Tag: Genealogy

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Dear Reader

Dear Reader #173

Dear Reader,

Clara Bow’s twelfth movie was Empty Hearts, produced during the summer of 1924 and released on September 15, 1924. Fourth on the bill, Clara played Rosalie. 

A drama, the plot of Empty Hearts centred on a blackmail letter, relationships, and misunderstandings. The screenplay was based on a story written by Evelyn Campbell a screenwriter, author and actress active during Hollywood’s silent era. Evelyn also wrote Westerns.

At this stage of Clara’s career, B.P. Schulberg was loaning her out to various studios. Indeed, not one of her eight movies made in 1924 was produced by Schulberg. On the whole, these movies were beneath Clara’s talent, and she must have felt frustrated.

Serial Stars

Kay Aldridge

Although she was screen-tested for the part of Scarlett O’Hara in Gone with the Wind, Kay Aldridge made her name as a heroine in serials. She starred as Nyoka Gordon in Perils of Nyoka, 1942. In the series, Nyoka confronted a host of villains while looking for her father, who’d disappeared while on expedition in Africa. Each episode ended with the traditional cliffhanger.

Kay also played the heroine in Daredevils of the West, 1943, and Haunted Harbor, 1944. She retired from acting in 1945.

After ten years, I’ve completed the preliminary research on my family tree. Of course, because of missing records, there are gaps, but I’m delighted with the stories I’ve discovered. Now, I intend to trace a branch back in greater detail, starting with my 3 x great grandmother Hannah Morgan, 30 July 1848 – c1881. How far back does this branch go? Stay tuned and find out 😉

The basics of Hannah’s life, outlined below, look ordinary. However, as the mother of five children and the wife of a coal miner, she was one of the women who formed the backbone of Welsh society during the Victorian era.

Hannah’s father was an ostler, so it’s likely she was familiar with horses. Her mother lodged Irish navvies, so from a young age she became accustomed to the Victorian norm – a crowded house.

The points on this modern map highlight where my 3 x great grandmother Hannah Morgan was born and where she lived at the time of each census. The birth records of her five children indicate that her family was constantly on the move as her husband Thomas Jones sought employment in the newly developing coal mines that were transforming the culture and landscape of Glamorgan. Llandyfodwg, highlighted to the north, was Hannah’s last known address.

Hannah Morgan’s family chart and timeline reveal that, in common with many parents of her era, she named her children after her parents. Two of the major events of Hannah’s life occurred during her teenage years when her father died and when she married.

My 3 x great grandparents Hannah Morgan and Thomas Jones married on 22 February 1868, a Saturday, at Ruhama Baptist Chapel, Bridgend. As newlyweds establishing a home maybe they paid attention to advertisements like this one, which appeared on the day of their wedding.

Unfortunately, no pictures of Hannah Morgan or Thomas Jones exist. However, I have managed to find a picture of their son, Richard Morgan Jones, 1874 – 1954. Like his father, Richard was a coal miner in Glamorgan.

My 3 x great grandfather Thomas Jones started his working life as a ‘cow boy’. After that he worked as a coal miner, dicing with death, every day. At random I have selected ten Joneses who worked alongside Thomas in the local coal mines. The brief notes that follow record their fate.

Thomas Jones, aged 22: killed by falling from a byat while moving a stage in the shaft.

Evan Jones, aged 14: killed by a full train passing over him.

William Jones, aged 38: killed when the mineshaft roof fell.

William Jones, aged 37: killed by a fall of coal.

William Jones, aged 16: killed by a fall of coal.

Richard Jones, aged 34: killed when the side of the pit gave way.

David Jones, aged 45: killed when the mine roof collapsed.

Thomas Jones, aged 48: killed by an explosion of firedamp, one of two people killed.

David Jones, aged 26: killed by a gas explosion, one of eleven people killed.

Lewis Jones, aged 12: run over by trams through breakage of coupling chains.

📸 Aberbaiden Colliery

My 3 x great grandmother Hannah Morgan disappeared from the historical record in the 1880s. Some researchers think she emigrated to America. The historical record and my DNA profile confirm that a number of my ancestors did emigrate to America. However, I have found no records that suggest Hannah joined them. With her family, she moved around the Glamorgan coalfields. I suspect that her death record was lost due to the transient nature of her life.

Clara Bow Quotes: “Mr Schulberg could not use me in any of his productions at the time but there was nothing to prohibit him from ‘farming me out’ to other producers for small roles. Looking over my records I find that I played in twenty-seven productions in not so many months. But as time went on, I was getting no place. Always the instructions were the same: ‘Clara, X Blank wants you for a “bit” in their production, which starts Thursday’. Always a “bit”. If this was Hollywood, I wanted no more of it.

Gradually, I became better known. Occasionally, my name would creep into the billing on pictures and executives of the various studios were nodding now and then when I ran across them on the lot. I was getting somewhere.”

Intertitle #13

As ever, thank you for your interest and support.

Hannah xxx

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Dear Reader

Dear Reader #165

Dear Reader,

Coming soon, our new magazine, The Golden Age of Hollywood, available from all leading Internet outlets. Here’s a preview of the cover.

Clara Bow’s fourth movie was The Daring Years aka The Folly of Youth. The movie was produced in New York during the first half of 1923 and released on September 15, 1923.

The Daring Years was adapted from a photoplay by Richard Ellison. Clara was listed fourth on the bill, as ‘John’s Sweetheart, Mary’. Unfortunately, this movie is regarded as lost.

A silent melodrama, The Daring Years features a love triangle and a man wrongly accused of murder. The man, John Browning, is strapped into an electric chair when a lightning bolt (!) and Clara Bow save the day. 

The premise for The Daring Years, an accidental shooting, is sound, but maybe the movie could have done without the lightning bolt.

After the completion of The Daring Years, Clara embarked for Hollywood where she released a few lighting bolts of her own.

🖼 Advertisement for The Daring Years.

Joint Highest Grossing Movie of 1925: The Big Parade.

The Big Parade was a silent war drama directed by King Vidor. It starred John Gilbert and Renée Adorée. Written by World War One veteran Laurence Stallings, the movie has been praised for its realistic depiction of warfare. Furthermore, it heavily influenced a great many subsequent war films, especially All Quiet on the Western Front.

Regarded as one of the great World War One movies, The Big Parade told the story of an idle rich boy who joined the US Army’s Rainbow Division. Sent to France to fight in the war, he befriends two working class men, experiences the horrors of trench warfare, and finds love with a French girl, played by Renée Adorée.

Through public records, I’m tracing the ancestry of actress Eva Marie Saint. I’ve discovered that she’s directly descended from Sir Thomas Pope, 1507 – 1559, founder of Trinity Church Oxford, Councillor to Queen Mary and Queen Elizabeth. Further royal connections are highly likely.

At this stage, I need to pause and double-check because it’s probably that one of these branches will connect with noble pedigrees.

The Four Pound Brick, Series 1, Episode 20 of The Rockford Files was written by the all-female team of Leigh Brackett and Juanita Bartlett from a story by Leigh Brackett. 

Leigh Brackett wrote science fiction and fantasy, and novels in the style of Raymond Chandler. Indeed, there are noirish elements to The Four Pound Brick that suggest Chandler’s influence. Leigh Brackett also wrote the screenplay for Chandler’s classic The Big Sleep.

Rocky, Becker and Angel are well to the fore in this episode, and the closing scene with Becker in Rockford’s trailer highlights how these characters have become members of the Rockford ‘family’.

Clara Bow Quotes: “What a thrill! I was now a fully-fledged motion-picture actress, and only fourteen years old (census returns suggest that Clara was sixteen when she broke into the movies). I was the idol of the neighbourhood. Those children who had heretofore passed me by now were my staunch friends. For hours I had to relate my experiences in the motion-picture studio. This certainly was the ultimate in happiness. But little did I know how fickle Fate can be…”

Intertitle #5

As ever, thank you for your interest and support.

Hannah xxx

For Authors

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Dear Reader

Dear Reader #163

Dear Reader,

Clara Bow’s second movie was Down to the Sea in Ships, a silent romantic drama about a whaling family living in a Quaker community. The movie, made during the summer of 1922 when Clara was seventeen, was premiered on September 25, 1922 and went on general release from March 4, 1923.

Clara plays Dot Morgan who, as a baby, is found floating near the shore on a raft made of branches. Dot is a mischievous, rebellious child who wants to be a whaler when she grows up, an ambition frowned upon by her community. So, we have Clara as a tomboy rebel: perfect casting.

Clara Bow as Dot Morgan

Dressed as a boy, Dot stows-away on a ship. She is attacked by a crew member, and rescued by her friend, Jimmie, a cabin boy. The ship returns to port and the main romantic thread of the story, which does not involve Clara, unfolds.

The movie contains authentic whaling scenes and strives for realism. The critics hated it, but audiences enjoyed it. Indeed, the movie played continuously for 22 weeks in New York City.

Billed 10th, Clara received praise for her role in the movie, her natural style contrasting with the mannered approach of the other actors. 
Billed 10th, Clara received praise for her role in the movie, her natural style contrasting with the mannered approach of the other actors. 

The critics said: “Miss Bow will undoubtedly gain fame as a screen comedienne.” “She scored a tremendous hit in Down to the Sea in Ships … [and] has reached the front rank of motion picture principal players.” “With her beauty, her brains, her personality and her genuine acting ability it should not be many moons before she enjoys stardom in the fullest sense of the word. You must see ‘Down to the Sea in Ships’.”

***

The Adventures of Kathlyn, released on December 29, 1913 was a thirteen episode adventure serial, which starred Kathlyn Williams (pictured) as the heroine. 

The second serial ever made, The Adventures of Kathlyn is widely regarded as the first of the cliffhanger serials that became popular over the next decade. The serial idea was ‘borrowed’ from newspapers and magazines, and adapted for film.

Chapter one of The Adventures of Kathlyn featured a situation ending, but future episodes concluded with a sensational action sequence or stunt, held over to the following week to heighten suspense.

These serials were often tied-in with newspaper serials, boosting the newspapers’ circulation figures. For example, the Tribune announced a 10% increase in circulation as a result of The Adventures of Kathlyn’s success.

November 1922. The Flapper. “Official Organ of the National Flappers’ Flock.” “Not for old fogies”. Learn how to edjimicate a Sweet Daddy. The Definition of a Kiss. Enter the Beauty Contest and win a golden dolphin. And so much more… 

Life Magazine cover “The Flapper” by Frank Xavier Leyendecker, 2 February 1922.

Highest grossing movie of 1923: The Covered Wagon.

A silent western, The Covered Wagon charted the adventures of a group of pioneers as they travelled through the Old West, from Kansas to Oregon. Along the way they experienced desert heat, snow, hunger and an Indian attack (Native Americans who appeared in this movie included the Northern Arapaho Nation from Wyoming and Chief Thunderbird, in an uncredited role).

Lois Wilson, pictured, played the heroine, Molly Wingate. In a career spanning 1915 – 1952 she appeared in 150 movies, including the converted role of Daisy Buchanan in the 1926 silent film version of The Great Gatsby.

Through public records I’ve traced actress Eva Marie Saint’s ancestors back to the early 1800s. The family were Quakers for many generations. And, to my surprise, in 1810, their household contained a slave.

Slavery was abolished in America in 1865. But what of the Saint family and slavery in the period 1810 – 1865? The censuses of 1840, 1850 and 1860 provide an answer: William Saint, a farmer, was head of the household. His family, and labourers, worked on his farm. However, he did not own any slaves.

It would appear that the Saint family cut their ties with the slave trade long before the state did. I think Eva Marie Saint would be pleased to know that.

Also worthy of note, William Saint was born on 3 March 1781 and died on 24 January 1871.  He enjoyed a long life. At the time of writing this, Eva Marie Saint is 98. The Saint genes appear to be very strong ones.

Say Goodbye to Jennifer, Series 1, Episode 18 of The Rockford Files was directed by Jackie Cooper, who featured as Captain Highland in the previous episode, Claire.

The titles in Say Goodbye to Jennifer didn’t appear until 4’ 30” into the episode, a common trait for The Rockford Files, depending upon the number of close-ups in the opening scenes.

This episode made good use of dental records in identifying a victim, in an unusual way. The story was written by John Thomas James, one of his best in the first series.

A classic telephone message too: “This is Mrs Landis. Three times this month I came to clean and it always looks like people’ve been fighting in there; furniture broken, things tipped over; I’m sorry, but I quit.”

Clara Bow Quotes: In January 1921 Clara entered the ‘Fame and Fortune Contest’ organised by Motion Picture Magazine…

“Imagine my surprise when a letter arrived one day stating that I had been declared the winner. According to the rules of the contest, the winner was to be given an evening dress and also a role in a motion picture. I was in seventh heaven. My prayers had been answered. My whole future and happiness had been secured. What luck!”

The picture Clara submitted for the Motion Picture contest. She hated the picture, but couldn’t afford a replacement.

Intertitle #3 😗

As ever, thank you for your interest and support.

Hannah xxx

For Authors

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Dear Reader

Dear Reader #162

Dear Reader,

Clara Bow’s first movie was Beyond the Rainbow. Filmed in New York in 1921, when Clara was sixteen, the movie went on public release on February 19, 1922. A 16mm print of the film still survives.

The plot is a decent one: guests arrive at a party and are passed a mysterious note saying, ‘Consult your conscience. Your secret is common gossip.’  All the guests have something to hide, so panic and murder ensue.

The note was written by Clara’s character, Virginia Gardener, as a mischievous joke. It’s ironic that in her first movie Clara was the instigator of chaos because, in her own iconic way, that set the tone for her career.

Clara appeared in five scenes in Beyond the Rainbow, but strangely those scenes were cut from the final print, only to be restored when she became a star. Her billing also moved up from ninth to third when she achieved stardom.

📸 A still from Beyond the Rainbow featuring Helen Ware, George Fawcett and Clara Bow.

Do you remember those Saturday morning serials that always ended in a cliffhanger? Even though the cliffhanger was not employed in this serial, What Happened to Mary is widely regarded as the first of the genre. Released in 1912, the serial starred Mary Fuller and ran for twelve episodes.

What Happened to Mary (a statement, not a question) also appeared in The Ladies’ World magazine . It was adapted for the stage and published as a novel. The basic plot involved action, adventure and peril for the heroine.

Sadly, Mary Fuller’s star waned and from 1917 she struggled to obtain roles in film or on stage. Nervous disorders plagued her life and effectively brought an end to her career.

📸 Miriam Nesbitt, Mary Fuller and Marc McDermott in What Happened to Mary.

Highest grossing movie of 1922: Robin Hood.

A silent adventure film starring Douglas Fairbanks and Wallace Beery, Robin Hood was the first motion picture to receive a Hollywood premiere, held at the Grauman’s Egyptian Theatre on October 18, 1922.

The castle and twelfth century village sets were constructed at the Pickford-Fairbanks Studio in Hollywood. Wood, wire and plaster constituted the castle with wood also covering the concrete floor.

The story was adapted for the screen by Fairbanks (as “Elton Thomas”), Kenneth Davenport, Edward Knoblock, Allan Dwan and Lotta Woods. Fairbanks also played a major role in the movie’s production and distribution. 

This version of the Robin Hood legend established the elements that served later filmmakers. Indeed, the popular modern perception of Robin Hood is largely due to Fairbanks’ film.

Continuing my research into Eva Marie Saint’s ancestry using public records. I’m looking to answer two questions: was Eva’s talent the result of nurture, or nature? And why am I drawn to her as an actress? Can I find the answers to these questions in her roots?

I’ve traced Eva’s ancestry back to William Saint, born 3 March 1781 in Perquimans County, North Carolina. I discovered William in the 1810 United States Federal Census. This record also provided a shock. The census lists that the household contained a slave.

Obviously, I was aware that slavery existed at that time, but I didn’t expect to discover a slave in a Quaker household. This has given me pause for thought. I would like to understand the Saint family’s connection to the Quakers, and their connection to slavery. More research required.

NameWilliam Saint
Residence Date6 Aug 1810
Residence PlacePerquimans, North Carolina, USA
Free White Male 0 to 91
Free White Male 26 to 451
Free White Female 16 to 251
Number of Enslaved Persons1
Number of Household Members Under 161
Number of Household Members Over 251
Number of Household Members4

Claire, Series 1, Episode 17 of The Rockford Files was originally titled Lady on the Run. Linda Evans played Claire Prescott, an ex-girlfriend of James Rockford, who found herself in trouble. Naturally, she turned to Rockford for assistance.

The episode offered a prominent role to Noah Beery Jr (pictured) as Rocky, Rockford’s father. Noah Beery Jr was a character actor who specialised in warm, friendly roles. His uncle, Wallace Beery, was a prominent actor as was his father, Noah Beery Sr. Indeed, Noah Sr began his long career in silent movies.

Rocky was noticeably shorter than Rockford but, as writer Stephen J. Cannell pointed out, this was okay because, even though it is not always portrayed in movies, each generation tends to get taller.

My latest article for the Seaside News appears on page 34 of the magazine.

Clara Bow Quotes: “I was an expert in make-up, which always mystified my mother. Appearing in her presence with lips heavily smeared with red and whiteish powder, I never failed to draw the parental wrath. 

For days she searched my bedroom for cosmetics, but found nothing. The truth of the matter was that the wallpaper in our flat had a decided tinge of red colouring. I discovered that this colouring would come off quite readily, and so with the true touch of an artist I coloured my lips with dabs of tint from the paper itself by dampening my finger.”

Intertitle #2 🙂

As ever, thank you for your interest and support.

Hannah xxx

For Authors

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Dear Reader

Dear Reader #161

Dear Reader,

Some exciting news about Tula. The eBook version is now available to pre-order for the special price of £/$ 0.99. We’ll be doing a major promotional blitz on publication, and after that the price will go up. So, don’t delay, pre-order today 🙂

Chapters 16 – 19 of Tula. To enter an acting competition, Tula needs photographs of herself, but she can’t afford a professional photographer. Her father arranges a card game, and a con, to raise funds for the photographs.

📸 “I’ve Got Him Hooked!”, Colleen Moore, fishing, 1921. Taken by Frank B. Howe (no relation).

From the Lima News, Ohio, October 1928, Clara Bow in The Fleet’s In, a silent comedy. Clara played Trixie Deane, a ‘taxi dancer’. The movie was shot in San Pedro and San Francisco, June 18 – July 16, 1928, and released on September 15, 1928. Most 1920s movies were shot in a month.

The Syracuse Herald, 18 January 1931. A sensational trial that seriously damaged Clara Bow’s health and career. Clara’s secretary was accused of stealing thousands of dollars from her. Clara’s fans didn’t like any of it, and their ‘betrayal’ badly damaged her fragile self-esteem.

November 1924, Clara Bow, 19, second on the bill to Thunder the Marvel Dog in Black Lightning. Clara played Martha Larned, Thunder played himself. Later in her career, Clara wrestled with a huge dog in Call Her Savage. The dog was obviously well trained, but that scene took some courage.

“She was beautiful, but especially she was without mercy.” – F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Beautiful and the Damned, 1932.

In 1923, aged 18, Clara Bow appeared in Grit, a movie based on a story by Fitzgerald. Clara played Orchid McGonigle. As with all her movies, Clara stole the show.

Grit was Clara Bow’s fifth film. Based on a story by F. Scott Fitzgerald, Grit was filmed during June and July 1923 and released on January 7, 1924. A silent crime drama with a romantic subplot, Grit offered Clara a tomboy role, a role that, at that stage of her career, she excelled at. 

With no copies available from any archive, Grit is considered a lost film. In 1925 the British Board of Censors banned the movie for an undisclosed reason.

📸 Clara Bow in a still from Grit

Continuing my research into Eva Marie Saint’s ancestry using public records. I’m looking to answer two questions: was Eva’s talent the result of nurture, or nature? And why am I drawn to her as an actress? Can I find the answers to these questions in her roots?

Eva’s great grandfather was Jonathan Saint. This US Find a Grave Index links three generations of the family. I have no idea where this trail will lead, but so far it’s not going cold.

Jonathan E. Saint
Gender:Male
Birth Date:3 Jan 1822
Birth Place:Wayne County, Indiana, United States of America
Death Date:18 Sep 1855
Death Place:Henry County, Indiana, United States of America
Cemetery:Greensboro Friends Cemetery
Burial or Cremation Place:Greensboro, Henry County, Indiana, United States of America
Has Bio?:N
Father:William Saint
Mother:Ashah Saint
Spouse:Emily Grace Johnson
Children:Exelina Cain, Martha A Saint, John Quincy Saint, Mary Ella Baker

I discovered this Quaker marriage record for Jonathan Saint and Emily Grace Johnson, but no other details about the family’s Quaker connections. My next task is to see if I can learn more about the Saint’s association with the Quakers through Jonathan’s father, William.

Counter Gambit, Series 1, Episode 16 of The Rockford Files is a cool caper involving stolen pearls. This episode was written by Howard Berk and Juanita Bartlett. As the series progressed Roy Huggins’ (aka John Thomas James) influence as writer and producer faded. To fill the void the writing duties were shared by a network of writers.

In this episode, Eddie Fontaine made his third appearance as a villain, playing a different character each time. He would reappear as yet another villain in a later series.

The highlight of this episode is Stuart Margolin’s portrayal of Angel, his first appearance since the pilot episode. In total, Margolin portrayed Angel on 32 occasions, winning two Emmy Awards in the process. Rockford observes of Angel, “You make a great informer.” Angel’s response, “It’s a gift.”

Joe Santos also features as Sergeant Becker. The series is now taking shape and developing a pattern for future episodes. Interesting to note that another great TV series of this era, M*A*S*H, also took about sixteen episodes before the producers realised how best to portray their characters and the storylines that flowed from them.

Highest grossing film of 1921: The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse.

A silent epic war film, The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse is widely regarded as the first true anti-war movie. The film catapulted Rudolph Valentino to superstardom. It also inspired a tango craze and a fashion for gaucho pants.

Based on a 1916 novel by Vicente Blasco Ibáñez, the film-script was written by June Mathis. The movie’s success ensured that she became one of the most powerful women in 1920s Hollywood.

🖼 Lobby card for The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse.

Clara Bow Quotes: “Sitting there alone in the darkened theatre, I studied the movements of my favourites. I did not know good acting from bad, but instinctively something within me revolted at portrayals which, to my mind, were off-key. Alone in my bedroom at night, I would re-act the portrayal, according to my own interpretation, in front of my mirror.”

When you get intertitles like this in silent movies, who needs talkies?

As ever, thank you for your interest and support.

Hannah xxx

For Authors

#1 for value with 565,000 readers, The Fussy Librarian has helped my books to reach #1 on 32 occasions.

A special offer from my publisher and the Fussy Librarian. https://authors.thefussylibrarian.com/?ref=goylake

Don’t forget to use the code goylake20 to claim your discount 🙂