Beryl Mercer (August 13, 1882 – July 28, 1939) was a Spanish-born American actress of stage and screen who was based in the United States.

Early years

Beryl Mercer was born to British parents in

Seville Seville (; es, Sevilla, ) is the capital and largest city of the Spanish autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the River Guadalquivir, in the southwest of the Iberian Penins ...

on 13 August 1882. Her father was Edward Sheppard Mercer, said to be Spanish despite his name, and her mother was the actress Effie (née Martin).The reference work ''An Encyclopedic Dictionary of Women in Early American Films: 1895-1930'' says of Mercer, "... her mother was the famed actor Beryl Montague."

Career

She became a child actor, making her debut on 14 August 1886 at the Theatre Royal, Yarmouth, when she was age 4. She returned to the stage when she was ten. In London, she appeared in ''The Darling of the Gods'' and the production by

Oscar Asche John Stange(r) Heiss Oscar Asche (24 January 1871 – 23 March 1936), better known as Oscar Asche, was an Australian actor, director, and writer, best known for having written, directed, and acted in the record-breaking musical ''Chu Chin C ...

of ''

A Midsummer Night's Dream ''A Midsummer Night's Dream'' is a comedy written by William Shakespeare 1595 or 1596. The play is set in Athens, and consists of several subplots that revolve around the marriage of Theseus and Hippolyta. One subplot involves a conflict a ...

''. In 1906 she appeared as a Kaffir slave in the West End play '' The Shulamite''. She travelled with this play to the United States, where she received good reviews. That 1906 play marked her Broadway debut. Mercer was honored by Dowager Queen Alexandra for her work as an entertainer during World War I. Mercer's film debut came in ''The Christian''. She was best known as a film actress for her motherly roles. She played Lew Ayres' mother in ''All Quiet on the Western Front'' (1930) and James Cagney's mother in ''The Public Enemy'' (1931). She also regularly appeared as a grandmother or cook or maid in some high-profile films. She appeared in more than 50 films between 1916 and 1939, and her career was at a peak in the 1930s when she regularly appeared in several films per year. Mercer appeared in ''

Cavalcade A cavalcade is a procession or parade on horseback, or a mass trail ride by a company of riders. The focus of a cavalcade is participation rather than display. Often, the participants do not wear costumes or ride in formation. Often, a cava ...

'' (1933), ''

Jane Eyre ''Jane Eyre'' ( ; originally published as ''Jane Eyre: An Autobiography'') is a novel by the English writer Charlotte Brontë. It was published under her pen name "Currer Bell" on 19 October 1847 by Smith, Elder & Co. of London. The first ...

'', '' The Little Minister'', and '' The Richest Girl in the World'' (all 1934). She was in two versions of ''Three Live Ghosts'' (1929 and 1935) and '' The Little Princess'' (1939) as

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 216 days was longer than that of any previ ...

Personal life

Mercer was married to Maitland Paisley early in her life. Her only other marriage was to actor

Holmes Herbert Holmes Herbert (born Horace Edward Jenner; 30 July 1882 – 26 December 1956) was an English character actor who appeared in Hollywood films from 1915 to 1952, often as a British gentleman. Early life Born Horace Edward Jenner, (some sour ...

in the late 1920s. She had one child, Joan Mercer, later Bitting, born on 16 September 1917.

Death

On 28 July 1939, Mercer died in

Santa Monica, California Santa Monica (; Spanish: ''Santa Mónica'') is a city in Los Angeles County, situated along Santa Monica Bay on California's South Coast. Santa Monica's 2020 U.S. Census population was 93,076. Santa Monica is a popular resort town, owing to ...

, aged 56, following surgery for an undisclosed ailment. She was buried in Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Glendale, California.

Filmography

*'' The Shulamite'' (1915) *''The Final Curtain'' (1916) - Mary *'' Broken Chains'' (1922) - Mrs. Mulcahy *'' The Christian'' (1923) - Liza * '' We Americans'' (1928) - Mrs. Levine *'' Mother's Boy'' (1929) - Mrs.O'Day *'' Three Live Ghosts'' (1929) - Mrs. Gubbins *'' Seven Days' Leave'' (1930) - Sarah Ann Dowey *''

All Quiet on the Western Front ''All Quiet on the Western Front'' (german: Im Westen nichts Neues, lit=Nothing New in the West) is a novel by Erich Maria Remarque, a German veteran of World War I. The book describes the German soldiers' extreme physical and mental trauma ...

'' (1930) - Paul's Mother *'' Dumbbells in Ermine'' (1930) - Grandma Corey *'' In Gay Madrid'' (1930) - Doña Concha *'' Common Clay'' (1930) - Mrs. Neal *'' The Matrimonial Bed'' (1930) - Corinne *''An Intimate Dinner in Celebration of Warner Bros. Silver Jubilee'' (1930, Short) - Mrs. Warner Bros. Pictures *''

Outward Bound Outward Bound (OB) is an international network of outdoor education organizations that was founded in the United Kingdom by Lawrence Holt and Kurt Hahn in 1941. Today there are organizations, called schools, in over 35 countries which are att ...

'' (1930) - Mrs. Midget *''

Inspiration Inspiration, inspire, or inspired often refers to: * Artistic inspiration, sudden creativity in artistic production * Biblical inspiration, the doctrine in Judeo-Christian theology concerned with the divine origin of the Bible * Creative inspirat ...

'' (1931) - Marthe, Yvonne's Maid *'' East Lynne'' (1931) - Joyce *'' The Public Enemy'' (1931) - Ma Powers *'' The Sky Spider'' (1931) - Mother Morgan *'' The Man in Possession'' (1931) - Mrs. Dabney *'' The Miracle Woman'' (1931) - Mrs. Higgins *''

Merely Mary Ann ''Merely Mary Ann'' a 1931 American pre-Code romantic comedy drama film starring Janet Gaynor and Charles Farrell. Gaynor and Farrell made almost a dozen films together, including Frank Borzage's classics '' Seventh Heaven'' (1927), '' Street A ...

'' (1931) - Mrs. Leadbatter *''

Are These Our Children? ''Are These Our Children?'' is a 1931 American pre-Code drama film directed by Wesley Ruggles and written by Howard Estabrook. The film stars Eric Linden, Ben Alexander, Beryl Mercer, Mary Kornman, Arline Judge, and Rochelle Hudson. The fi ...

'' (1931) - Mrs. Martin - Eddie's Grandma * '' Forgotten Women'' (1931) - Fern Madden *''

Lovers Courageous ''Lovers Courageous'' is a 1932 American pre-Code drama film directed by Robert Z. Leonard and written by Frederick Lonsdale. The film stars Robert Montgomery, Madge Evans, Roland Young, Frederick Kerr, Reginald Owen and Beryl Mercer. The ...

'' (1932) - Mrs. Smith *'' Devil's Lottery'' (1932) - Mrs. Mary Ann Meech *'' Lena Rivers'' (1932) - Grandmother Nichols *'' Young America'' (1932) - Grandma Beamish *''

Unholy Love ''Unholy Love'' (released in the United Kingdom as ''Deceit'') is a 1932 American pre-Code drama film directed and produced by Albert Ray. It was the first film adaptation of Gustave Flaubert's 1857 French novel ''Madame Bovary'' produced. The ...

'' (1932) - Mrs. Cawley *''No Greater Love'' (1932) - Mrs. Burns *''Midnight Morals'' (1932) - Mother O'Brien, the Prison Matron *'' Smilin' Through'' (1932) - Mrs. Crouch *''

Six Hours to Live ''Six Hours to Live'' is a 1932 American pre-Code science fiction drama film directed by William Dieterle and starring Warner Baxter, Miriam Jordan and John Boles.Solomon p.336 Cast * Warner Baxter as Capt. Paul Onslow * Miriam Jordan as Ba ...

'' (1932) - The Widow *''

'' (1933) - Cook *''Her Splendid Folly'' (1933) - Mrs. McAllister *''

Supernatural Supernatural refers to phenomena or entities that are beyond the laws of nature. The term is derived from Medieval Latin , from Latin (above, beyond, or outside of) + (nature) Though the corollary term "nature", has had multiple meanings si ...

'' (1933) - Madame Gourjan, Paul's Landlady *''

Blind Adventure ''Blind Adventure'' is a 1933 American Pre-Code film directed by Ernest B. Schoedsack and starring Robert Armstrong, Helen Mack, Ralph Bellamy, and Roland Young. It was released by RKO Radio Pictures.Berkeley Square Berkeley Square is a garden square in the West End of London. It is one of the best known of the many squares in London, located in Mayfair in the City of Westminster. It was laid out in the mid 18th century by the architect William Ke ...

'' (1933) - Mrs. Barwick *'' Broken Dreams'' (1933) - Mom *'' Change of Heart'' (1934) - Harriet Hawkins *''

'' (1934) - Mrs. Fairfax *'' The Richest Girl in the World'' (1934) - Marie *'' The Little Minister'' (1934) - Margaret *''

Age of Indiscretion ''Age of Indiscretion'' is a 1935 American drama film directed by Edward Ludwig and written by Leon Gordon and Otis Garrett. The film stars Paul Lukas, Madge Evans, Helen Vinson, May Robson, David Holt and Ralph Forbes. Plot Cast * Paul ...

'' (1935) - Mrs. Williams *''

Forbidden Heaven ''Forbidden Heaven'' is a 1935 American drama film directed by Reginald Barker and written by Sada Cowan and Jefferson Parker. The film stars Charles Farrell, Charlotte Henry, Beryl Mercer, Fred Walton, Eric Wilton and Phyllis Barry. The film ...

'' (1935) - Agnes, 'The Duchess' *''

Hitch Hike Lady ''Hitch Hike Lady'' is a 1935 American comedy film directed by Aubrey Scotto and written by Gordon Rigby and Lester Cole. The film stars Alison Skipworth, Mae Clarke, Arthur Treacher, James Ellison, Warren Hymer and Beryl Mercer. The film was ...

'' (1935) - Mrs. Bayne *''

Magnificent Obsession ''Magnificent Obsession'' is a 1929 novel by American author Lloyd C. Douglas. It was one of four of his books that were eventually made into blockbuster motion pictures, the other three being '' The Robe'', '' White Banners'' and ''The Big Fisher ...

'' (1935) - Mrs. Eden *'' Three Live Ghosts'' (1936) - Mrs. Gibbins *''

My Marriage ''My Marriage'' is a 1936 American drama film directed by George Archainbaud and written by Frances Hyland. The film stars Claire Trevor, Kent Taylor, Pauline Frederick, Paul Kelly, Helen Wood and Thomas Beck. The film was released on January 3 ...

'' (1936) - Mrs. Dolan *''

Call It a Day ''Call It a Day'' is a 1937 American comedy film directed by Archie Mayo and starring Olivia de Havilland, Ian Hunter, Anita Louise, Alice Brady, Roland Young, and Frieda Inescort. Based on the 1935 play '' Call It a Day'' by Dodie Smith, the ...

'' (1937) - Mrs. Elkins, the Cook *''

Night Must Fall ''Night Must Fall'' is a play, a psychological thriller, by Emlyn Williams, first performed in 1935. There have been three film adaptations, '' Night Must Fall'' (1937); a 1954 adaptation on the television anthology series ''Ponds Theater'' sta ...

'' (1937) - Saleslady *'' The Little Princess'' (1939) - Queen Victoria *''

The Hound of the Baskervilles ''The Hound of the Baskervilles'' is the third of the four crime novels by British writer Arthur Conan Doyle featuring the detective Sherlock Holmes. Originally serialised in ''The Strand Magazine'' from August 1901 to April 1902, it is set ...

'' (1939) - Mrs. Jennifer Mortimer *''

The Story of Alexander Graham Bell ''The Story of Alexander Graham Bell'' is a somewhat fictionalized 1939 biographical film of the famous inventor. It was filmed in black-and-white and released by Twentieth Century-Fox. The film stars Don Ameche as Bell and Loretta Young as Mab ...

'' (1939) - Queen Victoria *'' A Woman Is the Judge'' (1939) - Mrs. Butler (final film role)

Notes

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Mercer, Beryl 1876 births 1939 deaths American film actresses American silent film actresses British expatriates in Spain 20th-century English actresses Burials at Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Glendale) 20th-century American actresses British emigrants to the United States English film actresses English silent film actresses