Mary Walter (September 10, 1912 – February 25, 1993) was a

Filipina Filipinos ( tl, Mga Pilipino) are the people who are citizens of or native to the Philippines. The majority of Filipinos today come from various Austronesian ethnolinguistic groups, all typically speaking either Filipino, English and/or other ...

actress An actor or actress is a person who portrays a Character (arts), character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek ...

whose eight decade-long film acting career saw her transformation from a romantic lead in the

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 ...

era into a wizened fixture in

horror movies Horror is a film genre that seeks to elicit fear or disgust in its audience for entertainment purposes. Horror films often explore dark subject matter and may deal with transgressive topics or themes. Broad elements include monsters, apoc ...

in the late 1980s and early 1990s. For her body of work accomplished in an especially long career, she was honored with the Lifetime Achievement Award from both the

Filipino Academy of Movie Arts and Sciences The Filipino Academy of Movie Arts and Sciences Awards (also known as the FAMAS Awards) are the annual honors given by the Filipino Academy of Movie Arts and Sciences (FAMAS), an organization composed of award-winning writers and movie columni ...

and the

Gawad Urian The Gawad Urian Awards are annual film awards in the Philippines held since 1977. It is given by the Manunuri ng Pelikulang Pilipino (MPP, "the Filipino Film Critics") and is currently regarded as the counterpart of the United States' New York Fi ...

Biography

Walter was born to a

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

father in what is now

Sorsogon City Sorsogon City, officially the City of Sorsogon (Southern Sorsogon language, Waray Sorsogon: ''Syudad san Sorsogon''; bcl, Siyudad nin Sorsogon; fil, Lungsod ng Sorsogon), is a 3rd class Cities of the Philippines#Legal classification, component ...

Sorsogon Sorsogon, officially the Province of Sorsogon (Bikol language, Bikol: ''Probinsya kan Sorsogon''; Waray language, Waray: ''Probinsya han Sorsogon''; tl, Lalawigan ng Sorsogon), is a Provinces of the Philippines, province in the Philippines locat ...

. As a teen, Walter appeared on the Manila

bodabil Vaudeville in the Philippines, more commonly referred to as bodabil, was a popular genre of entertainment in the Philippines from the 1910s until the mid-1960s. For decades, it competed with film, radio and television as the dominant form of Filip ...

circuit as a chorus girl in the stage shows of

Katy de la Cruz Katy de la Cruz (born Catalina de la Cruz; February 13, 1907 – November 10, 2004) was a leading Filipina singer who specialized in jazz vocals and torch songs in a hon career that lasted eight decades. Hailed as "The Queen of Filipino Jazz" ...

. She began her film career as a

bit player In acting, a bit part is a role in which there is direct interaction with the principal actors and no more than five lines of dialogue, often referred to as a five-or-less or under-five in the United States, or under sixes in British television, ...

. Walter first came into fame in 1927, when she starred in ''Ang Lumang Simbahan'', staged from the popular novel by

Florentino Collantes Florentino Collantes (October 16, 1896 – July 15, 1951) was a Filipino poet who was among the writers who spearheaded a revival of interest in Tagalog literature in the Philippines in the 20th century. Early years Collantes was born in the villa ...

. Her leading man in that film was

Gregorio Fernandez Gregorio Montemayor Fernandez (May 25, 1904 – March 11, 1973) was a Filipino film actor and director, and father of Rudy Fernandez. Personal life Fernandez was born on May 25, 1904 to Eugenio Araneta Fernandez and Maria Montemayor. He marr ...

, with whom she would be romantically paired in a succession of

s, constituting perhaps the first "love-team" in Filipino cinema. After appearing in many

s, Walter easily made the transition when

sound film A sound film is a motion picture with synchronized sound, or sound technologically coupled to image, as opposed to a silent film. The first known public exhibition of projected sound films took place in Paris in 1900, but decades passed before ...

emerged in the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

in the mid-1930s. In 1939, she appeared in the film ''Mariposang Berde'' with then up and coming actress Malou "Chumams" Nocedo. She was among the stars who appeared in the 1942 LVN film ''Prinsipe Teñoso'', the only film produced by a Filipino

film studio A film studio (also known as movie studio or simply studio) is a major entertainment company or motion picture company that has its own privately owned studio facility or facilities that are used to make films, which is handled by the production ...

during the Japanese Occupation.Garcia, p. 203 In 1948, after a 21-year film career, Walter retired to her hometown in

. Ten years later, she was induced to act again, and she appeared in LVN's ''Kastilaloy''. She was cast as a matron or mother in her forties. As she further aged, Walter became one of the most identifiable character actresses in Philippine cinema. Fair, petite and gaunt, she became inalienably identified in grandmother roles. A

chain-smoker Chain smoking is the practice of smoking several cigarettes in succession, sometimes using the ember of a finished cigarette to light the next. The term chain smoker often also refers to a person who smokes relatively constantly, though not ne ...

, her gravelly voice made her ideally cast in villainous roles, most prominently in the 1974

Lino Brocka Catalino Ortiz Brocka (April 3, 1939 – May 22, 1991) was a Filipino film director. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential and significant filmmakers in the history of Philippine cinema. He co-founded the organization Concerned Art ...

film ''Tatlo, Dalawa, Isa''. By the 1980s, she was a memorable presence in popular

horror film Horror is a film genre that seeks to elicit fear or disgust in its audience for entertainment purposes. Horror films often explore dark subject matter and may deal with transgressive topics or themes. Broad elements include monsters, apoca ...

s such as ''

Shake, Rattle and Roll "Shake, Rattle and Roll" is a song, written in 1954 by Jesse Stone (usually credited as Charles Calhoun, his songwriting name). The original recording by Big Joe Turner is ranked number 127 on the ''Rolling Stone'' magazine's list of The 500 Gr ...

'' (1984) and ''Tiyanak'' (1988). In 1980, Walter received the FAMAS Lifetime Achievement Award. A similar award, this time from the Gawad Urian, was given to Walter in 1992. Contrary to what is published in her IMDB biography, Walter was not the actress engaged in the first kissing scene in Philippine cinema (that distinction belongs to Dimples Cooper).Garcia, p. 127 Walter never retired again after returning to film in 1958. She died on February 25, 1993, after having a stroke in

Quezon City Quezon City (, ; fil, Lungsod Quezon ), also known as the City of Quezon and Q.C. (read in Filipino as Kyusi), is the List of cities in the Philippines, most populous city in the Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a populatio ...

Notes

References

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External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Walter, Mary 1912 births 1993 deaths Filipino child actresses Filipino film actresses Filipino television personalities Filipino silent film actresses Bicolano people Filipino people of German descent People from Sorsogon 20th-century Filipino actresses Bicolano actors