Bessie Barriscale
This article needs additional citations for verification. (December 2021) |
Bessie Barriscale | |
---|---|
Born | Elizabeth Barry Scale June 9, 1884 Hoboken, New Jersey, U.S. |
Died | June 30, 1965 Kentfield, California, U.S. | (aged 81)
Resting place | Mount Tamalpais Cemetery |
Occupation | Actress |
Years active | 1906–1934 |
Spouses | Sumner Gard (m. 1902)Howard C. Hickman (m. 1907; died 1949) |
Children | 1 |
Relatives | Mabel Taliaferro Edith Taliaferro (cousins) |
Bessie Barriscale (born Elizabeth Barry Scale, June 9, 1884 – June 30, 1965) was an American actress who gained fame on the stage and in silent films.
Early life
Barriscale was born Elizabeth Barry Scale in Hoboken, New Jersey,[1] to Irish immigrants from County Cork.[citation needed] Her father came to the United States with a London company that presented The Lights of London.[2] Her cousins were actresses Edith and Mabel Taliaferro.[3] At age 5 she debuted on stage with James A. Herne.[4]
Career
As a young woman, Barriscale was the Proctor Stock Company's ingenue at the Fifth Avenue Theatre in New York, after which she portrayed Madge in In Old Kentucky for two years.[4] In 1902, she married actor Sumner Gard. She did not tell her parents until January 1, 1903.[5] That was followed by two years as Lovey Mary in Mrs. Wiggs of the Cabbage Patch. She became leading woman with the Belasco Stock Company in Los Angeles after performing for a year in Belasco's Rose of the Rancho. She went on to portray Luna in The Bird of Paradise and to have the lead in We Are Seven.[4] In the first decade of the 20th century Barriscale worked in the legitimate theater on Broadway and on the road as movies were not popular for stage actors yet.[3]
Barriscale began her film career in 1913, debuting on-screen in Lasky Picture Company's Rose of the Rancho.[4] She worked intensively for New York Motion Picture Company and Triangle Film Corporation (among other studios) until she announced her retirement in the early 1930s.[citation needed] In 1917, she had her own production company, the Bessie Barriscale Feature Company.[6] Barriscale announced the formation at a news conference on May 1, 1917.[7] Plans called for the company to produce six to eight features each year. Another new company, Paralta Plays, was designated to distribute the films.[8] James Young was hired as one of three directors for Barriscale's new company.[9]
In 1918, Barriscale was contracted by J.L. Frothingham of B.B. Features and the Roberson Cole Company to make 16 films. B.B. Features was an Arizona corporation. The movies were to be completed, produced, and delivered by January 21, 1921. At this time, Miss Barriscale's managers insured her life for a half million dollars against eventualities. The total cost of the features totaled more than $1,000,000.
Barriscale was enthusiastic about
In 1919, she traveled with her husband—actor, director, and film producer—
In 1921, Barriscale came east to play in The Skirt. The play was to travel to Philadelphia and Boston after opening in Washington, D.C.. Later the production appeared in New York City. In prior years, Barriscale participated in plays for the
Actor Jackie Coogan and his parents purchased the home of Bessie Barriscale in Pellisier Square, Los Angeles in February 1922. The residence was valued at $45,000.
Barriscale returned to the stage in Women Go On Forever. She had been married 21 years and had a son age 20 at this time. The production opened at the Hollywood Music Box in March 1928. She played a "housewife type," and confessed to having rehearsed for the role in a gingham dress she took from the wardrobe of her home in Santa Monica, California. Her feet were slightly smaller than her shoes. She said she had been working at home for several years and had just learned to cook. [11]
Death
Barriscale died in
Honors
For her contributions to the film industry, Barriscale received a motion pictures star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1960. Her star is located at 6652 Hollywood Boulevard.[13]
Filmography
- The Gambler's Pal (1913), short
- Eileen of Erin (1913), short
- The Bells of Austi (1914), short
- The Making of Bobby Burnit (1914), short
- Ready Money (1914)
- Rose of the Rancho (1914)
- The Devil (1915)
- The Cup of Life (1915)
- The Reward (1915) 40 minutes
- The Mating (1915)
- The Golden Claw (1915)
- The Painted Soul (1915)
- The Green Swamp (1916)
- Honor's Altar (1916)
- Bullets and Brown Eyes (1916)
- The Last Act (1916)
- Not My Sister (1916)
- The Sorrows of Love (1916)
- The Payment (1916)
- Home (1916)
- Plain Jane (1916)
- A Corner in Colleens (1916)
- The Snarl (1917)
- Bawbs o' the Blue Ridge (1917)
- The Hater of Men (1917)
- Borrowed Plumage (1917)
- Wooden Shoes(1917)
- Those Who Pay (1917)
- Madam Who? (1918)
- The Cast-Off (1918)
- Within the Cup (1918)
- Blindfolded(1918)
- Rose o' Paradise (1918)
- Patriotism (1918)
- Maid o' the Storm (1918)
- The White Lie (1918)
- The Heart of Rachael (1918), also producer
- Two-Gun Betty (1918)
- All of a Sudden Norma (1919)
- A Trick of Fate (1919), also producer
- Hearts Asleep (1919), also producer
- Josselyn's Wife (1919), also producer
- Tangled Threads (1919), also producer
- The Woman Michael Married (1919), also producer
- Her Purchase Price (1919), also producer
- Kitty Kelly, M.D. (1919), also producer
- Beckoning Roads (1919), also producer
- The Luck of Geraldine Laird (1920), also producer
- A Woman Who Understood (1920)
- The Notorious Mrs. Sands (1920), also producer
- Life's Twist (1920), also producer
- The Broken Gate (1920)
- The Breaking Point (1921)
- Show Folks (1928)
- Secrets (1933)
- Bondage (1933)
- Above the Clouds (1933)
- Beloved (1934)
- The Man Who Reclaimed His Head (1934)
References
- Citations
- ISBN 978-0-7876-4061-3.
- ^ Brodie, Allan Douglas (August 1915). "Bessie Barriscale, of the N. Y. M. P. Corporation". Motion Picture. X: 106–108.
- ^ a b Bessie Barriscale; IBDb.com
- ^ a b c d Lowrey, Carolyn (1920). The First One Hundred Noted Men and Women of the Screen. Moffat, Yard. pp. 16–17. Retrieved December 24, 2021.
- Newspapers.com.
- Newspapers.com.
- ^ Lund, Maria Fosheim. "Bessie Barriscale". Women Film Pioneers Project. Columbia University Libraries. Archived from the original on June 6, 2021. Retrieved December 24, 2021.
- ^ "Greenroom Jottings". Motion Picture Magazine. XIII (6): 107. July 1917. Retrieved December 24, 2021.
- ^ "Jimmy Young to direct Miss Barriscale". Moving Picture World. 32 (10): 1590. June 9, 1917. Retrieved December 24, 2021.
- Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Bessie Barriscale". Women Film Pioneers Project. Retrieved August 18, 2023.
- ISBN 978-1-4766-2599-7.
- ^ "Hollywood Walk of Fame – Bessie Barriscale". walkoffame.com. Hollywood Chamber of Commerce. Retrieved November 13, 2017.
- Bibliography
- "Bessie Barriscale in B.B. Features". Los Angeles Times. November 10, 1918. p. III.
- "Flashes, New $1,000,000 Star". Los Angeles Times. December 6, 1918. p. II3.
- "Flashes, Star Will Travel, Bessie Barriscale Will Circle the Globe". Los Angeles Times. February 14, 1919. p. II3.
- "High Dive Special". Los Angeles Times. May 14, 1919. p. III4.
- "Flashes, Film Stars on Stage". Los Angeles Times. June 4, 1921. p. II7.
- "Boosting for a Bard". Los Angeles Times. September 21, 1919. p. III 1.
- "Bought by Film Star". Los Angeles Times. February 12, 1922. p. V2.
- "New Bessie Barriscale Is in Play". Los Angeles Times. March 11, 1928. p. C13.
External links
- Bessie Barriscale at IMDb
- Bessie Barriscale at AllMovie
- Bessie Barriscale at Find a Grave
- Silent era portrait of Bessie Barriscale
- Bessie Barriscale on Women Film Pioneers Project