broken in the Wars'' is a 1919 British silent film, silent drama film directed by Cecil Hepworth and starring Henry Edwards (actor), Henry Edwards, Chrissie White and Alma Taylor. The Pensions Minister John Hodge (politician), John Hodge appear ...

'' (1919) * ''

John Forrest Finds Himself ''John Forrest Finds Himself'' is a 1920 British silent romance film directed by Henry Edwards and starring Edwards, Chrissie White and Gerald Ames. Cast * Henry Edwards - John Forrest * Chrissie White - Joan Grey * Gerald Ames - Ezra Blo ...

'' (1920) * ''

Once Aboard the Lugger ''Once Aboard the Lugger'' is a 1920 British silent comedy film directed by Gerald Ames and Gaston Quiribet and starring E. Holman Clark, Eileen Dennes and Evan Thomas.Goble p.894 Plot A hard-up student kidnaps his rich uncle's cat. Cast * ...

'' (1920) * ''

Aylwin Patricio Aylwin Azócar (; 26 November 1918 – 19 April 2016) was a Chilean politician from the Christian Democratic Party, lawyer, author, professor and former senator. He was the first president of Chile after dictator Augusto Pinochet, a ...

'' (1920) * ''

Anna the Adventuress ''Anna the Adventuress'' is a 1920 British silent drama film directed by Cecil Hepworth and starring Alma Taylor, Jean Cadell and James Carew. It is based on a novel by Phillips Oppenheim. Made by Hepworth Pictures at Walton Studios, it is n ...

'' (1920) * '' Alf's Button'' (1920) * '' The Amazing Quest of Mr. Ernest Bliss'' (1920) * ''

Helen of Four Gates ''Helen of Four Gates'' is a 1920 British silent melodrama film directed by cinema pioneer Cecil Hepworth and starring Alma Taylor (in a dual role as mother and daughter), James Carew, and Gerald Ames. Production background The film was ada ...

'' (1920) * '' Mrs. Erricker's Reputation'' (1920) * ''

Mr. Justice Raffles ''Mr. Justice Raffles'' is a 1909 novel written by E.W. Hornung. It featured his popular character A. J. Raffles a well-known cricketer and gentleman thief. It was the fourth and last in his four Raffles books which had begun with '' The Amate ...

'' (1921) * ''

Tansy Tansy (''Tanacetum vulgare'') is a perennial, herbaceous flowering plant in the genus ''Tanacetum'' in the aster family, native to temperate Europe and Asia. It has been introduced to other parts of the world, including North America, and in ...

'' (1921) * ''

Wild Heather ''Wild Heather'' is a 1921 British drama film directed by Cecil Hepworth and starring Chrissie White, Gerald Ames, James Carew and George Dewhurst. It was based on the 1917 play '' Wild Heather'' by Dorothy Brandon. Cast *Chrissie White as ...

'' (1921) * ''

The Woman Who Obeyed ''The Woman Who Obeyed'' is a 1923 British silent film directed by Sidney Morgan and starring Stewart Rome, Hilda Bayley, and Peter Dear. Premise An overbearing husband separates his wife from her children but is reconciled to her after he has ...

'' (1923) * ''

The Loves of Mary, Queen of Scots ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

'' (1923) * '' God's Prodigal'' (1923) * '' A Royal Divorce'' (1923) * '' The Little People'' (1926) * '' The King's Highway'' (1927) * ''

The Rising Generation ''The Rising Generation'' is a lost 1928 British silent comedy film directed by Harley Knoles and George Dewhurst and starring Alice Joyce, Jameson Thomas and Robin Irvine. It was based on a play by Laura Leycester. The screenplay concerns a ...

'' (1928) * '' A Light Woman'' (1928)

References

1880 births 1933 deaths People from Blackheath, London English male stage actors English male film actors English male silent film actors English film directors Olympic fencers of Great Britain Fencers at the 1912 Summer Olympics Male actors from London 20th-century English male actors Male actors from Kent English male fencers accidental deaths in London accidental deaths from falls {{england-actor-stub