1896-1952
Stage and silent film actress Gypsy Abbott was born on this day Atlanta, Georgia. Her career started in vaudeville before she was ten; she showed a remarkable talent for comedy and stayed with the genre for her entire acting career. By the time she was in her teens, she had also moved into regular stage work; eventually working for E.H. Sothern's company (Sothern was a famous Shakespearean specialist). She later worked on a touring production of the musical Little Johnny Jones, written and produced by Broadway man George M. Cohan. She entered the film business at just the age of 17 (nearer 18) in the Balboa Amusement short The Path of Sorrow (December 1913). She met actor Henry King, who was ten years her senior, on the set and would marry him the following spring. They would go on to have three or four children and remain married until her untimely death in the early 1950's. Both of their careers acting in film would not out last the silent era, though Abbott's film career didn't last past the end of the decade, with her active years in the business were 1913 through 1917. Abbott is most well known for her time spent with the Mutual Film distribution company, working under the production house of Vogue Motion Picture Company making short comedies with the likes of Ben Turpin; but she did not start working with them until half way through 1916. In the meantime, she continued to make films (mostly) at Balboa. Almost all were shorts, but she also appeared in the odd serial, and one of her better known films from the era was St. Elmo (May 1914) directed by J. Gordon Edwards who would go on to famously direct a number of Theda Bara films at Fox. She also had a role in The Man Who Could Not Lose, released in November of 1914, and directed by Carlyle Blackwell. As far as her serial work is concerned, the six hour long Who Pays? from 1915 is notable, because he husband wrote it and was one of the directors, in addition to being a member of the cast. King would go on to be one of Hollywood's most prolific directors, working into the early 1960's. Abbott and King continued to work in films together in the mid-1910's, appearing with a few others of note including: Dorothy Davenport, Ruth Roland and Ed Brady who became well known later on in poverty row films of the 30's. The pair even appeared in one film--Letters Entangled--with Mary Gish, the mother of Lillian and Dorothy Gish. Abbott did act during this time sans her husband as a cast member, the melodrama Beulah (May 1915) being a prime example. Her first appearance in a Mutual film was not in one their signature comic shorts, but rather in a melodrama, Vengeance Is Mine!--made by David Horsely and Centaur and staring Crane Wilbur in 1916. Her first turn in the signature Vogue Mutual comedy short with Turpin came in For Ten Thousand Bucks, released later that year at the end of July. Mutual is very well known as a company that distributed a number of Chaplin shorts; and another frequent co-star of Abbott's in these little comedies was the Irish born Paddy McGuire who also appeared in a number of Chaplin shorts in the 1910's. In her Vogue short, she appeared with both Turpin and McGuire in When Ben Bolted (April 1917) directed by actor/director Robin Williamson. Her last film role altogether was as Lorelei in the melodrama with fantasy elements Lorelei of the Sea starring Tyrone Power Sr. She then retired to raise her growing family, content with being the wife of an up and coming director. Abbott died at the just the age of 56 in Hollywood on the 25th of July in 1952 (cause of death undisclosed). She is buried at Holy Cross Cemetery in Culver City.
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| Abbott with Crane Wilbur in Vengeance Is Mine! |
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| [Source: AJM (Find A Grave)] |
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