Myrtle Gonzalez (September 28, 1891 – October 22, 1918) was an American actress. She starred in at least 78

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 ...

motion pictures from 1913 to 1917, of which 66 were one and two-reel

shorts Shorts are a garment worn over the human pelvis, pelvic area, circling the waist and splitting to cover the upper part of the legs, sometimes extending down to the knees but not covering the entire length of the leg. They are called "shorts" b ...

. She is regarded as a movie star.MeXicana encounters: the making of social identities on the borderlands
By Rosa Linda Fregoso Gonzalez was best known for her role as Enid Maitland in

Vitagraph 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, ...

's six-reel

feature length A feature film or feature-length film is a narrative film (motion picture or "movie") with a running time long enough to be considered the principal or sole presentation in a commercial entertainment program. The term ''feature film'' originall ...

drama Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance: a play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a genre of poetry in general, the dramatic mode has been ...

''The Chalice of Courage'' (1915) opposite William Duncan. A magazine writer once called her "The Virgin White Lily of the Screen".

Early life

Myrtle Gonzalez was born in Los Angeles, California on September 28, 1891, the daughter of Manuel George Gonzalez (1868–1919) and Lillian L. Cook (1874–1932). Her siblings were Stella M. Gonzalez (1892–1965) and Manuel G. Gonzalez Jr. (1898–?). Her father's family was a Hispanic

Californio Californio (plural Californios) is a term used to designate a Hispanic Californian, especially those descended from Spanish and Mexican settlers of the 17th through 19th centuries. California's Spanish-speaking community has resided there sinc ...

family of Mexico, which had long settled this territory before the US took it over. Her mother, the daughter of immigrants from

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

, was a former opera and popular singer. Her father was a retail grocer. From early childhood, Myrtle displayed remarkable dramatic talent, and she had a good

soprano A soprano () is a type of classical female singing voice and has the highest vocal range of all voice types. The soprano's vocal range (using scientific pitch notation) is from approximately middle C (C4) = 261 Hz to "high A" (A5) = 880&n ...

voice. She appeared in many local concerts and

benefits Benefit or benefits may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * ''Benefit'' (album), by Jethro Tull, 1970 * "Benefits" (''How I Met Your Mother''), a 2009 TV episode * '' The Benefit'', a 2012 Egyptian action film Businesses and organisatio ...

and sang in

church choirs Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a building for Christian religious activities * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian communal worship * Chris ...

. She later played juvenile parts on the

stage Stage or stages may refer to: Acting * Stage (theatre), a space for the performance of theatrical productions * Theatre, a branch of the performing arts, often referred to as "the stage" * ''The Stage'', a weekly British theatre newspaper * Sta ...

with

Fanny Davenport Fanny Lily Gipsey Davenport (April 10, 1850 – September 26, 1898) was an English-American stage actress. Life The eldest child of Edward Loomis Davenport and Fanny Elizabeth (Vining) Gill Davenport, Fanny Lily Gypsey Davenport was born on A ...

and Florence Stone. Gonzalez married James Parks Jones circa 1910. They had one son together, James Parks Jones Jr. (), before they divorced.

Movie career

Because she grew up in Los Angeles, the shift of movie production to her hometown was a big advantage for her. Gonzalez worked for such

studios A studio is an artist or worker's workroom. This can be for the purpose of acting, architecture, painting, pottery (ceramics), sculpture, origami, woodworking, scrapbooking, photography, graphic design, filmmaking, animation, industrial d ...

and

Universal Universal is the adjective for universe. Universal may also refer to: Companies * NBCUniversal, a media and entertainment company ** Universal Animation Studios, an American Animation studio, and a subsidiary of NBCUniversal ** Universal TV, a ...

. She appeared in five movies opposite

William Desmond Taylor William Desmond Taylor (born William Cunningham Deane-Tanner, 26 April 1872 – 1 February 1922) was an Anglo-Irish-American film director and actor. A popular figure in the growing Hollywood motion picture colony of the 1910s and early 1920s, ...

at Vitagraph: the comedy/drama ''Her Husband's Friend'' (1913), the drama ''Tainted Money'' (1914), the comedy ''Millions for Defence'' (1914), the drama '' The Kiss'' (1914), and the drama ''

Captain Alvarez ''Captain Alvarez'' is a 1914 Vitagraph's five-reel#Motion picture terminology, reel film, based on a stage play. Written by Marguerite Bertsch, and directed by Rollin S. Sturgeon. Plot A melodrama about an American who becomes a revolutionar ...

'' (1914). In many of her roles, Gonzalez typified a vigorous out-of-doors type of

hero A hero (feminine: heroine) is a real person or a main fictional character who, in the face of danger, combats adversity through feats of ingenuity, courage, or Physical strength, strength. Like other formerly gender-specific terms (like ...

ine. During the last six years of her career, many of the movies she starred in were stories of the snow country and of the forests.

Personal life and death

On December 1, 1917, she and actor/director Allen Watt (1885–1944) were married in Los Angeles. She gave up her screen work and retired. They had met when Watt was working as an

assistant director The role of an assistant director on a film includes tracking daily progress against the filming production schedule, arranging logistics, preparing daily call sheets, checking cast and crew, and maintaining order on the set. They also have to tak ...

at Universal. By the time of their marriage, the US had entered

World War I 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 ...

and Watt was an officer in the US Army. He was stationed at Camp Lewis, near Tacoma,

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

. As Gonzalez's health was too frail for the climate, Capt. Watt was placed on the retirement list, so he could return her to

Southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and Cultural area, cultural region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. It includes the Los Angeles metropolitan area, the second most po ...

. He went back to work at Universal and began directing. Gonzalez, at age 27, died during the worldwide

Spanish flu pandemic The 1918–1920 influenza pandemic, commonly known by the misnomer Spanish flu or as the Great Influenza epidemic, was an exceptionally deadly global influenza pandemic caused by the H1N1 influenza A virus. The earliest documented case was ...

of 1918. At the time of her death, she was at her parents' home in Los Angeles, at 908 West Thirtieth Street. On November 23, 2022, Google featured her in a

Google Doodle A Google Doodle is a special, temporary alteration of the logo on Google's homepages intended to commemorate holidays, events, achievements, and notable historical figures. The first Google Doodle honored the 1998 edition of the long-running an ...

in the United States. November 23 is the anniversary of the release of the short film ''The Level'' (1914), in which she starred.

Selected filmography

*'' Chalice of Courage'' (1915) *''

A Natural Man ''A Natural Man'' is a 1915 silent film drama short directed by Ulysses Davis and produced by the Vitagraph Company of America. The General Film Company distributed the film. The film is preserved in the Library of Congress collection.''Catalog ...

'' (1915) * '' The Girl of Lost Lake'' (1916) * ''

It Happened in Honolulu ''It Happened in Honolulu'' is a 1916 American silent film, silent comedy film directed by Lynn Reynolds and starring Myrtle Gonzalez, Val Paul and George Hernandez.Connelly p.367 Cast * Myrtle Gonzalez as Mabel Wyland * Val Paul as Larry Crane * ...

'' (1916) *''

The Secret of the Swamp ''The Secret of the Swamp'' is a 1916 American Drama (film and television), drama film written and directed by Lynn Reynolds. The film stars George Hernandez, Myrtle Gonzalez, Fred Church (actor), Fred Church, Frank MacQuarrie, Val Paul and Count ...

'' (1916) * ''

The Greater Law ''The Greater Law'' is a 1917 American silent drama film directed by Lynn Reynolds and starring Myrtle Gonzalez, Gretchen Lederer and George Hernandez.Connelly p.100 Cast * Myrtle Gonzalez as Barbara Henderson * Gretchen Lederer as 'Seattle' Lou ...

'' (1917) * ''

Mutiny Mutiny is a revolt among a group of people (typically of a military, of a crew or of a crew of pirates) to oppose, change, or overthrow an organization to which they were previously loyal. The term is commonly used for a rebellion among member ...

'' (1917) *'' God's Crucible'' (1917) * ''

Southern Justice ''Southern Justice'' is a reality based television series which follows the activities and exploits of two southern Sheriff's departments in the Appalachian Mountains of the southern United States. These departments are the Sullivan County Sherif ...

'' (1917) * ''

The Show Down ''The Show Down'' is a 1917 American silent drama film directed by Lynn Reynolds and starring Myrtle Gonzalez, George Hernandez and Arthur Hoyt.Spehr & Lundquist p.287 Cast * Myrtle Gonzalez as Lydia Benson * George Hernandez as John Benson ...

'' (1917)

Bibliography

* Doyle, Billy H. (1995). ''The Ultimate Directory of Silent Screen Performers''. pp. 30–31.

Metuchen, New Jersey Metuchen ( ) is a suburban borough in Middlesex County, New Jersey, United States. The borough is a commuter town of New York City, located in the heart of the Raritan Valley region within the New York Metropolitan area. The borough, along wit ...

Scarecrow Press Rowman & Littlefield Publishing Group is an independent publishing house founded in 1949. Under several imprints, the company offers scholarly books for the academic market, as well as trade books. The company also owns the book distributing compa ...

. .

References

External links

*
Biography
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Gonzalez, Myrtle 1891 births 1918 deaths American film actresses American actresses of Mexican descent American people of Irish descent American silent film actresses American stage actresses Actresses from Los Angeles Deaths from the Spanish flu pandemic in California 20th-century American actresses Hispanic and Latino American actresses