Alice Hollister (born Rosalie Alice Amélie Berger, September 28, 1886 – February 24, 1973) was an American

silent film 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, w ...

actress who appeared in around 90 films between 1910 and 1925. She is known for her roles in movies such as '' From the Manger to the Cross'' and '' The Vampire''.

Biography

Alice Hollister - Motion Picture magazine

Born in

Worcester, Massachusetts Worcester ( , ) is a city and county seat of Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. Named after Worcester, England, the city's population was 206,518 at the 2020 census, making it the second- most populous city in New England after ...

, Hollister was the last of six siblings. Her parents Pierre Napoleon Berger, a grocery clerk, and Marie Alphonse Foisy were both of

French-Canadian French Canadians (referred to as Canadiens mainly before the twentieth century; french: Canadiens français, ; feminine form: , ), or Franco-Canadians (french: Franco-Canadiens), refers to either an ethnic group who trace their ancestry to Fre ...

ancestry. Convent educated in the United States and Canada, in 1905 she began to work as an artist and lived with her brother Henry in

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

, along with his wife and three children. On November of the same year, she married George K. Hollister who a few years later became a pioneer

cinematographer The cinematographer or director of photography (sometimes shortened to DP or DOP) is the person responsible for the photographing or recording of a film, television production, music video or other live action piece. The cinematographer is the ch ...

with Kalem Studios in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

. When Kalem Studios began sending a film crew to

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and ...

in the wintertime, Alice Hollister accompanied her husband. She began appearing in film in 1910, at first because of the small crew and the frequent need for a female in a

bit part In acting, a bit part is a role in which there is direct interaction with the principal actors and no more than five lines of dialogue, often referred to as a five-or-less or under-five in the United States, or under sixes in British televi ...

. However, she liked acting and went on to appear in many films, the last in 1925. Silent film actress Alice Hollister (SAYRE 3785)

One of Hollister's most important roles was that of

Mary Magdalene Mary Magdalene (sometimes called Mary of Magdala, or simply the Magdalene or the Madeleine) was a woman who, according to the four canonical gospels, traveled with Jesus as one of his followers and was a witness to his crucifixion and resurre ...

in the film '' From the Manger to the Cross'' (1912). Filmed on location in Palestine, this film has been selected for preservation in the United States

National Film Registry The National Film Registry (NFR) is the United States National Film Preservation Board's (NFPB) collection of films selected for preservation, each selected for its historical, cultural and aesthetic contributions since the NFPB’s inception ...

. '' The Vampire'' (1913) made her the first recognized vamp in cinema, predating

Theda Bara Theda Bara ( ; born Theodosia Burr Goodman; July 29, 1885 – April 7, 1955) was an American silent film and stage actress. Bara was one of the more popular actresses of the silent era and one of cinema's early sex symbols. Her femme fatal ...

in '' A Fool There Was'' (1915). For that role, she was dubbed "the original vampire". She reprised the character in '' The Vampire's Trail'' (1914) and ''The Lotus Woman'' (1916), her last film for Kalem. In her later career, she mainly appeared in supporting roles. Her husband died in 1952 and she died in 1973, aged 86, in

Costa Mesa, California Costa Mesa (; Spanish for " Table Coast") is a city in Orange County, California. Since its incorporation in 1953, the city has grown from a semi-rural farming community of 16,840 to an urban area including part of the South Coast Plaza–John ...

. She was affected by dementia and vision loss in her old age. They are interred together in the Great Mausoleum, Columbarium of Solace at Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery in

Glendale, California Glendale is a city in the San Fernando Valley and Verdugo Mountains regions of Los Angeles County, California, United States. At the 2020 U.S. Census the population was 196,543, up from 191,719 at the 2010 census, making it the fourth-larges ...

Personal life

Alice and George K. Hollister had a daughter, Doris Ethel (1906–1990), and a son, George Jr. (1908–1976), both

child actor The term child actor or child actress is generally applied to a child acting on stage or in movies or television. An adult who began their acting career as a child may also be called a child actor, or a "former child actor". Closely associated t ...

s. Doris married cartoonist

Walter Lantz Walter Lantz (April 27, 1899 – March 22, 1994) was an American cartoonist, animator, producer and director best known for founding Walter Lantz Productions and creating Woody Woodpecker. Biography Early years and start in animation Lant ...

in 1930 but divorced several years later. George Jr. would later embark on a photography career.

Partial filmography

* '' The Further Adventures of the Girl Spy'' (1910) * '' By a Woman's Wit'' (1911) * ''

The Colleen Bawn ''The Colleen Bawn, or The Brides of Garryowen'' is a melodramatic play written by Irish playwright Dion Boucicault. It was first performed at Laura Keene's Theatre, New York, on 27 March 1860 with Laura Keene playing Anne Chute and Boucicault ...

'' (1911) * '' The Fishermaid of Ballydavid'' (1911) * '' His Mother'' (1912) * '' The Vagabonds'' (1912) * '' Far From Erin's Isle'' (1912) * '' You Remember Ellen'' (1912) * '' Driving Home the Cows'' (1912) * '' An Arabian Tragedy'' (1912) * '' A Prisoner of the Harem'' (1912) * '' The Poacher's Pardon'' (1912) * '' From the Manger to the Cross'' (1912) * '' The Kerry Gow'' (1912) * '' Ireland, the Oppressed'' (1912) * ''

The Shaughraun ''The Shaughraun'' () is a melodramatic play written by Irish playwright Dion Boucicault. It was first performed at Wallack's Theatre, New York, on 14 November 1874. Dion Boucicault played Conn in the original production. The play was a huge ...

'' (1912) * ''

A Sawmill Hazard ''A Sawmill Hazard'' is a 1913 American short silent film drama. The film starred Earle Foxe and Alice Hollister in the lead roles. Cast * Alice Hollister * Earle Foxe * Helen Lindroth * Robert G. Vignola * Miriam Cooper Miriam Cooper ...

'' (1913) * ''

A Desperate Chance ''A Desperate Chance'' is a 1913 American silent short starring Earle Foxe and Alice Hollister. Directed by Kenean Buel, the drama features the same cast and crew of the film that preceded it that year, '' A Sawmill Hazard''. Cast *Alice Holli ...

'' (1913) * ''

The Scimitar of the Prophet ''The Scimitar of the Prophet'' is a 1913 American short silent film drama directed by Robert G. Vignola. The film starred Earle Foxe, and Alice Hollister Alice Hollister (born Rosalie Alice Amélie Berger, September 28, 1886 – February 2 ...

'' (1913) * '' The Vampire'' (1913) * '' The Vampire's Trail'' (1914) * ''

A Celebrated Case ''A Celebrated Case'' is a 1914 American silent drama film starring Alice Joyce, Guy Coombs and Marguerite Courtot. It is based on the 1877 play ''Une cause célèbre'' by Adolphe Philippe Dennery and Eugene Cormon. A French soldier is wrongful ...

'' (1914) * ''

The Siren's Reign ''The Siren's Reign'' is a 1915 American silent drama film directed by Robert G. Vignola and starring Alice Hollister, Harry F. Millarde, Anna Q. Nilsson, Robert Walker and Henry Hallam. An upright young man marries a siren, a drunken, unfaithful ...

'' (1915) * '' The Lotus Woman'' (1916) * '' Her Better Self'' (1917) * '' The Great Lover'' (1920) * '' Milestones'' (1920) * '' A Voice in the Dark'' (1921) * '' A Wise Fool'' (1921) * '' The Forgotten Law'' (1922) * ''

Married Flirts ''Married Flirts'' is a 1924 American silent drama film directed by Robert Vignola and starring Pauline Frederick, Mae Busch, and Conrad Nagel. The screenplay, written by Julia Ivers, is based on Louis Joseph Vance's 1923 best seller ''Mrs. Par ...

'' (1924) * '' The Dancers'' (1925)

References

External links

* 1886 births 1973 deaths American silent film actresses People from Costa Mesa, California Actresses from Worcester, Massachusetts American people of French-Canadian descent Burials at Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Glendale) American film actresses 20th-century American actresses {{US-film-actor-1880s-stub