Henry B. Walthall (March 16, 1878 - June 17, 1936) was an American film actor. March 16 is the 75th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (76th in Leap years). ... 1878 was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ... June 17 is the 168th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (169th in leap years), with 197 days remaining. ... 1936 (MCMXXXVI) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will take you to calendar). ... Actors in period costume sharing a joke whilst waiting between takes during location filming. ...

Career

Walthall began his career in movies as early as 1908, in a film shot called Rescued from an Eagle's Nest, which also featured another young actor named D.W. Griffith. As the industry grew in size and popularity, Griffith emerged as a director and Walthall found himself a mainstay of the Griffith company, frequently working alongside such Griffith regulars as Owen Moore, Kate Bruce and Jack and Mary Pickford. 1908 (MCMVIII) is a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will take you to calendar). ... David Lewelyn Wark Griffith (January 22, 1875 - July 23, 1948) was an American film director (commonly known as D. W. Griffith) probably best known for his film The Birth of a Nation. ... Owen Moore (December 12, 1886 - June 9, 1939) was born in Fordstown Crossroads, County Meath, Ireland. ... John Charles Smith (August 18, 1896 - January 3, 1933) was a Canadian-born American actor. ... Mary Pickford Mary Pickford (April 8, 1892 – May 29, 1979) was a Canadian-born motion picture star and co-founder of United Artists, known as Americas Sweetheart and the girl with the curls. ...

Given the relatively short length of films in the early years, Walthall frequently found himself cast in dozens of films each year. For those still unfamiliar with his face however, he gained national attention in 1915 for his role as Colonel Ben Wallace in Griffith's highly influential and controversial epic The Birth of a Nation. Walthall's portrayal of a Confederate veteran rounding up the Ku Klux Klan won him large-scale fame, and Walthall was soon able to emerge as a leading actor in the years leading up to the 1920s, parting ways with Griffith. 1915 (MCMXV) was a common year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ... The Birth of a Nation was the most popular film of the silent era. ... Members of the second Ku Klux Klan at a rally during the 1920s. ... The 1920s were a decade sometimes referred to as the Jazz Age or the Roaring Twenties, usually applied to America. ...

He continued through the 1920s, appearing in The Plastic Age with Gilbert Roland and Clara Bow and a 1926 adaptation of The Scarlet Letter opposite Lillian Gish. Now in his 40s, he found his roles increasingly more of the "character" variety. Having experience as a stage actor, Walthall continued his career into the 1930s until his death. Gilbert Roland (December 11, 1905 – May 15, 1994) was an American actor. ... Clara Bow Clara Bow (born July 29, 1905[1]; died September 27, 1965) was an American actress and sex symbol, best known for her film work in the 1920s and early 1930s. ... 1926 (MCMXXVI) was a common year starting on Friday (link will take you to calendar). ... Salem Custom House The Scarlet Letter, published in 1850, is a classic American prose romance written by Nathaniel Hawthorne and is generally considered to be his masterpiece. ... Lillian Gish Lillian Diana de Guiche (October 14, 1893 – February 27, 1993), was an Oscar-nominated American actress, better known as Lillian Gish. ...

He has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame located at 6201 Hollywood Boulevard. An example of a Hollywood Walk of Fame star, for the film actress Carole Lombard. ...

Personal Life

Walthall was married twice. His first marriage, to Isabel Fenton, ended in divorce after ten years in 1917. His second marriage, to actress Mary Charleson lasted from the following year until his death from influenza in 1936. 1917 (MCMXVII) was a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar (see link for calendar) or a common year starting on Tuesday of the 13-day slower Julian calendar. ... Influenza, commonly known as the flu or the grippe, is a contagious disease of the upper airways and the lungs, caused by an RNA virus of the orthomyxoviridae family. ...

Notable films

• Ramona - 1910
• Judith of Bethulia - 1914
• The Birth of a Nation - 1915
• Wings - 1927
• London After Midnight - 1927
• The Trespasser - 1929
• A Tale of Two Cities - 1935
• The Devil-Doll - 1936

Ramona is the title of several motion pictures based on the novel Ramona (1884) by Helen Hunt Jackson. ... Judith of Bethulia starred Blanche Sweet and Henry B. Walthall. ... The Birth of a Nation was the most popular film of the silent era. ... Wings is a 1927 silent movie about fighter pilots during World War I (Charles Buddy Rogers and Richard Arlen), who vie for the same girl (Clara Bow) directed by William Wellman. ... London After Midnight is a 1927 silent horror lost film, starring Lon Chaney, Sr. ... The Trespasser is a 1929 film which tells the story of a kept woman who maintains a lavish life style with the help of her lover. ...

External links

• Henry B. Walthall at the Internet Movie Database
• Henry B. Walthall Photo Gallery
• Tribute Site