William Russell (born William Lerche; April 12, 1884 – February 18, 1929) was an American actor,

film director A film director controls a film's artistic and dramatic aspects and visualizes the screenplay (or script) while guiding the film crew and actors in the fulfilment of that vision. The director has a key role in choosing the cast members, p ...

film producer A film producer is a person who oversees film production. Either employed by a production company or working independently, producers plan and coordinate various aspects of film production, such as selecting the script, coordinating writing, di ...

and

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. He appeared in over two hundred silent-era motion pictures between 1910 and 1929, directing five of them in 1916 and producing two through his own production company in 1918 and 1925.

Early life and career

Born in the Bronx borough of New York City, Russell began his acting career on the stage when he was eight years old. He appeared with such notables as

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Chauncey Olcott Chauncey Olcott, born John Chancellor Olcott and often spelled Chauncey Alcott, (July 21, 1858 – March 18, 1932) was an American stage actor, songwriter and singer of Irish descent. Biography He was born in Buffalo, New York. His mother, Mar ...

, Blanche Bates, Maude Adams and others. Russell's Broadway credits include ''Princess Flavia'' (1925), ''Cyrano de Bergerac'' (1923), and ''The Tenderfoot'' (1904). His career came to a stop when he was 16, however, when he became an invalid. Through rigorous physical therapy, he recovered his health six years later. He then became an amateur boxing champion.

Motion pictures

Russell began his screen career in New York with the Biograph Company, where he worked for nine months before signing with the Thanhouser Company. He was also part of the company of players for the American Film Manufacturing Company and its Flying "A" Studios in Santa Barbara. In 1917, he and actress Charlotte Burton were married. They divorced in 1921. He and actress Helen Ferguson were married on June 21, 1925, at the Wilshire Boulevard Congregational Church, after a six-year romance. William Russell died at the age of 44 from pneumonia at Hollywood Hospital in Los Angeles."Russell Rites To Be Saturday." ''Los Angeles Times''. February 19, 1929. p. A 1. He is entombed in the Great Mausoleum, Sanctuary of Love, at Forest Lawn Cemetery,

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. His brother, director Albert Russell, died two weeks later from pneumonia.

Selected filmography

Actor

References

External links

*
William Russell Photo
at

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Russell, William 1884 births 1929 deaths 19th-century American male actors American Christian Scientists American male stage actors American male silent film actors Male actors from New York City Deaths from pneumonia in California 20th-century American male actors Burials at Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Glendale) People from the Bronx Silent film screenwriters 20th-century screenwriters