Mary Charleson (18 May 1890 – 3 December 1961) was an

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

silent film 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, when ...

actress who starred in about 80 films in the U.S. between 1912 and 1920.

Early life

Born in

Dungannon Dungannon () is a town in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. It is the second-largest town in the county (after Omagh) and had a population of 14,340 at the 2011 Census. The Dungannon and South Tyrone Borough Council had its headquarters in the ...

in Ireland to George Charleson, a hairdresser and Jane Steele. She was part of a theatrical family, related to the actress Kate Price, Charleson's family moved to

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

while she was still at school. Intent on following in the family tradition, Charleson took to the stage when she completed her schooling. Her first performance was with the ''Grand Opera Stock Company'' playing a variety of parts. She worked with a number of companies on the Pacific coast and then began her career in the

Acting career

When started in the films her first film was ''The Ancient Bow'' in 1912 by the

Vitagraph Company of America 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, ...

. The main highlights of her career are ''The Strange Story of Sylvia Gray'' (1914), by Vitagraph, ''The Road o'Strife'' in 1915 by the

Lubin Manufacturing Company The Lubin Manufacturing Company was an American motion picture production company that produced silent films from 1896 to 1916. Lubin films were distributed with a Liberty Bell trademark. History The Lubin Manufacturing Company was formed in 1 ...

, ''Satan's Private Door'' in 1917 by the Essanay Film Manufacturing Company and ''

Upstairs and Down ''Upstairs and Down'' is a 1919 American silent comedy film directed by Charles Giblyn, and starring Olive Thomas, Rosemary Theby, David Butler, and Robert Ellis. It is based on the 1916 play of the same name by Frederick and Fanny Hatton. ''U ...

'' (1919), by the Selznick Pictures Corporation. Charleson worked with names like Rex Ingram and

Rollin S. Sturgeon Rollin Summers Sturgeon (August 25, 1877 – May 10, 1961) was an American film director of silent films active from 1910 to 1924. He directed 101 films during this period. Filmography Director *''Uncle Tom's Cabin, Part 1'' 1910 *''A ...

. In 1918 Charleson married her husband, co-star of some of her films, Henry B. Walthall. He had recently divorced his first wife. Their daughter, Patricia Walthall was born the same year. Patricia Walthall later had some small film roles but she married an engineer from

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata, on South ...

and left the industry. After the Western ''Human Stuff'' in 1920 by

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 ...

, Charleson left acting to focus on her husband's business and became one of the forgotten stars of the silent era. Mary Charleson died in

Los Angeles 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' ...

, California on 3 December 1961 and was buried in Holy Cross Cemetery in

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood, ...

Filmography

* ''The Road to Yesterday; or, Patio Memories of Days'', directed by Rollin S. Sturgeon (1912) * ''The Smoke from Lone Bill's Cabin'', directed by Rollin S. Sturgeon (1913) * ''The Intruder'', directed by Maurice Costello and Wilfrid North (1913) * ''The Education of Aunt Georgiana'', directed by Maurice Costello and Robert Gaillard (1913) * ''The Acid Test'', directed by Maurice Costello and Robert Gaillard (1914) * ''Mr. Barnes of New York'', directed by Maurice Costello and Robert Gaillard (1914) * ''

The Strange Story of Sylvia Gray ''The Strange Story of Sylvia Gray'' is a 1914 American silent film written and directed by Charles L. Gaskill and stars Helen Gardner, Charles Kent and Mary Charleson. Plot Henry and Sylvia Gray live in poverty with their baby daughter, Silv ...

'' (1914) * ''What Happened to Jones'', directed by Fred Mace (1915) * ''The Silent Accuser'', directed by Joseph Kaufman (1915) * ''The Country That God Forgot'', directed by Marshall Neilan (1916) * '' Passers By'' (1916) * ''

The Truant Soul ''The Truant Soul'' is a 1916 American silent drama film directed by Harry Beaumont and starring Henry B. Walthall, Mary Charleson and Patrick Calhoun.Connelly p.424 Cast * Henry B. Walthall as Dr. John Lancaster / Dr. Lawson * Mary Charleson as ...

'', directed by Harry Beaumont (1916) * ''The Little Shoes'', directed by Arthur Berthelet (1917) * ''

Burning the Candle ''Burning the Candle'' is a 1917 American silent drama film directed by Harry Beaumont and starring Henry B. Walthall, Mary Charleson and Frances Raymond.Langman p.389 Cast * Henry B. Walthall as James Maxwell * Mary Charleson as Molly Carringto ...

'', directed by Harry Beaumont (1917) * ''Satan's Private Door'', directed by J. Charles Haydon (1917) * ''The Saint's Adventure'', directed by Arthur Berthelet (1917) * ''

His Robe of Honor ''His Robe of Honor'' is a 1918 American silent film, silent crime film, crime drama film directed by Rex Ingram (director), Rex Ingram and starring Henry B. Walthall, Mary Charleson and Lois Wilson (actress), Lois Wilson.Gmür p.288 The film's s ...

'', directed by Rex Ingram (1918) * ''

Humdrum Brown ''Humdrum Brown'' is a 1918 American silent comedy drama film directed by Rex Ingram and starring Henry B. Walthall, Mary Charleson and Dorothy Clark (actress), Dorothy Clark.Gmür p.295 Cast * Henry B. Walthall as Hector 'Humdrum' Brown * Mar ...

'' (1918) * '' With Hoops of Steel'' (1918) * ''The Long Lane's Turning'' * ''Upstairs and Down'', directed by Charles Giblyn (1919) * ''Human stuff'' (1920)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Charleson, Mary 1890 births 1961 deaths 20th-century American actresses 20th-century Irish actresses Irish silent film actresses People from Dungannon Irish emigrants to the United States Actors from County Tyrone

Early life

Acting career

Filmography

References

Further reading

External links