Edward Irham Cole (3 December 1859 – 1 July 1942) was an Australian theatrical entrepreneur and film director whose productions represented a synthesis of

Wild West show Wild West shows were traveling vaudeville performances in the United States and Europe that existed around 1870–1920. The shows began as theatrical stage productions and evolved into open-air shows that depicted romanticized stereotypes of c ...

and stage melodrama (often with a bushranger theme). He managed a theatre company, called the Bohemian Dramatic Company, that performed in semi-permanent and temporary tent theatres. During 1910 and 1911 Cole directed a number of silent films, adapted from his stage plays and using actors from his theatre company.

Biography

Cole arrived in Australia as a young man and worked for a time in

Adelaide Adelaide ( ) is the capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater Adelaide (including the Adelaide Hills) or the Adelaide city centre. The dem ...

before moving to

Wilcannia Wilcannia is a small town located within the Central Darling Shire in north western New South Wales, Australia. Located on the Darling River, the town was the third largest inland port in the country during the river boat era of the mid-19th ce ...

. He started in showbusiness as a lecturer, calling himself "the Bohemian" and giving presentations on various topics. He later joined the company of Texas Jack, an American showman in the

Buffalo Bill William Frederick Cody (February 26, 1846January 10, 1917), known as "Buffalo Bill", was an American soldier, Bison hunting, bison hunter, and showman. He was born in Le Claire, Iowa, Le Claire, Iowa Territory (now the U.S. state of Iowa), but ...

mould. He established the Bohemian Dramatic Company, which toured the country performing shows. At its height, the company included over 60 performers and 20 horses, and was transported in its own train. In 1910 and 1911 Cole made a series of films adapted from his shows, which cost over £1,000 in all. The longest was reportedly 1,5000 feet. They were sometimes screened accompanied by lectures and songs."BOHEMIAN DRAMATIC COMPANY."
''The Mercury'' (Hobart, Tas) 30 Mar 1912: 3, accessed 31 December 2011 Cole toured Tasmania in 1911 and 1912. By 1926 the company was down to a size of 24 and touring mostly only country areas.

Later Years

Cole's company was still touring in the 1930s as 'Cole's Varieties', run by his son-in-law, Bill Ayr. Cole and his wife ran a small factory at Marrickville in Sydney which manufactured cowboy outfits for small children.

Personal life

Cole married his leading lady, Vene Linden (real name Lavinia Catherine) (1877 - 1948). They had several children: Frank, Roy, Mabel, Belle, Rose and Myrtle. Roy predeceased them. Mabel married Cole's leading man, Bill Ayr. They had three children, Ned, Tom and Millie. In later years, Millie and Ned Ayr would be actors for the company while Tom Ayr handled most of the managerial duties of Cole's Varieties. In 1931, Cole's wife engaged in a court case against her sister for ownership of their father's cottage. Cole died on 1 July 1942. His wife died on 8 November 1948, aged 71, survived by their children Frank, Belle, Mabel, Rose and Myrtle; a son, Roy, had predeceased her.

Filmography

*'' Bushranger's Ransom, or A Ride for Life'' (1911) *'' The Squatter's Son'' (1911) *''

The Five of Hearts ''The Five of Hearts'' is an Australian film. It is also known as ''A Maiden's Distress'' or ''Buffalo Bill''. It was reportedly the longest of Cole's films. It is considered a lost film. Plot In the old American west, Rose, the daughter of ...

'' (1911) *'' Sentenced for Life'' (1911) *'' The Sundowner'' (1911) *'' The Squatter and the Clown''

Select theatre credits

*''The Indian Hero'' *''Who is the Woman?'' *''The Anarchist'' *''

East Lynne ''East Lynne'' is an English sensation novel of 1861 by Ellen Wood, writing as Mrs Henry Wood. A Victorian best-seller, it is remembered chiefly for its elaborate and implausible plot, centring on infidelity and double identities. There have ...

'' *''

Uncle Tom's Cabin ''Uncle Tom's Cabin; or, Life Among the Lowly'' is an anti-slavery novel by American author Harriet Beecher Stowe. Published in two volumes in 1852, the novel had a profound effect on attitudes toward African Americans and slavery in the U. ...

'' *''Captain Moonlite'' *''The Gaol Bird'' *''Cast Aside'' *''With the Colours'' *''Hand's Up'' (1900) – story of

Ned Kelly Edward Kelly (December 1854 – 11 November 1880) was an Australian bushranger, outlaw, gang leader and convicted police-murderer. One of the last bushrangers, he is known for wearing a suit of bulletproof armour during his final shootout wi ...

*''Prairie Scout'' (1903) – performed in the open opposite Redfern Train Station *''Buffalo Bill'' (1904) *''The King of the Road'' (1904) – bushranger drama about Ben Hall *'' Sentenced for Life'' (1904) *''The Mining Partner'' (1904) *''Jo the Girl Miner'' (1905) *''The White Slave'' (1905) – Haymarket Hippodrome, Sydney *''With the Colours'' – Haymarket Hippodrome, Sydney – drama set during the

Second Boer War The Second Boer War ( af, Tweede Vryheidsoorlog, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, the Anglo–Boer War, or the South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer Republics (the Sout ...

*''A Priest's Silence'' (1905) *''Golden Heart'' (1906) *''Kia Ora'' (1906) – Haymarket – a four-act Maori drama *''For King and Empire'' (1906) by E. I. Cole – about a European War of the near future *''The King of the Roads'' (1906) – Haymarket *''The Coal Strike'' (1906) – Haymarket – saga of labour and management *''Hands Up: Or Ned Kelly and His Gang'' (1907) – Haymarket *''Whirlwind, the Bushranger'' (1907) – Haymarket *''Thunderbolt, the Bushranger'' (1908) – Haymarket – about

Captain Thunderbolt Frederick Wordsworth Ward (1835 – 25 May 1870), better known by the self-styled pseudonym of Captain Thunderbolt, was an Australian bushranger renowned for escaping from Cockatoo Island, and also for his reputation as the "gentleman bushrang ...

*''Buffalo Bill'' and ''Dick Turpin'' (1910) *''The King of the Roads"/"

Under Two Flags Under Two Flags may refer to: *Under Two Flags (novel), a novel by British writer Ouida, and its adaptations: **Under Two Flags (play), a 1901 play by Paul M. Potter **Under Two Flags (1912 George Nichols film), ''Under Two Flags'' (1912 George Nich ...

''/''The Hand of Justice'' (1911) – series of plays performed at Launceston *''The British Spy'' (1911–12) – Hobart – play set during the

*''Golden Heart'' (1912) – a Spanish-Mexican drama *''It Is Never Too Late to Mend'' (1912) – Hobart- play based on the convict era novel *''A Convict's Sweetheart'' (1912) *''Arrah-Na-Pogue'' (1912) – Irish drama *''Postmistress of the Czar'' (1912) – Kings Theatre, Hobart – Anglo-Russian military story"KING'S THEATRE."
''The Mercury'' (Hobart, Tas) 17 May 1912: 3, accessed 31 December 2011 *''The Heart of the Bush'' (1912) – Kings Theatre, Hobart – Australian bush story *''A Woman's Honour'' (1913) *''

Dick Turpin Richard Turpin (bapt. 21 September 1705 – 7 April 1739) was an English highwayman whose exploits were romanticised following his execution in York for horse theft. Turpin may have followed his father's trade as a butcher ear ...

'' (1914) – Hippodrome *''Captain Starlight, or Robbery Under Arms'' (1914) – Hippodrome *''The Covenant's Trust'' (1915) *''Buffalo Bill'' (1919) *''Meg of Golden Heart''/''

The Octoroon ''The Octoroon'' is a play by Dion Boucicault that opened in 1859 at The Winter Garden Theatre, New York City. Extremely popular, the play was kept running continuously for years by seven road companies. Among antebellum melodramas, it was con ...

'' (1919)"ENTERTAINMENTS."
''The West Australian'' (Perth) 12 Nov 1919: 8, accessed 31 December 2011 *''The Ruby Ring'' (1919) *''The Kelly Gang'' (1920)

References

;Sources * Andrew James Couzens (2019), ''A Cultural History of the Bushranger Legend in Theatres and Cinemas, 1828-2017'', London: Anthem Press ().

External links

*
E. I. Cole
at

National Film and Sound Archive The National Film and Sound Archive of Australia (NFSA), known as ScreenSound Australia from 1999 to 2004, is Australia's audiovisual archive, responsible for developing, preserving, maintaining, promoting and providing access to a national co ...

Papers of E. I. Cole
at

State Library of New South Wales The State Library of New South Wales, part of which is known as the Mitchell Library, is a large heritage-listed special collections, reference and research library open to the public and is one of the oldest libraries in Australia. Establish ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cole, Edward Irham 1910s in Australian cinema Australian male actors Australian film directors 1942 deaths 1859 births