Walter K. Whitman (April 25, 1859 – March 27, 1928) was an American

character actor A character actor is a supporting actor who plays unusual, interesting, or eccentric characters.28 April 2013, The New York Acting SchoolTen Best Character Actors of All Time Retrieved 7 August 2014, "..a breed of actor who has the ability to b ...

of the stage and screen who was active during

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood, ...

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 ...

. He is not to be confused with the influential poet of the same name.

Biography

Whitman had a long career on the stage in cities like

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

, and

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

before he began appearing in Triangle films in the 1910s, at which point he was already an older man. He died on March 27, 1928, in

Santa Monica, California Santa Monica (; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Santa Mónica'') is a city in Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County, situated along Santa Monica Bay on California's South Coast (California), South Coast. Santa Monica's 2020 United Sta ...

. "I was only a country lad, but I had seen so many real good shows at our local

opera house An opera house is a theatre building used for performances of opera. It usually includes a stage, an orchestra pit, audience seating, and backstage facilities for costumes and building sets. While some venues are constructed specifically for o ...

that I made up my mind I would be an actor," he'd later tell reporters of his beginnings. He also recounted that in 1896, he leapt from the fifth floor of the Hotel Richelieu in

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

when it caught on fire.

Selected filmography

* '' Missing Daughters'' (1924) * '' Long Live the King'' (1923) * ''

The Grub-Stake ''The Grub-Stake'' is a 1923 American silent Western film produced by and starring Nell Shipman. It was directed by Shipman's partner Bert Van Tuyle. It is considered an independent film. Cast * Nell Shipman as Faith Diggs * Alfred Allen as M ...

'' (1923) * '' The Love Letter'' (1923) * ''

Wasted Lives ''Wasted Lives'' is a 1925 American silent film, silent drama film directed by John Gorman (director), John Gorman and starring Elliott Dexter, Cullen Landis and Edith Roberts (actress), Edith Roberts.Munden p.867 Cast * Elliott Dexter as Clayton ...

'' (1923) * '' Hearts Aflame'' (1923) * '' A Question of Honor'' (1922) * ''

The Fire Bride ''The Fire Bride'' is a 1922 American silent adventure film directed by Arthur Rosson and starring Ruth Renick, Edward Hearn and Walt Whitman.Connelly p.347 Cast * Ruth Renick as Lois Markham * Edward Hearn as Steve Maitland * Walt Whitman ...

'' (1922) * ''

The Girl from Rocky Point ''The Girl from Rocky Point'' is a 1922 American silent drama film directed by Fred Becker and starring Milton Ross, Ora Carew and Gloria Joy.Munden p.291 Synopsis A young woman falls in love with man shipwrecked on the Maine coastline, but h ...

'' (1922) * ''The New Disciple'' (1921) * '' The Mysterious Rider'' (1921) * ''His Nibs'' (1921) * ''The Girl from God's Country'' (1921) * ''

The Three Musketeers ''The Three Musketeers'' (french: Les Trois Mousquetaires, links=no, ) is a French historical adventure novel written in 1844 by French author Alexandre Dumas. It is in the swashbuckler genre, which has heroic, chivalrous swordsmen who fight f ...

'' (1921) * ''

The Home Stretch ''The Home Stretch'' is a surviving 1921 American silent drama film directed by Jack Nelson and written by Louis Stevens. The film stars Douglas MacLean, Beatrice Burnham, Walt Whitman, Margaret Livingston, Wade Boteler, Mary Jane Irving, an ...

'' (1921) * '' The Mark of Zorro'' (1920) * ''

Darling Mine ''Darling Mine'' is a 1920 American silent drama film directed by Laurence Trimble and starring Olive Thomas, Walter McGrail and Walt Whitman.Connelly p.59 Cast * Olive Thomas as Kitty McCarthy * Walter McGrail as Roger Davis * Walt Whitman ...

'' (1920) * ''

Passion's Playground ''Passion's Playground'' is a 1920 American silent drama film produced by and starring Katherine MacDonald. Rudolph Valentino has a featured part in the film billed as Rudolph Valentine. The film is based on the novel ''The Guests of Hercules'' ...

'' (1920) * ''

Dangerous Hours ''Dangerous Hours'' is a 1919 American silent drama film directed by Fred Niblo. Prints of the film survive in the UCLA Film and Television Archive. It premiered in February 1920. The film was based on a short story "A Prodigal in Utopia" publ ...

'' (1919) * ''

John Petticoats ''John Petticoats'' is a 1919 American silent action film directed by Lambert Hillyer and written by C. Gardner Sullivan. The film stars William S. Hart, Walt Whitman, George Webb, Winifred Westover, Ethel Shannon, and Andrew Arbuckle. The fi ...

'' (1919) * ''

When Bearcat Went Dry ''When Bearcat Went Dry'' is a 1919 American silent drama film directed by Oliver L. Sellers from the novel by Charles Neville Buck, and starring Lon Chaney as Kindard Powers. The title refers to a character nicknamed "Bearcat" ( Bernard J. Durn ...

'' (1919) * ''Pretty Smooth'' (1919) * ''Destiny'' (1919) * '' The Cry of the Weak'' (1919) * ''Whom the Gods Would Destroy'' (1919) * ''

The Heart of Humanity ''The Heart of Humanity'' is a 1918 American silent war propaganda film produced by Universal Pictures and directed by Allen Holubar. The film stars Dorothy Phillips, William Stowell, and Erich von Stroheim. Overview The film "follows the gen ...

'' (1918) * ''Desert Law'' (1918) * ''

Daughter Angele ''Daughter Angele'' is a 1918 American silent comedy-drama film, directed by William C. Dowlan. Plot Cast *Pauline Starke as Angele *Walt Whitman as Anthony Brenton * Eugene Burr as Frank Chumnige (as Gene Burr) * Myrtle Rishell *Philo McCullo ...

'' (1918) * ''They're Off'' (1918) * ''The Price of Applause'' (1918) * ''

False Ambition ''False Ambition'' is a 1918 silent drama film produced and released by the Triangle Film Corporation. Directed by Gilbert P. Hamilton, the film stars Alma Rubens. Cast * Alma Rubens - Judith/Zariska * Peggy Pearce - Felicity * Alberta Lee - ...

'' (1918) * ''

Everywoman's Husband ''Everywoman's Husband'' is a 1918 American silent drama film directed by Gilbert P. Hamilton and starring Gloria Swanson. A print of the film is preserved at the UCLA Film and Television Archive. Plot As described in a film magazine, when th ...

'' (1918) * ''His Enemy, the Law'' (1918) * '' The Last Rebel'' (1918) * ''Old Hartwell's Cub'' (1918) * ''

Captain of His Soul ''Captain of His Soul'' is a 1918 film directed by Gilbert P. Hamilton for Triangle Film Corporation Triangle Film Corporation (also known as Triangle Motion Picture Company) was a major American motion-picture studio, founded in July 1915 in ...

'' (1918) * ''The Hopper'' (1918) * ''Without Honor'' (1918) * ''

The Regenerates ''The Regenerates'' is a surviving 1917 silent film drama directed by E. Mason Hopper and starring Alma Rubens. It was produced and distributed by the Triangle Film Corporation. Cast *Alma Rubens - Catherine Ten Eyck *Walt Whitman - Mynderse Van D ...

'' (1917) * ''

The Firefly of Tough Luck ''The Firefly of Tough Luck'' is an American 1917 silent film directed by E. Mason Hopper and written by J. G. Hawks. It was produced and released by the Triangle Film Corporation, and starred Alma Rubens and Charles Gunn. Plot The Firefly ...

'' (1917) * '' The Tar Heel Warrior'' (1917) * ''

Polly Ann ''Polly Ann'' (also known as ''The Little Reformer'' and ''Pernickety Polly Ann'') is a lost film, lost 1917 American Silent film, silent comedy-drama film produced and distributed by the Triangle Film Corporation. It was directed by Charles Mill ...

'' (1917) * ''

Wee Lady Betty ''Wee Lady Betty'' is a 1917 American silent film, silent drama film produced and distributed by the Triangle Film Corporation. It was directed by Charles Miller (director), Charles Miller and stars Bessie Love, Frank Borzage, and Charles K. Fren ...

'' (1917) * ''The Girl, Glory'' (1917) * ''

The Millionaire Vagrant ''The Millionaire Vagrant'' is a 1917 American silent drama film directed by Victor Schertzinger and starring Charles Ray, Sylvia Breamer and J. Barney Sherry.Golden p.32 Cast * Charles Ray as Steven Du Peyster * Sylvia Breamer as Ruth Vail ...

'' (1917) * ''

The Desert Man ''The Desert Man'' is a 1917 silent film Western directed by and starring William S. Hart. It was distributed by Triangle Film Corporation. A fragment or incomplete print exists. Cast * William S. Hart - Jim Alton * Margery Wilson - Jennie * ...

'' (1917) * '' Paddy O'Hara'' (1917) *''

The Boss of the Lazy Y ''The Boss of the Lazy Y'' is a 1917 American silent Western film directed by Clifford Smith and starring Roy Stewart, Josie Sedgwick and Frank MacQuarrie.Rainey p.225 Cast * Roy Stewart as Calumet Marston * Josie Sedgwick as Betty Clayton * ...

'' (1917) * '' The Dark Road'' (1917) * ''

The Last of the Ingrams ''The Last of the Ingrams'' is a 1917 American silent drama film directed by Walter Edwards and starring William Desmond, Margery Wilson and Robert McKim.Katchmer p.404 Cast * William Desmond as Jules Ingram * Margery Wilson as Mercy Reed * ...

'' (1917) * ''

Princess of the Dark ''Princess of the Dark'' is a 1917 American silent drama film directed by Charles Miller and starring Enid Bennett, John Gilbert, and Gayne Whitman. Cast * Enid Bennett as Fay Herron * John Gilbert as 'Crip' Halloran * Gayne Whitman as Jack ...

'' (1917) * ''The Sin Ye Do'' (1916) * ''The Criminal'' (1916) * ''The Honorable Algy'' (1916) * ''

'' (1916) * ''The Mating'' (1915)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Whitman, Walt 1859 births 1928 deaths American male silent film actors 20th-century American male actors People from Lyons, New York