Wendell Phillips Smalley (August 7, 1865 – May 2, 1939) was an American

silent film A silent film is a film with no synchronized Sound recording and reproduction, 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) ...

director and actor.

Biography

Born in

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. Kings County is the most populous Administrative divisions of New York (state)#County, county in the State of New York, ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

, he was the grandson of Wendell Phillips; he was the son of George Washburn Smalley, a war correspondent, and his wife Phoebe Garnaut, adopted by Phillips. He matriculated at Balliol College, Oxford in 1886. Smalley began his career in

vaudeville Vaudeville (; ) is a theatrical genre of variety entertainment born in France at the end of the 19th century. A vaudeville was originally a comedy without psychological or moral intentions, based on a comical situation: a dramatic compositio ...

and acted in more than 200 films between 1910 and his death in 1939. He began directing in 1911 and made more than 300 films by 1921. Smalley was married to actress, writer, director, and producer Lois Weber from April 29, 1904, to 1922.Ancestry.com. Cook County, Illinois, Marriages Index, 1871-1920 atabase on-line Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2011. Original data: “Illinois, Cook County Marriages, 1871–1920.” Index. FamilySearch, Salt Lake City, Utah, 2010. Illinois Department of Public Health records. "Marriage Records, 1871–present." Division of Vital Records, Springfield, Illinois. They met in 1904 when Weber was acting in a theater where Smalley was stage manager. In 1908 Smalley and Weber began working for the U.S. division of Gaumont Film Company, where Smalley was an actor, and later a director. He is sometimes listed as a co-director with Lois Weber, and the extent of his contribution to her work is unresolved. Phillips Smalley died in 1939 and is interred next to his second wife Phyllis Lorraine Ephlin in the Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery in Hollywood Hills.

Selected filmography

* '' Leaves in the Storm'' (1912) * ''

The Picture of Dorian Gray ''The Picture of Dorian Gray'' is a philosophical fiction, philosophical novel by Irish writer Oscar Wilde. A shorter novella-length version was published in the July 1890 issue of the American periodical ''Lippincott's Monthly Magazine''.''Th ...

'' (1913) * '' Will Power'' (1913) * '' Suspense'' (1913) * ''

The Merchant of Venice ''The Merchant of Venice'' is a play by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1596 and 1598. A merchant in Venice named Antonio defaults on a large loan provided by a Jewish moneylender, Shylock. Although classified as ...

'' (1914) * '' Jewel'' (1915) * '' Where Are My Children?'' (1916) *'' The Dumb Girl of Portici'' (1916) * '' The Hand That Rocks the Cradle'' (1917) * '' The Double Standard'' (1917) * '' For Husbands Only'' (1918) * '' Forbidden'' (1919) * '' When a Girl Loves'' (1919) * '' Too Wise Wives'' (1921) * '' Trimmed in Scarlet'' (1923) * '' Cameo Kirby'' (1923) * ''

Flaming Youth Flaming Youth can refer to: * ''Flaming Youth'' (novel), a 1923 novel by Samuel Hopkins Adams * ''Flaming Youth'' (film), a 1923 film based on the novel starring Colleen Moore and Milton Sills * Flaming Youth (band) Flaming Youth were a Britis ...

'' (1923) * '' The Self-Made Wife'' (1923) * '' Temptation'' (1923) * '' Single Wives'' (1924) * ''

Daughters of Today A daughter is a female offspring; a girl or a woman in relation to her parents. Daughterhood is the state of being someone's daughter. The male counterpart is a son. Analogously the name is used in several areas to show relations between groups ...

'' (1924) * '' The Fate of a Flirt'' (1925) * '' Charley's Aunt'' (1925) * '' Stella Maris'' (1925) * ''

Wandering Footsteps ''Wandering Footsteps'' is a 1925 American silent melodrama film directed by Phil Rosen and starring Alec B. Francis, Estelle Taylor Ida Estelle Taylor (May 20, 1894 – April 15, 1958) was an American actress, singer, model, and animal ri ...

'' (1925) * '' Wasted Lives'' (1925) * '' Soul Mates'' (1925) * ''

Queen o'Diamonds ''Queen o'Diamonds'' is a 1926 American silent drama film directed by Chester Withey and starring Evelyn Brent, Elsa Lorimer, and Phillips Smalley. Plot As described in a film magazine review, chorus girl Jerry Lyon resembles Jeanette Dura ...

'' (1926) * '' The Taxi Mystery'' (1926) * '' The Broken Gate'' (1927) * '' Sensation Seekers'' (1927) * '' The Irresistible Lover'' (1927) * '' Stage Kisses'' (1927) * '' Man Crazy'' (1927) * ''

The Dice Woman ''The Dice Woman'' is a 1926 American silent action adventure film directed by Eddie Dillon and starring Priscilla Dean. No known prints of it exist, and it is presumed lost. No longer a Universal contract star in 1926, Dean was in her career' ...

'' (1928) * ''

Sinners in Love ''Sinners in Love'' is a 1928 silent film comedy directed by George Melford and starring Olive Borden and Seena Owen. It was produced and released by Film Booking Offices of America (FBO). Cast *Olive Borden as Ann Hardy *Huntley Gordon as Ted ...

'' (1928) * ''

Romance of the Underworld ''Romance of the Underworld'' is a 1928 American silent drama film produced and distributed by Fox Film Corporation. Directed by Irving Cummings and starring Mary Astor, it was based upon a stage play called ''A Romance of the Underworld'' by Pau ...

'' (1928) * '' Honeymoon Flats'' (1928) * '' High Voltage'' (1929) * '' The Racketeer'' (1929) * '' The Aviator'' (1929) * '' The Midnight Special'' (1930) * '' High Stakes'' (1931) * ''

The Lawless Woman ''The Lawless Woman'' is a 1931 American crime film directed by Richard Thorpe and starring Vera Reynolds, Carroll Nye and Thomas E. Jackson.Pitts p.89 Cast * Vera Reynolds as June Page * Carroll Nye as Allan Perry * Thomas E. Jackson as ...

'' (1931) * '' New Adventures of Get Rich Quick Wallingford'' (1931) * ''

Escapade Escape and Plasma Acceleration and Dynamics Explorers (EscaPADE) is a planned spacecraft mission to Mars consisting of two spacecraft known as ''Blue'' and ''Gold''. The mission, expected to launch in August 2024, is part of NASA's SIMPLEx progr ...

'' (1932) * '' The Face on the Barroom Floor'' (1932) * '' Cocktail Hour'' (1933) *'' Secret Sinners'' (1933) * ''

The Quitter ''The Quitter'' is a 1916 American silent Western film directed by Charles Horan and starring Lionel Barrymore. It was produced by Rolfe Photoplays and distributed by Metro Pictures. A copy is reportedly held at Nederlands Filmmuseum, now ca ...

'' (1934) * '' It's in the Air'' (1935) * '' A Day at the Races'' (1937) * ''

Second Honeymoon A honeymoon is a vacation taken by newlyweds immediately after their wedding, to celebrate their marriage. Today, honeymoons are often celebrated in destinations considered exotic or romantic. In a similar context, it may also refer to the phase ...

'' (1937) * '' Bulldog Drummond's Revenge'' (1937) * '' The Lady Objects'' (1938)

References

External links

* * 1865 births 1939 deaths Vaudeville performers American male film actors American male silent film actors People from Brooklyn 20th-century American male actors Burials at Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Hollywood Hills) Male actors from New York City Film directors from New York City {{US-film-director-stub