Gertrude Olmstead
Encyclopedia
Gertrude Olmstead was an American actress of the silent era
. She appeared in 56 films between 1920 and 1929.
, Illinois
, and appeared in her first credited film role in the 1921 film The Fox, when she was only 17. She obtained several more roles that same year, appearing in nine films in 1921, and another five in 1922. She would appear in seventeen more films by the time she received what is today her best known role, opposite Rudolph Valentino
in the 1925 film Cobra
.
Throughout the silent film era her career thrived. From 1925 through 1929 she appeared in twenty eight films, most often portraying the heroine. With the advent of sound film
her career stalled, and she retired from acting in 1929.
, and they were married June 8 of that year. Leonard and Olmstead remained married until his death in 1968.
After Leonard's death, Olmstead remained in the Los Angeles
area, and died in Beverly Hills on January 18, 1975.
Silent film
A silent film is a film with no synchronized recorded sound, especially with no spoken dialogue. In silent films for entertainment the dialogue is transmitted through muted gestures, pantomime and title cards...
. She appeared in 56 films between 1920 and 1929.
Career
Olmstead was born in ChicagoChicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
, and appeared in her first credited film role in the 1921 film The Fox, when she was only 17. She obtained several more roles that same year, appearing in nine films in 1921, and another five in 1922. She would appear in seventeen more films by the time she received what is today her best known role, opposite Rudolph Valentino
Rudolph Valentino
Rudolph Valentino was an Italian actor, and early pop icon. A sex symbol of the 1920s, Valentino was known as the "Latin Lover". He starred in several well-known silent films including The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, The Sheik, Blood and Sand, The Eagle and Son of the Sheik...
in the 1925 film Cobra
Cobra (1925 film)
Cobra is a 1925 American silent film starring Rudolph Valentino and Nita Naldi. It is the screen adaptation of the play Cobra written by Martin Brown, which played at the Hudson Theatre on Broadway in 1924. -Synopsis:...
.
Throughout the silent film era her career thrived. From 1925 through 1929 she appeared in twenty eight films, most often portraying the heroine. With the advent of sound film
Sound film
A sound film is a motion picture with synchronized sound, or sound technologically coupled to image, as opposed to a silent film. The first known public exhibition of projected sound films took place in Paris in 1900, but decades would pass before sound motion pictures were made commercially...
her career stalled, and she retired from acting in 1929.
Personal life and death
In 1926, she met MGM director Robert Z. LeonardRobert Z. Leonard
Robert Zigler Leonard was an American film director, actor, producer and screenwriter.He was born in Chicago, Illinois...
, and they were married June 8 of that year. Leonard and Olmstead remained married until his death in 1968.
After Leonard's death, Olmstead remained in the Los Angeles
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
area, and died in Beverly Hills on January 18, 1975.
Selected filmography
- Tipped OffTipped OffTipped Off is a 1920 short Western film directed by Albert Russell and featuring Hoot Gibson.-Cast:* Hoot Gibson* Gertrude Olmstead* Jim Corey* Charles Newton* Jack Walters...
(1920) - The Driftin' KidThe Driftin' KidThe Driftin' Kid is a 1921 short Western film directed by Albert Russell and featuring Hoot Gibson.-Cast:* Hoot Gibson* Artie Ortego - * Gertrude Olmstead* Lulu Jenks - * Jim Corey* Otto Nelson...
(1921) - Sweet Revenge (1921)
- KickarooKickarooKickaroo is a 1921 short Western film directed by Albert Russell and featuring Hoot Gibson....
(1921) - The Fightin' FuryThe Fightin' FuryThe Fightin' Fury is a 1921 short Western film directed by and starring Hoot Gibson.-Cast:* Hoot Gibson* Gertrude Olmstead* Charles Newton* Ben Corbett* Otto Nelson* John Judd...
(1921) - Out o' LuckOut o' LuckOut o' Luck is a 1921 short Western film directed by and starring Hoot Gibson....
(1921) - The FoxThe Fox (1921 film)The Fox is a 1921 silent Western film starring Harry Carey.-Cast:* Harry Carey - Ol' Santa Fe* C. E. Anderson - Rollins* Harley Chambers - Hubbs* Gertrude Claire - Mrs. Farwell* Betty Ross Clarke - Annette Fraser...
(1921) - The Adventures of Robinson CrusoeThe Adventures of Robinson Crusoe (serial)The Adventures of Robinson Crusoe is a 1922 adventure film serial directed by Robert F. Hill. It is now considered to be lost.-Cast:* Harry Myers - Robinson Crusoe* Noble Johnson - Friday* Gertrude Olmstead* Aaron Edwards* Josef Swickard...
(1922) - The Loaded DoorThe Loaded DoorThe Loaded Door is a 1922 American Western film directed by Harry A. Pollard and starring Hoot Gibson.-Cast:* Hoot Gibson as Bert Lyons* Gertrude Olmstead as Molly Grainger* William Ryno as Bud Grainger * A...
(1922) - Cameo KirbyCameo KirbyCameo Kirby is a 1923 silent drama film directed by John Ford and featured Jean Arthur in her onscreen debut. It was Ford's first film credited as John Ford instead of Jack Ford. It was based on a play by Booth Tarkington and Harry Leon Wilson. The story had been filmed as a silent before in 1915...
(1923) - The MonsterThe Monster (1925 film)The Monster is a 1925 silent comedy horror directed by Roland West, based on the play by Crane Wilbur. It stars Johnny Arthur and Lon Chaney, and is remembered as an antecedental Old Dark House movie, as well as a precedent to many subgenre of horror films. The film has been shown on TCM network...
(1925) - CobraCobra (1925 film)Cobra is a 1925 American silent film starring Rudolph Valentino and Nita Naldi. It is the screen adaptation of the play Cobra written by Martin Brown, which played at the Hudson Theatre on Broadway in 1924. -Synopsis:...
(1925) - The BoobThe BoobThe Boob is a romantic comedy film released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, directed by William Wellman, and starring Gertrude Olmstead, Antonio D'Algy, George K. Arthur, and Joan Crawford.-Plot:...
(1926) - BeckyBecky (film)-Plot:Rebecca is a salesgirl who gets a chance at a Broadway show; there, she attracts and is ultimately rejected by a society playboy.-Cast:* Sally O'Neil - Rebecca O'Brien McCloskey* Owen Moore - Dan Scarlett...
(1927) - TorrentTorrent (1926 film)Torrent is an American silent romantic drama film directed by Monta Bell , based on a novel by Vicente Blasco Ibáñez, and released on February 21, 1926.Torrent was the first American film starring Swedish actress Greta Garbo...
(1926) - Hey Rube!Hey Rube!Hey Rube! is a 1928 silent drama film directed by George B. Seitz.-Cast:* Hugh Trevor as String* Gertrude Olmstead as Lutie* Ethlyne Clair as Zelda* Bert Moorhouse as Moffatt * Walter McGrail as Duke...
(1928) - The Show of ShowsThe Show of Shows (film)The Show of Shows is a lavish all talking Vitaphone musical revue film which cost $850,000 to make. The Show of Shows was Warner Bros. fifth color movie, the first four were The Desert Song , On With the Show , Gold Diggers of Broadway and Paris . This movie featured most of the contemporary...
(1929) - Sonny Boy (1929)