Vincent Coleman
Encyclopedia
This is for the actor. For the heroic train dispatcher, see Vince Coleman (train dispatcher)
.
Vincent Coleman (February 16, 1900 – October 26, 1971) was an American
stage and film actor
of the silent film
era of the late 1910s and early 1920s.
Born in Louisiana
, Vincent Coleman began his acting career while still a young boy; touring the United States with the Cecil Spooner stock theater company. Occasionally credited in the early years of his career as Willie B. Coleman, he made the transition to film in the 1912 Frank Montgomery
drama short The Junior Officer at age twelve opposite film actors Hobart Bosworth
and Camille Astor before returning to Broadway
at the age of sixteen to appear in the 1917 play Difference in Gods. Coleman then returned to filmmaking to play a variety of juvenile roles for such film studios as Fox, Goldwyn Pictures Corporation, First National
and Paramount
opposite such actors as Corinne Griffith
, Mae Murray
, Constance Talmadge
and Ned Sparks
.
At the beginning of the 1920s, Hollywood film producers took notice of the handsome, fair, young actor and saw in Coleman a possible "All American" matinee idol to counter the "Latin lover" types such as Ramón Novarro
, Antonio Moreno
and Rudolf Valentino that were becoming increasingly popular amongst the nation's theater-goers. In 1919 however, Coleman's further foray into moving pictures was a less than glamorous role in the anti-syphilis
propaganda film Scarlet Trail, which was inspired by the World War I
era for-men-only medical pamphlet Don't Take a Chance. Coleman was eventually groomed by the studios to become a leading man and had starring roles in the 1921 George Fawcett
directed remake of the 1914 Mary Pickford
comedy film Such A Little Queen and The Magic Cup, released the same year before returning to Broadway in July 1921 to star in the Sam H. Harris produced play Nice People opposite renowned stage actress Tallulah Bankhead
.
In 1923 Coleman appeared in the independently produced "epic" film Salome as Herod, opposite actress Diana Allen. The film proved to be a colossal financial disappointmet however and Coleman's film career never recovered and the young actor became disillusioned with film. Coleman would make only two more motion pictures (both released in 1923); Has The World Gone Mad! with Hedda Hopper
and Elinor Fair
and the comedy The Purple Highway starring Monte Blue
, Madge Kennedy
and Pedro de Cordoba
.
After retiring from films at the age of twenty-two, Vincent Coleman would concentrate further on his stage career.
Vincent Coleman died in Los Angeles, California
in 1971 at the age of seventy-one.
Vince Coleman (train dispatcher)
P. Vincent Coleman was a train dispatcher for the Canadian Government Railways who was killed in the Halifax Explosion...
.
Vincent Coleman (February 16, 1900 – October 26, 1971) was an American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
stage and film actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
of the silent film
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...
era of the late 1910s and early 1920s.
Born in Louisiana
Louisiana
Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
, Vincent Coleman began his acting career while still a young boy; touring the United States with the Cecil Spooner stock theater company. Occasionally credited in the early years of his career as Willie B. Coleman, he made the transition to film in the 1912 Frank Montgomery
Frank Montgomery
Frank Montgomery was an early American silent film director and actor....
drama short The Junior Officer at age twelve opposite film actors Hobart Bosworth
Hobart Bosworth
Hobart Bosworth was an American film actor, director, writer, and producer.-Early life:Born Hobart Van Zandt Bosworth, he was a direct descendant of Miles Standish and John and Priscilla Alden on his father's side and of New York's Van Zandt family, the first Dutch settlers to land in the New...
and Camille Astor before returning to Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
at the age of sixteen to appear in the 1917 play Difference in Gods. Coleman then returned to filmmaking to play a variety of juvenile roles for such film studios as Fox, Goldwyn Pictures Corporation, First National
First National
First National was an association of independent theater owners in the United States that expanded from exhibiting movies to distributing them, and eventually to producing them as a movie studio, called First National Pictures, Inc. It later merged with Warner Bros.-Early history:The First National...
and Paramount
Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film production and distribution company, located at 5555 Melrose Avenue in Hollywood. Founded in 1912 and currently owned by media conglomerate Viacom, it is America's oldest existing film studio; it is also the last major film studio still...
opposite such actors as Corinne Griffith
Corinne Griffith
Corinne Mae Griffith was an American actress. Dubbed "The Orchid Lady of the Screen", she was one of the most popular film actresses of the 1920s and widely considered the most beautiful actress of the silent screen...
, Mae Murray
Mae Murray
Mae Murray was an American actress, dancer, film producer, and screenwriter. Murray rose to fame during the silent film era and was known as "The Girl with the Bee-Stung Lips" and "The Gardenia of the Screen"....
, Constance Talmadge
Constance Talmadge
Constance Talmadge was a silent movie star born in Brooklyn, New York, USA, and was the sister of fellow actresses Norma Talmadge and Natalie Talmadge.-Early life:...
and Ned Sparks
Ned Sparks
Ned Sparks was a Canadian character actor. Sparks was well known for his deadpan expression and deep, gravelly voice.-Early life and career:...
.
At the beginning of the 1920s, Hollywood film producers took notice of the handsome, fair, young actor and saw in Coleman a possible "All American" matinee idol to counter the "Latin lover" types such as Ramón Novarro
Ramón Novarro
Ramón Novarro was a Mexican leading man actor in Hollywood in the early 20th century. He was the next male "Sex Symbol" after the death of Rudolph Valentino...
, Antonio Moreno
Antonio Moreno
Antonio "Tony" Moreno was a notable Spanish-born American actor and film director of the silent film era and through the 1950s.- Biography :...
and Rudolf Valentino that were becoming increasingly popular amongst the nation's theater-goers. In 1919 however, Coleman's further foray into moving pictures was a less than glamorous role in the anti-syphilis
Syphilis
Syphilis is a sexually transmitted infection caused by the spirochete bacterium Treponema pallidum subspecies pallidum. The primary route of transmission is through sexual contact; however, it may also be transmitted from mother to fetus during pregnancy or at birth, resulting in congenital syphilis...
propaganda film Scarlet Trail, which was inspired by the World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
era for-men-only medical pamphlet Don't Take a Chance. Coleman was eventually groomed by the studios to become a leading man and had starring roles in the 1921 George Fawcett
George Fawcett
George Fawcett was an American stage and film actor of the silent era. On stage he appeared in such plays as Ghosts with the controversial Mary Shaw, The Squaw Man with William Faversham, The Great John Ganton with an up-and-coming actress Laurette Taylor in the cast and Getting A Polish with...
directed remake of the 1914 Mary Pickford
Mary Pickford
Mary Pickford was a Canadian-born motion picture actress, co-founder of the film studio United Artists and one of the original 36 founders of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences...
comedy film Such A Little Queen and The Magic Cup, released the same year before returning to Broadway in July 1921 to star in the Sam H. Harris produced play Nice People opposite renowned stage actress Tallulah Bankhead
Tallulah Bankhead
Tallulah Brockman Bankhead was an award-winning American actress of the stage and screen, talk-show host, and bonne vivante...
.
In 1923 Coleman appeared in the independently produced "epic" film Salome as Herod, opposite actress Diana Allen. The film proved to be a colossal financial disappointmet however and Coleman's film career never recovered and the young actor became disillusioned with film. Coleman would make only two more motion pictures (both released in 1923); Has The World Gone Mad! with Hedda Hopper
Hedda Hopper
Hedda Hopper was an American actress and gossip columnist, whose long-running feud with friend turned arch-rival Louella Parsons became at least as notorious as many of Hopper's columns.-Early life:...
and Elinor Fair
Elinor Fair
Elinor Fair was an American motion picture actress born in Richmond, Virginia. She began her career with the name Eleanor Crowe, changed it to Lenore Fair, and finally settled on Elinor Fair...
and the comedy The Purple Highway starring Monte Blue
Monte Blue
Monte Blue was a movie actor who began his career as a romantic leading man in the silent film era, and later progressed to character roles....
, Madge Kennedy
Madge Kennedy
Madge Kennedy was a movie and stage actress of the silent film era....
and Pedro de Cordoba
Pedro de Cordoba
Pedro de Cordoba , was an American actor.Pedro de Cordoba, who appeared in his first film, a 1915 version of Carmen, was actually a classically trained theatre actor who confessed he did not enjoy appearing in silent films nearly as much as he liked working on stage...
.
After retiring from films at the age of twenty-two, Vincent Coleman would concentrate further on his stage career.
Vincent Coleman died in Los Angeles, California
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...
in 1971 at the age of seventy-one.
Filmography
- The Purple Highway (1923)
- Has the World Gone Mad! (1923)
- Salome (1923)
- Divorce Coupons (1922)
- FascinationFascination (1922 film)Fascination is a 1922 silent film directed by Robert Z. Leonard and starring his then wife Mae Murray. The story was an original one for the screen by Edmund Goulding, soon to be a prolific film director. The story captilizes on Murray's continuing forays into outlandish costume dramas...
(1922) - Such a Little QueenSuch a Little Queen (1921 film)Such a Little Queen is a 1921 silent film drama starring Constance Binney and directed by George Fawcett, who usually appeared in front of the camera as a character actor. This film is a remake of the 1914 film of the same title which served as an early feature length vehicle for Mary Pickford who...
(1921) - The Magic Cup (1921)
- Princess Jones (1921)
- Good References (1920)
- Partners of the Night (1920)
- For the Freedom of Ireland (1920)
- Should a Husband Forgive? (1919)
- Scarlet Trail (1919)
- The Law of Nature (1919)
- The Prodigal Wife (1918)
- The Scarlet Trail (1918)
- The Junior Officer (1912)