William Garwood

William Davis Garwood, Jr. (April 28, 1884 – December 28, 1950) was an American stage and film actor and director of the early silent film era in the 1910s.

For the judge, see William Lockhart Garwood.

William Garwood
Garwood, c. 1915
Born	(1884-04-28)April 28, 1884 Springfield, Missouri, U.S.
Died	December 28, 1950(1950-12-28) (aged 66) Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Alma mater	Drury College
Occupation	Actor, director
Years active	1909–1919

Between 1911 and 1913, Garwood starred in a number of early adaptions of popular films, including Jane Eyre and The Vicar of Wakefield (1910), Lorna Doone (1911), The Pied Piper of Hamelin (1911), David Copperfield (1911), The Merchant of Venice (1912), and Little Dorrit (1913), and Robin Hood (1913). In total, he starred in more than 150 short and feature films.

Early life

William Davis Garwood, Jr. was born in Springfield, Missouri.[1] He attended public schools in Springfield before moving to New Mexico at the age of 15. He moved back to Springfield to attend Drury College, where he was awarded prizes for his abilities in dramatic reading and literature.[1][2] While at Drury, Garwood ran the 100-yard (91 m) dash in 10.20 seconds and also played on the football team. His father hoped that he would follow a career in metallurgy and secured a position for his son with a zinc company in Joplin, Missouri but Garwood pursued acting instead.

Career

Early years

Garwood began his acting career in 1903 for $3.50 per week with the Lakeside Theatre at Elitch's Gardens in Denver. For two years, he worked odd jobs in addition to taking minor stage roles with the stock company, which at the time included such players as Maude Fealy, Bruce McRae, Douglas Fairbanks and Edward Mackey.[1] After living in Denver for two seasons, he moved to New York City in 1905 where he worked with Virginia Harned, after which he joined the Frohman management in the original production of Mizpah.[3] Later, he was with Kyrle Bellew in Brigadier Girard and with S. Miller Kent in Raffles.[3] Between productions, he worked with a number of stock companies including those at the Alcazar Theatre in San Francisco and the Auditorium Theatre in Chicago. Among his appearances on stage, Garwood considered his work with Dustin Farnum in the traveling company of Cameo Kirby, to be one of his early career highlights in stage acting. This was his last appearance on stage prior to his debut in films.

Films and directing

In November 1909, Garwood joined Thanhouser Company in New Rochelle, New York and was seen in his first Thanhouser film by 1910. He departed from Thanhouser in the autumn of 1911, by which time he was one of the studio's most popular actors. He returned in June 1912 after a season on the stage with the Stubbs-Mackay stock company playing roles in The Prisoner of Zenda, Mills of the Gods, and other plays at the Southern Theatre in Columbus, Ohio during his hiatus from the screen.

On April 30, 1913, the Thanhouser company relocated from Los Angeles to New York, but Garwood remained behind in the same studio in Los Angeles, which was acquired by Majestic Motion Picture Company, and became, with Francelia Billington and Fred Mace, one of three featured stars in the "New Majestic" films. On March 21, 1914, Garwood moved from Majestic to American Studios, in which he starred with Vivian Rich under the direction of Sidney Ayres, in his first film at the American Studios.

Garwood left American Studios after eight months and signed a two-year contract with Universal Film Manufacturing Company in late May 1914. Garwood's first picture for Universal was On Dangerous Ground, released in 1915. By this time, Garwood's popularity had risen and he became a popular leading man with a sizable female fan base.[1] During this time, he worked exclusively with a popular actress of the time, Violet Mersereau, with whom he starred in a number of short films.[4] They worked together in many one-reel comedy film that year, including You Can't Always Tell, Destiny's Trump Card, Uncle's New Blazer, The Adventure of the Yellow Curl Papers, Wild Blood and The Supreme Impulse. During his time at Universal, Garwood also starred as the title character in Lord John in New York (now considered lost).[5] Based on the short story by C.N. and A.M. Williamson, the film proved to be popular with audiences and Garwood starred in four more Lord John films over the following months.[4]

Garwood remained with Universal, where by 1916 he had moved in directing and was one of several dozen directors at Universal City, California. In December 1916, he signed with Kay-Bee Pictures (which released through the Triangle Film Corporation).[4] In 1917 Garwood starred in the films A Magdalene of the Hills (Rolfe for Metro Pictures) and The Little Brother (Kay-Bee for Triangle).

For the next two years he was involved in many films both in acting and directing, including acting for Ince and the Authors' Film Company. He appeared in the 1919 film Wives and Other Wives (American for Pathé) and both directed and acted in the 1919 Universal picture, A Proxy Husband, which was to be his last screen appearance.

Personal life

Garwood was a lifelong bachelor and had no children.

Interests and hobbies

In the early summer of 1913, when he was acting in the Majestic film The Toy, Garwood began a lifelong love of farming and cultivation, particularly of onions, and began cultivating on a commercial basis on an onion patch on the farm of actor Irving Cummings in his spare time from film. He was also a fervent vegetarian.

Garwood owned several properties; he owned a large ranch near Los Angeles along with seaside lots. He also purchased farm land in Santa Barbara. In 1914 he purchased a six-room bungalow in Whittier, California and oversaw 3 acres (12,000 m²) of irrigated crops.

In addition to real estate and gardening, Garwood was interested in geology, an interest which remained through his life created by his father from a young age and he spent many weekends in the pursuit of mineral specimens. He was also an avid motor racer.

Later years and death

By the late 1910s, Garwood's career began to falter because of his chronic alcoholism.[6] He made his final screen appearance in 1919's A Proxy Husband, which he also directed after which he retired. Garwood reportedly lived off of the fortune he made through various investments.[7]

On December 18, 1950, William Garwood died of cirrhosis due to alcoholism in Los Angeles at the age of 66.[6][8]

Selected filmography

Short subject

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1909	The Cowboy Millionaire		Alternative titles: Fell Heir to a Million Dollars The Millionaire Cowboy
1911	The Pasha's Daughter
1911	Baseball and Bloomers
1911	For Her Sake	Confederate Soldier, Lover
1911	Cally's Comet	Jack
1911	The Railroad Builder
1911	The Colonel and the King
1911	Flames and Fortune	The Rescuer
1911	The Coffin Ship
1911	Courting Across the Court	The Lover
1911	Won by Wireless	Wireless Operator
1911	That's Happiness	The Wealthy Old Woman's Son
1911	The Smuggler	The Smuggler
1911	The Buddhist Priestess	The Naval Officer
1911	The Higher Law	The Minister
1911	David Copperfield
1912	A New Cure for Divorce	The Groom
1912	Conductor 786	The Conductor's Son
1912	At the Foot of the Ladder	The Society Leader
1912	Please Help the Pore	The Poor Father
1912	A Six Cylinder Elopement	John Henderson, Gray's Daughter's Sweetheart
1912	Put Yourself in His Place	Henry Little
1912	The Little Girl Next Door	The Husband
1912	Petticoat Camp
1912	Frankfurters and Quail
1912	The Thunderbolt	The Poor Couple's Son, as an Adult
1912	Standing Room Only	The Cook's Sweetheart
1912	Aurora Floyd
1912	With the Mounted Police	The Mounted Policeman
1913	The Heart of a Fool	Sir Roger Motley
1913	The Evidence of the Film	The Broker
1913	Some Fools There Were	First Unsuspecting Bachelor
1913	Her Gallant Knights
1913	For Her Boy's Sake	The Son
1913	The Caged Bird	The Prince
1913	The Oath of Pierre	Pierre Dorchet – a Young Trapper
1913	Beautiful Bismark	The Real Estate Agent
1913	The Lady Killer
1913	The Shoemaker and the Doll	The Shoemaker
1913	A Mix-Up in Pedigrees	Bob Brown
1913	Through the Sluice Gates	John Browning
1913	The Oath of Tsuru San	Ned Winthrop
1913	Article 47, L'
1913	The House in the Tree	Jack – age 20
1913	Rick's Redemption	Rick
1914	The Ten of Spades	Ralph West – the Prospector
1914	A Ticket to Red Horse Gulch	Jack Oliver
1914	A Turn of the Cards	John Richards
1914	Fate's Decree	John Graves
1914	The Green-Eyed Devil
1914	The Hunchback	Tom Carson – a Young Prospector
1914	Imar the Servitor	Imar
1914	The Body in the Trunk
1914	The Lost Sermon	Rev. John Strong
1914	The Unmasking	Harold Clark
1914	Nature's Touch	Richard Stone
1914	The Cameo of the Yellowstone	Cameo – the Cowpuncher
1914	Feast and Famine	Jerry Benton – the Son
1914	A Man's Way	Henry
1914	Does It End Right?
1914	Their Worldly Goods	Frank Mason
1914	Break, Break, Break	Tom Day, a Son of the People
1914	The Cocoon and the Butterfly
1914	His Faith in Humanity	Jim Marsh
1914	The Taming of Sunnybrook Nell	Steve, a Woodcutter
1914	Billy's Rival	Billy Manning
1914	Jail Birds	Robert MacFarlane, a young attorney	Alternative title: Jailbirds
1914	In the Open	Ben Carroll, a Young Ranchman
1914	Sweet and Low
1914	Sir Galahad of Twilight	Bryan Kyam
1914	Redbird Wins	Philip Pierpont
1914	Old Enough to Be Her Grandpa	Rollie – Stephen's Grandson
1914	In the Candlelight	Ralph, a Young Art Student
1914	The Strength o' Ten	Jep
1914	The Sower Reaps	Ben Rolfe
1915	The Legend Beautiful	Jose Cordero
1915	On Dangerous Ground	Williams – the Bank Cashier
1915	The Stake
1915	She Never Knew
1915	The Supreme Impulse	Earl Graham
1915	Wild Blood	Walt Hiller	Director
1915	The Adventure of the Yellow Curl Papers	Ted	Alternative title: The Mystery of the Yellow Curl Papers
1915	Uncle's New Blazer	Billy	Director
1915	Destiny's Trump Card	Bill Avery	Director
1915	You Can't Always Tell	Harrington Spencer – Reporter	Director
1915	Larry O'Neill	Larry O'Neill
1915	Thou Shalt Not Lie	Fred Harnett aka Harrington
1915	Driven by Fate
1915	Billy's Love Making	Billy Burnitt	Director
1915	The Wolf of Debt	Bruce Marsden
1915	The Unnecessary Sex	John
1915	Getting His Goat	Bill
1916	The Grey Sisterhood	Lord John Haselmore	Lord John's Journal ep. 2[9][10]
1916	Three Fingered Jenny	Lord John Haselmore	Lord John's Journal ep. 3[9][10]
1916	The Eye of Horus	Lord John Haselmore	Lord John's Journal ep. 4[9][10]
1916	The League of the Future	Lord John Haselmore	Lord John's Journal ep. 5[9][10]
1916	Billy's War Brides		Director
1916	His Picture		Director
1916	Two Seats at the Opera	Michael Claney	Director
1916	The Gentle Art of Burglary
1916	A Society Sherlock		Director
1916	He Wrote a Book		Director
1916	Arthur's Desperate Resolve		Director
1916	A Soul at Stake		Director
1916	The Decoy		Director
1917	A Magdalene of the Hills	Eric Southward	Alternative title: A Magdalen of the Hills
1917	The Little Brother	Franak Girard
1919	Proxy Husband		Director

Features

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1915	Lord John in New York	Lord John Haselmore	Lost film; Lord John's Journal ep. 1[9][10]
1916	Broken Fetters	Lawrence Demarest
1918	The Guilty Man	Claude Lescuyer
1918	Her Moment	Jan Drakachu
1918	Wives and Other Wives	Norman Craig

References

1. Doyle, Billy H.; Slide, Anthony (1995). The Ultimate Directory Of the Silent Screen Performers: A Necrology Of Births and Deaths and Essays On 50 Lost Players. Scarecrow Press. p. 27. ISBN 0-810-82958-4.
2. Grau, Robert (1914). The Theatre of Science: A Volume of Progress and Achievement in the Motion Picture Industry. Broadway Publishing Company. pp. 375.
3. Grau 1914 p.376
4. "William Garwood Plays Various Roles". Motion Picture. Macfadden-Bartell. 41: 78. 1917.
5. Soister, John T. (2012). American Silent Horror, Science Fiction and Fantasy Feature Films, 1913-1929. McFarland. p. 726. ISBN 0-786-48790-9.
6. Klepper, Robert K. (1999). Silent Films, 1877-1996: A Critical Guide to 646 Movies. McFarland. p. 37. ISBN 0-786-40595-3.
7. Boyle 1995 p.28
8. Vazzana, Eugene Michael (2001). Silent Film Necrology. McFarland & Company Incorporated Pub. p. 190. ISBN 0-786-41059-0.
9. Wlaschin, Ken (2009). Silent Mystery and Detective Movies: A Comprehensive Filmography. McFarland. p. 129. ISBN 9780786454297. Retrieved November 4, 2019.
10. "Lord John in New York". AFI. Retrieved November 4, 2019.

External links

• William Garwood on IMDb
• William Garwood at Find a Grave