Wally Van (born Charles Wallace Van Nostrand; September 27, 1880 – May 9, 1974) was an American actor and

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 ...

of the

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 ...

Early years

Van was born Charles Wallace Van Nostrand on September 27, 1880, in New Hyde Park, New York. His Dutch ancestors settled in New York in 1638. His father, Charles A. Van Nostrand, worked in the United States Customs Office, Van had two sisters and a brother. After being educated in Brooklyn's public schools, he graduated from the School of Sciences in New York City. Friends in college began calling him Wally Van. He graduated from a technical school as a civil engineer, but later he sold leather goods, then worked as an electrical engineer. As an engineer, he worked for the Brooklyn Rapid Transit Company. A job maintaining engines of speedboats owned by the president of

Vitagraph Studios 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, ...

provided an opening for him to get into films. His engineering background also helped him to design improvements for cameras at Vitagraph.

Film career

J. Stuart Blackton James Stuart Blackton (January 5, 1875 – August 13, 1941) was a British-American film producer and director of the silent era. One of the pioneers of motion pictures, he founded Vitagraph Studios in 1897. He was one of the first filmmakers to ...

, founder of Vitagraph, saw Van as a natural comedian and put him in a starring role in his film debut in 1910. For 14 years thereafter, Van directed and starred in films and often wrote for them. For five years, Van was director general for the Hallmark Company, "a producing firm with 26 exchanges throughout the country". Van appeared in 75 films between 1913 and 1925. He also directed 42 films between 1914 and 1925. In April 1941, Van announced establishment of Royal Palms Productions in Miami, Florida, with himself as president. The company had plans to build a studio but began production in the existing duPont Building. By September 1941 he had completed the comedy ''Important Business'', described as "a Wally-Van 'Featurette'".

Personal life and death

Van was married to Anitra MacTavish, an actress in musical comedies. He died in

Englewood, New Jersey Englewood is a city in Bergen County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, which at the 2020 United States census had a population of 29,308. Englewood was incorporated as a city by an act of the New Jersey Legislature on March 17, 1899, from por ...

Selected filmography

* ''

Our Wives ''Our Wives'' is a 1913 comedy short silent film, written by Anthony E. Wills, and directed by James Lackaye. Cast * Harry T. Morey ... Rosweel Chandler * Louise Beaudet ... Mrs. Rosweel Chandler * Lillian Walker ... Belle * Wally Van ... ...

'' (1913) * ''

The Scarlet Runner ''The Scarlet Runner'' is a 1916 American drama film serial directed by William P. S. Earle and Wally Van. The film is considered lost. Plot A series of 12 two-reel episodes, each a separate story related to the adventures of Christopher Race ...

'' (1916) * '' The Evil Eye'' (1920) * '' East Side - West Side'' (1923) * '' The Common Law'' (1923) * ''

Slave of Desire ''Slave of Desire'' (originally titled ''The Magic Skin'') is a 1923 American silent drama film directed by George D. Baker, produced and distributed by Goldwyn Pictures. It was based on the novel ''La Peau de chagrin'' by Honoré de Balzac, fi ...

'' (1923) * ''

The Drivin' Fool ''The Drivin' Fool'' is a 1923 American silent comedy action film directed by Robert Thornby and starring Wally Van, Alec B. Francis, and Patsy Ruth Miller. Cast Preservation With no prints of ''The Drivin' Fool'' located in any film archive ...

'' (1923) * '' Rough Going'' (1925) * ''

Barriers Burned Away ''Barriers Burned Away'' is a 1925 American silent historical drama film directed by W.S. Van Dyke and starring Mabel Ballin, Eric Mayne, and Frank Mayo. It is set at the time of the Great Chicago Fire in 1871. The film is loosely adapted fro ...

'' (1925)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Van, Wally 1880 births 1974 deaths American male film actors American male silent film actors American film directors People from New Hyde Park, New York 20th-century American male actors