Stella Adams (April 24, 1883 – September 17, 1961) was an American actress of the silent and early

sound film A sound film is a motion picture with synchronized sound, or sound technologically coupled to image, as opposed to a silent film. The first known public exhibition of projected sound films took place in Paris in 1900, but decades passed befo ...

eras. Her forte was in

short film A short film is any motion picture that is short enough in running time not to be considered a feature film. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences defines a short film as "an original motion picture that has a running time of 40 minutes ...

Early years

Adams was born in Sherman, Texas.

Career

Although Adams appeared in only 12 feature films, she acted in almost 150 shorts during the silent era, mostly in starring or featured roles. Her first acting credit was one of those feature films, 1909's ''

In the Sultan's Power IN, In or in may refer to: Places * India (country code IN) * Indiana, United States (postal code IN) * Ingolstadt, Germany (license plate code IN) * In, Russia, a town in the Jewish Autonomous Oblast Businesses and organizations * In ...

'',A 1934 newspaper article gives the film's name as ''Power of the Sultan''. in which she had a starring role. The film was remarkable because it was the first film shot entirely on the west coast of the United States. At this point in the film industry, most films were still shot in New Jersey and New York. Adams joined the Nestor Film Company in 1912 and moved to California when the company relocated there. Her early work was in comedies, but she also started working in Westerns. She left Nestor with director

Al Christie Charles Herbert Christie (April 13, 1882 – October 1, 1955) and Alfred Ernest Christie (November 23, 1886 – April 14, 1951) were Canadian motion picture entrepreneurs. Early life Charles Herbert Christie was born between April 13, 1 ...

when he began his own studio. In 1917, an article in the trade publication ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

'' reported that Adams left California "to join her husband in Chicago, and will next year return to the elegitimate stage." Twenty years passed before Adams made another feature film, when she appeared in a featured role in the silent/sound film, '' Me, Gangster'', directed by

Raoul Walsh Raoul Walsh (born Albert Edward Walsh; March 11, 1887December 31, 1980) was an American film director, actor, founding member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), and the brother of silent screen actor George Walsh. He w ...

. Over the next eight years, Adams made another ten films, although in smaller and smaller roles, retiring in 1936.

Personal life

Adams was married to

press agent In marketing, publicity is the public visibility or awareness for any product, service, person or organization ( company, charity, etc.). It may also refer to the movement of information from its source to the general public, often (but not always ...

James Whittendale.

Death

Adams died in Woodland Hills, California, on September 17, 1961, and was interred in Calvary Cemetery in Los Angeles.

Selected filmography (shorts & featured films)

(Per AFI database) * ''

'' (1909) * ''

Could You Blame Her The English modal verbs are a subset of the English auxiliary verbs used mostly to express modality (properties such as possibility, obligation, etc.). They can be distinguished from other verbs by their defectiveness (they do not have participl ...

'' (1914) * '' When Bess Got in Wrong'' (1914) as Stella * ''

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'' (1915) * '' Wanted: A Leading Lady'' (1915) * '' Where the Heather Blooms'' (1915) * '' Love and a Savage'' (1915) * '' Mingling Spirits'' (1916) * '' Me, Gangster'' (1928) * '' Sister to Judas'' (1932) * '' Temptation's Workshop'' (1932) * ''

The Vampire Bat ''The Vampire Bat'' is a 1933 American Pre-Code horror film directed by Frank R. Strayer and starring Lionel Atwill, Fay Wray, Melvyn Douglas, and Dwight Frye. Plot When the villagers of Kleinschloss start dying of blood loss, the town fathers ...

'' (1933) * '' Bachelor Mother'' (1933) * '' Sing Sinner Sing'' (1933) * ''

The Whirlwind ''The Whirlwind'' is the third studio album by the band Transatlantic, released on October 23, 2009. It is available in three formats: a standard edition, a double disc special edition and a deluxe edition with a 105-minute making-of DVD. The ...

'' (1933) * '' Whom the Gods Destroy'' (1934) * ''

The Tonto Kid ''The Tonto Kid'' is a 1935 American Western film directed by Harry L. Fraser. Cast *Rex Bell as "Skeets" Slawson aka The Tonto Kid * Ruth Mix as Nancy Cahill * Buzz Barton as Wesley Fritch *Theodore Lorch as Lawyer Sam Creech * Joseph W. Gi ...

'' (1935) * ''

The King Steps Out ''The King Steps Out'' is a 1936 American light comedy film directed by Josef von Sternberg based on the early years of Empress Elisabeth of Austria, known as "Sisi" or "Sissi", and her courtship and marriage to Franz Joseph I of Austria, after ...

'' (1936) * ''

Theodora Goes Wild ''Theodora Goes Wild'' is a 1936 American screwball comedy film that tells the story of the residents in a small town who are incensed by a risqué novel, unaware that the book was written under a pseudonym by a member of the town's leading fami ...

'' (1936)

Notes

References

External links

* * 1883 births 1961 deaths People from Sherman, Texas Actresses from Texas American silent film actresses American film actresses 20th-century American actresses Burials at Calvary Cemetery (Los Angeles) {{US-film-actor-1880s-stub