Gertrude Norman

Gertrude Norman (May 19, 1848^[1] or 1851^[2] – July 20, 1943), was an English/American theater and Hollywood silent film actress. She is credited with being in 44 films between 1911 and 1936. She was also a screenwriter and director for early silent films. She also appeared in four films with sound, making her one of the oldest actresses to perform during the silent and sound eras.^[3]

Gertrude Norman
Born	(1851-05-19)19 May 1851 London, England
Died	20 July 1943(1943-07-20) (aged 95) Hollywood, California
Resting place	Hollywood Forever Cemetery
Occupation	American silent film actress
Years active	1911-1936

Norman was born in London, England. One of her early films from 1910 was rediscovered in a sea chest in the 2000s. She played a "mother" role in The Birth of a Nation.^[4] By the time Norman made her first "talkie" she was already in her 80s and played the part of a grandmother.

Gertrude Norman and Robert Harron in The Tender Hearted Boy

She is not to be confused with Gertrude "Toto" Norman (c. 1880–1961), an actress of the same time period as well as secretary and companion to the American opera singer Marcia Van Dresser, or with a children's book author Gertrude Norman.

Filmography

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1911	The Chief's Talisman		Short
1911	Lucia's Broken Romance	The Old Woman	Short
1911	His Baby's Doll	The Old Woman	Short
1911	The Coward (I)	Jim's Mother	Short
1912	The Lord and the Peasant		Short
1912	The Harbinger of Peace	Farmer Wilson's Unmarried Daughter	Short
1912	The Informer		Short
1913	The Tender Hearted Boy	Miser	Short
1914	The Unwelcome Mrs. Hatch	Old Agnes
1914	One of Millions	Mother Kubelow
1915	The Foundling		Scenes Deleted
1915	May Blossom	Aunt Deborah
1915	Fanchon the Cricket	Old Fadette
1915	The Pretty Sister of Jose	Their Grandmother
1915	A Girl of Yesterday	Aunt Angela
1916	Molly Make-Believe	Grandmother Meredith
1916	The Feud Girl	Sue Bassett
1916	The Reward of Patience	Mother Osborn
1917	Heart's Desire	Mother Mathilde
1917	The Adopted Son	Mrs. Conover
1917	Persuasive Peggy	Peggy's Mother
1918	The Studio Girl	Mrs. Daw
1918	The Unbeliever	Marianne Marnholm
1919	An Innocent Adventuress	Mrs. Cribbley
1919	Widow by Proxy	Sophronia Pennington
1919	Strictly Confidential	Elder Aunt
1920	The Brand of Lopez	Marianna
1921	Partners of the Tide	Grandma Baker
1921	Beach of Dreams	La Comtesse de Warens
1921	A Voice in the Dark	Mrs. Lydiard
1921	Little Italy	Anna
1922	A Game Chicken	Señora Juanita Martinez
1924	The Right of the Strongest	Aunt Millie Davis
1924	The Age of Innocence
1927	The King of Kings	Undetermined Role	Uncredited
1929	The Greene Murder Case	Mrs. Tobias Greene
1932	If I Had a Million	Idylwood Resident	Uncredited
1932	The Sign of the Cross	Christian	Uncredited
1933	He Learned About Women	Suzette
1933	Cradle Song	Tornero No. 1
1934	The Trumpet Blows	Grandma Albrentez
1935	The Crusades		Uncredited
1936	The Plainsman		Uncredited

References

1. Nissen, Axel (April 12, 2007). Actresses of a Certain Character: Forty Familiar Hollywood Faces from the Thirties to the Fifties. McFarland. ISBN 9780786427468 – via Google Books.
2. Ellenberger, Allan R. (May 1, 2001). Celebrities in Los Angeles Cemeteries: A Directory. McFarland. ISBN 9780786409839 – via Google Books.
3. Nissen, Axel (August 1, 2016). Accustomed to Her Face: Thirty-Five Character Actresses of Golden Age Hollywood. McFarland. ISBN 9781476626062 – via Google Books.
4. "Watch That Make Up...Gertrude Norman shouldn't have much trouble..." Getty Images.

External links

• Gertrude Norman at Find a Grave
• Gertrude Norman at IMDb