Virginia Norden (May 4, 1879 – January 17, 1948), born Violet Alice Dalton, was an American actress on stage and in silent films.

Early life

Violet Dalton was from Washington, D.C., the daughter of William Newton Dalton and Olivia Alice Williams Dalton. Her father was a major in the United States Army. She studied acting at the

American Academy of Dramatic Arts The American Academy of Dramatic Arts (AADA) is a private performing arts conservatory with two locations, one in Manhattan and one in Los Angeles. The academy offers an associate degree in occupational studies and teaches drama and related art ...

in New York.

Career

Acting

Norden acted on the stage, making her Broadway debut in 1913, in ''Poor Little Rich Girl'' by

Eleanor Gates Eleanor Gates (26 September 1874 – 7 March 1951) was an American playwright who created seven plays that were staged on Broadway. Her best known work was the play ''The Poor Little Rich Girl'', which was produced by her husband in 1913 and w ...

. She also wrote a play, ''Making the Movies'' (1916). In 1916, she contributed a recipe for "Virginia Chow Chow" to a charity cookbook, assembled by

Mabel Rowland Mabel Rowland (February 8, 1879 – February 21, 1943) was an American monologist, actress, writer, director, editor, and the founder of the Metropolitan Players in New York City. Early life Mabel Laura Levi was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvan ...

. Norden's silent film credits included roles in ''

Baby Hands James Cruze (born James Cruze Bosen; March 27, 1884 – August 3, 1942) was a silent film actor and film director. Early years Cruze's middle name came from the battle of Vera Cruz. He was raised in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day ...

'' (1912), ''For the Mikado'' (1912), ''Freddy the Fixer'' (1916), ''The Destroyers'' (1916, also known as ''Peter God''), ''The Ancient Blood'' (1916), ''

The Dupe ''The Dupe'' is a 1916 American drama silent film directed by Frank Reicher and written by Hector Turnbull and Margaret Turnbull. The film stars Blanche Sweet, Ernest Joy, Veda McEvers and Thomas Meighan. The film was released on July 2, 1916, ...

'' (1916), ''The Deluded Wife'' (1916), '' The Combat'' (1916), ''The Dawn of a New Day'' (1916), ''

Virtuous Wives ''Virtuous Wives'' is a lost 1918 American silent drama film directed by George Loane Tucker, and stars Anita Stewart. Future gossip columnist Hedda Hopper (billed as Mrs. DeWolf Hopper) co-starred. Based on the novel of the same name by Owen Jo ...

'' (1918), and ''

The Mind the Paint Girl ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of ...

'' (1919).

Clubwork during World War I

Norden formed and led a garden club in Brightwaters,

Long Island Long Island is a densely populated island in the southeastern region of the U.S. state of New York (state), New York, part of the New York metropolitan area. With over 8 million people, Long Island is the most populous island in the United Sta ...

in 1917, to encourage women to grow vegetables and market their produce locally. The "Patriotic Gardeners", as they were known, also gave benefit shows and raised funds for sending comfort kits, candy, cigarettes, and other supplies to Long Island men serving in World War I.

Fashion design

In 1913, Norden gave an interview on the subject of beauty, predicting that "Soon a rational era will come," when women "will revert to simple clothes, stop daubing their faces with cosmetics ... and use the time thus saved to cultivate heart and mind qualities." While working with director Ralph Ince in 1916, she also designed costumes and headed the wardrobe department at Ince Productions. After she left acting, she began a dress and millinery business with her cousin Martha Schorbach and her sister Olivia Dalton in New York, and was described as a "

modiste A dressmaker, also known as a seamstress, is a person who makes custom clothing for women, such as dresses, blouses, and evening gowns. Dressmakers were historically known as mantua-makers, and are also known as a modiste or fabrician. Nota ...

" in 1928.

Personal life

Violet Dalton married three times. Her first husband was Howard A. Potts; they married in 1898. She married Henry Nickel, in 1906; they divorced in 1928. She married a businessman, Otto Christopher Bubeck, in 1928. She was widowed by 1940, and she died in Los Angeles, California, in 1948, aged 68 years.State of California. ''California Death Index, 1940-1997''. Sacramento, CA, USA: State of California Department of Health Services, Center for Health Statistics. via Ancestry

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Norden, Virginia 1879 births 1948 deaths Actresses from Washington, D.C. American stage actresses American silent film actresses 20th-century American actresses American women in business American women in World War I