Violet Mersereau (October 2, 1892 – November 12, 1975) was an American stage and film actress. Over the course of her screen career, Mersereau appeared in over 100 short and

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 ...

features.

Early life

Mersereau was born in New York City and had a younger sister, Claire (18941982). Mersereau's father died when she was 9 years old. Mersereau's maternal grandmother, Mme. Luzanzie, had been a noted stage actress in

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

. While Mersereau's own mother had acting aspirations, she never pursued a career in acting but decided to allow her children to begin acting.

Career

At the age of 8, Mersereau played child parts in

repertory theatre A repertory theatre is a theatre in which a resident company presents works from a specified repertoire, usually in alternation or rotation. United Kingdom Annie Horniman founded the first modern repertory theatre in Manchester after withdrawin ...

. She toured with Margaret Anglin and portrayed the role of "Flora" in the original company of ''The Clansman''. The play continued to show for three years. During her time as a stage actress, Mersereau was given the nickname "The Child Wonder". She also starred on the touring production of ''

Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm ''Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm'' is a classic American 1903 children's novel by Kate Douglas Wiggin that tells the story of Rebecca Rowena Randall and her aunts, one stern and one kind, in the fictional village of Riverboro, Maine. Rebecca's jo ...

'' and then became a screen actress. The Narrow Path

In 1908, Mersereau made her first film for the

Biograph Company The Biograph Company, also known as the American Mutoscope and Biograph Company, was a motion picture company founded in 1895 and active until 1916. It was the first company in the United States devoted entirely to film production and exhibition, ...

. She stayed with the company until 1911. Mersereau then signed with

Independent Moving Pictures The Independent Moving Pictures Company (IMP) was a motion picture studio and production company founded in 1909 by Carl Laemmle. The company was based in New York City, with production facilities in Fort Lee, New Jersey. In 1912, IMP merged wit ...

where she appeared in ingenue roles. She found success with these roles and was often cast as innocent young helpless girls which was a popular staple in films at the time. When Independent Moving Pictures and several other studios merged to form

Universal Pictures Universal Pictures (legally Universal City Studios LLC, also known as Universal Studios, or simply Universal; common metonym: Uni, and formerly named Universal Film Manufacturing Company and Universal-International Pictures Inc.) is an Americ ...

, Mersereau continued working for Universal. During this time, Mersereau appeared in several short films alongside

William Garwood William Davis Garwood, Jr. (April 28, 1884 – December 28, 1950) was an American stage and film actor and director of the early silent film era in the 1910s. Between 1911 and 1913, Garwood starred in a number of early adaptions of popu ...

(who often directed the films).Doyle 1995 p.28 The Honor of Mary Blake

In 1916,

Carl Laemmle Carl Laemmle (; born Karl Lämmle; January 17, 1867 – September 24, 1939) was a film producer and the co-founder and, until 1934, owner of Universal Pictures. He produced or worked on over 400 films. Regarded as one of the most important o ...

decided to open one of his eastern United States studios for Mersereau's own productions. Laemmle engaged Oscar A. C. Lund to direct her in these features. Mersereau had always exhibited a distinct preference for working in the East, and disliked

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

. Among her most successful ventures for ''Blue Bird'' and Universal include ''The Boy Girl'' (1917), ''Morgan's Raiders'' (1918), ''Little Miss Nobody'' (1917), ''Susan's Gentleman'' (1917), ''The Honor of Mary Blake'' (1916), ''Souls United'' (1917), ''Autumn'' (1916), and ''The Little Terror'' (1917). The most acclaimed project of Mersereau's final period was ''

Nero Nero Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus ( ; born Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus; 15 December AD 37 – 9 June AD 68), was the fifth Roman emperor and final emperor of the Julio-Claudian dynasty, reigning from AD 54 un ...

'' (1922), directed by J. Gordon Edwards, grandfather of

Blake Edwards Blake Edwards (born William Blake Crump; July 26, 1922 – December 15, 2010) was an American film director, producer, screenwriter and actor. Edwards began his career in the 1940s as an actor, but he soon began writing screenplays and radio s ...

. she continued in motion pictures into the 1920s with her final film being ''The Wives of the Prophet'' (1926), in which she had the role of Alma.

Personal life

Mersereau died on November 12, 1975 in

Plymouth, Massachusetts Plymouth (; historically known as Plimouth and Plimoth) is a town in Plymouth County, Massachusetts, United States. Located in Greater Boston, the town holds a place of great prominence in American history, folklore, and culture, and is known ...

, at the age of 83.

Selected filmography

* ''

The Feud and the Turkey ''The Feud and the Turkey'' is a 1908 American silent short drama film directed by D. W. Griffith. Cast * Harry Solter as Mr. Caufield * Linda Arvidson as Mrs. Caufield * Arthur V. Johnson as Colonel Wilkinson * Robert Harron as George Wilki ...

'' (1908) * ''

The Test of Friendship ''The Test of Friendship'' is a 1908 American silent short drama film directed by D. W. Griffith. Cast * Arthur V. Johnson as Edward Ross * Florence Lawrence as Jennie Colman * Harry Solter as The Butler / Foreman * George Gebhardt as The Va ...

'' (1908) * '' The Cricket on the Hearth'' (1909) * ''

The Lonely Villa ''The Lonely Villa'' is a 1909 American short silent crime drama film directed by D. W. Griffith. The film stars David Miles, Marion Leonard and Mary Pickford in one of her first film roles. It is based on the 1901 French play ''Au Téléphone ...

'' (1909) * '' His Lost Love'' (1909) * ''

His Trust ''His Trust'' is a 1911 American silent drama film directed by D. W. Griffith. It concerns "The faithful devotion and self- sacrifice of an old negro servant," who is played in blackface by Wilfred Lucas. The film's sequel is '' His Trust Ful ...

'' (1911) * '' His Trust Fulfilled'' (1911) * '' The Spitfire'' (1914) * '' On Dangerous Ground'' (1915) * ''

The Stake ''The Stake'' is a 1915 American silent short drama film starring William Garwood in the lead role with Violet Mersereau Violet Mersereau (October 2, 1892 – November 12, 1975) was an American stage and film actress. Over the course of her ...

'' (1915) * '' The Supreme Impulse'' (1915) * '' Wild Blood'' (1915) * '' The Adventure of the Yellow Curl Papers'' (1915) * '' Uncle's New Blazer'' (1915) * ''

Destiny's Trump Card ''Destiny's Trump Card'' is a 1915 American silent short film directed by and starring William Garwood in the lead role with Violet Mersereau Violet Mersereau (October 2, 1892 – November 12, 1975) was an American stage and film actress. O ...

'' (1915) * '' You Can't Always Tell'' (1915) * '' Larry O'Neill'' (1915) * '' Thou Shalt Not Lie'' (1915) * ''

Driven by Fate ''Driven by Fate'' is a 1915 American silent short drama film directed by John G. Adolfi and starring William Garwood and Violet Mersereau. The film also stars Florence Crawford, Tammany Young Tammany Young (September 9, 1886 – April ...

'' (1915) * '' Billy's Love Making'' (1915) * '' The Wolf of Debt'' (1915) * '' The Unnecessary Sex'' (1915) * '' Getting His Goat'' (1915) * '' The Great Problem'' (1916) * '' The Doll Doctor'' (1916) * '' His Picture'' (1916) * '' Broken Fetters'' (1916) * '' The Gentle Art of Burglary'' (1916) * '' Susan's Gentleman'' (1917) * '' The Raggedy Queen'' (1917) * '' The Little Terror'' (1917) * '' The Girl by the Roadside'' (1917) * '' The Boy Girl'' (1917) * '' Little Miss Nobody'' (1917) * ''

The Midnight Flyer ''The Midnight Flyer'' is a 1918 American short action drama film directed by George Marshall and starring Hoot Gibson. Cast * Hoot Gibson * Violet Mersereau * Helen Gibson * G. Raymond Nye Reception Like many American films of the time, ''T ...

'' (1918) * '' Proxy Husband'' (1919) * '' Finders Keepers'' (1921) * '' Out of the Depths'' (1921) * ''

'' (1922) * '' The Shepherd King'' (1923) * '' Her Own Free Will'' (1924) * '' Lend Me Your Husband'' (1924) * '' The Wives of the Prophet'' (1926)

References

Additional sources

Iowa City, Iowa Iowa City, offically the City of Iowa City is a city in Johnson County, Iowa, United States. It is the home of the University of Iowa and county seat of Johnson County, at the center of the Iowa City Metropolitan Statistical Area. At the tim ...

Citizen, ''Violet Mersereau'', Tuesday, October 1, 1918. Page 5. *

Lincoln, Nebraska Lincoln is the capital city of the U.S. state of Nebraska and the county seat of Lancaster County. The city covers with a population of 292,657 in 2021. It is the second-most populous city in Nebraska and the 73rd-largest in the United ...

Sunday Star, ''Answers To Movie Fans'', March 18, 1917, Page 3. * Lincoln Sunday Star, ''Answers To Movie Fans'', March 25, 1923, Page 15.
Biography and Filmography of Violet Mersereau at KinoTV.com

External links

* *
Portrait of Violet Mersereau
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Mersereau, Violet 1892 births 1975 deaths 20th-century American actresses Actresses from New York City American child actresses American film actresses American people of French descent American silent film actresses American stage actresses People from Plymouth, Massachusetts