1881-1949
Silent film actress Valentine Grant, named for the day, was born on Valentine's Day in Frankfort, Indiana in 1881. Not much is known about her early life, or how she came to study music in New York; but we do know that she studied high opera singing and performance there. Her aim was to become an opera leading lady, though there are no records of her singing range. We also know that she was good enough to tour the United States as an opera performer, but some unknown health ailment forced her to quit. At some point along the way, she met the Canadian born actor turned director Sidney Olcott. She would not only become an actress in his films, she would also become his wife in either later 1914 or early 1915. By the mid-teens, Olcott also had his own production company and it was in one of his short films that she made her film debut in March of 1914: When Men Could Kill. She only appeared in around 16 films (there may have been a couple of more) and of those, more than ten were shorts; and all of them, save one, was directed by her husband. That "save one" was The Melting Pot, a film with propagandist elements, made in 1915 and based on a novel and subsequent play by British author Israel Zangwill. Grant appeared in the female lead opposite fellow Indianan Walker Whiteside; it was also her first feature. Olcott was the son of Irish immigrants and became interested in making films that would appeal to Irish audiences in both his native Canada and the United States; Grant appeared in three of them: All for Old Ireland (July 1915), Bold Emmett Ireland's Martyr (August 1915) and The Irish in America (September 1915). All of them filmed in Ireland. Olcott was by this time working for Lubin Manufacturing, meaning, of course Grant was also working for Lubin. The couple left for Famous Players in 1916 and The Taint (December 1915) was not only their last film at Lubin together, it was her last appearance in a short film. Their first film at Famous Players was the feature The Innocent Life (April 1916), again sporting an "Irish in America" story. Their next Famous Players/Paramount feature The Daughter of MacGregor, starred Grant opposite Sidney Mason, was shot on location in Canada and Florida, and was also completely written by Grant for her husband to direct. Her last film appearance came in the 1918 melodrama The Belgian, produced by the Sidney Olcott Players and, of course, directed by Olcott; it was the only other film that Walker Whiteside acted in. Grant then retired from working altogether afterward. Olcott continued to direct films through the 1920's, which meant that the couple had to relocate to California--where he directed in lots such as the Universal plaza. They both died there, just months apart in 1949. She passed away first in Orange County on the 12th of March at the age of 68. She is listed as having been cremated and interred at San Diego's Cypress View Crematory and Mausoleum.
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| Grant acting in Ireland |
