Volume III: Biographies

BATES, Louise Emerald **

Actress (1915-1916)

Thanhouser Career Synopsis: Louise Emerald Bates joined Thanhouser in the autumn of 1915 and appeared in various Falstaff comedies during the 1915-1916 period.

Biographical Notes: Louise Emerald Bates was born in Massachusetts on December 28, 1886. The Moving Picture World, October 16, 1915, told of her coming to New Rochelle: "There is a wailing and gnashing of teeth along Broadway, in the vicinity of the white lights, also several managers are cursing at moving pictures for their inroads on the ranks of talent - for Louise Emerald Bates has forsaken Broadway and gone forty-five minutes thence, to Thanhouser's at New Rochelle. Miss Bates has accepted an engagement to become Edwin Thanhouser's 'Falstaff Girl,' in which Riley Chamberlin, Arthur Cunningham, Claude Cooper, and Frances Keyes are now cavorting.

"Louise Bates has for the past few years been one of the most magnetic figures in musical comedy. She was the prima donna in The Passing Show and played the lead with Julian Eltinge in The Fascinating Widow. She is a blonde beauty with one of those spontaneous personalities that looks as if it is going to break out any second. She is blessed with the kind of figure that Ziegfeld catches audiences with, and a smile that continually plays tag all over her facial features.... By featuring her in Falstaff comedies, Mr. Thanhouser will set a precedent, for Miss Bates is peculiarly fitted, naturally and by training, to introduce a style of work as yet unknown in pictures."

The New Rochelle Pioneer, December 25, 1915, informed its readers of the same situation: "A new fun maker at the Falstaff comedies that the local studio is producing is Louise Emerald Bates, the energetic little blonde actress. Miss Bates is a prominent musical comedy prima donna, who decided to register her sparkling talents upon the screen for the delectation of her admirers all over the country. Her particular forte is 'strong arm' roles. Recently she ducked two grafting politicians until they consented to retire from the ballot in her favor. When Riley Chamberlin, in the part of a amicable car conductor, calls upon Miss Bates to champion him in a tussle with a couple of toughs, the 'famous female hammer thrower' breaks all previous records. Miss Bates will continue to appear with Mr. Chamberlin, Arthur Cunningham, Claude Cooper, and Frances Keyes."

The New Rochelle Pioneer, December 4, 1915, printed this item: "When Miss Louise Bates and Harris Gordon, Thanhouser movie folks, were quietly married at the Columbus Hotel, Port Chester, November 21, by Justice of the Peace Merritt, none of their friends were 'wise' to what was going on. But a few days later the secret came out and since then the young couple have been blushingly receiving congratulations. In celebration of the happy occasion they entertained 30 of their most intimate friends at a dinner at Macri's Columbus Hotel, Port Chester, on Tuesday night. The movie people went up in automobiles and partook of one of Host Macri's matchless seven course chicken dinners. There was merriment galore during the dinner and Mr. and Mrs. Gordon proved excellent entertainers. Among those who helped in keeping things lively about the table while the dinner was being served were W. Eugene Moore, director, and his chief assistant, Leo Wirth; Miss Jessie B. Bishop, secretary at the Thanhouser offices; Miss Virginia Hudson and Clint Stagg, movie story writers and last, but not least, James Wallace, chief mechanician of the Thanhouser fleet of automobiles."

In early 1916 she was among the Thanhouser players who worked at the Jacksonville studio. In February 1916 she appeared in a fashion film photographed by A.H. Moses, Jr. for Levy's, a Jacksonville clothing store. The pictures, made separately from Thanhouser's regular business, were screened at the Arcade Theatre. The Sunday Metropolis, March 5, 1916, published a large, illustrated article, "She Has the Most Beautiful Arm," about Miss Bates, and with an illustration of her arm. It must have been a slow day for news in Jacksonville!

The New York Star, March 22, 1916, told of a serious role: "Louise Bates, lately featured as the 'Falstaff Girl,' makes her dramatic debut in The Water Devil [working title for Her Father's Gold], a Thanhouser Mutual Masterpicture, Deluxe Edition, in which she plays the heavy lead. Miss Bates was prima donna with The Passing Show at the Winter Garden, New York, when Edwin Thanhouser made her an offer to star in the silent drama."

The New Rochelle Pioneer, June 3, 1916, announced that Miss Bates was among nearly two dozen important players, directors, and cameramen whose engagements were terminated by the studio on Saturday morning, May 27, 1916, as part of an economy move when the outlook for the Thanhouser Film Corporation seemed bleak. In 1915, as already noted, she married Harris Gordon, a fellow Thanhouser player. Later, she married Edmund Mortimer, a director, who died in 1944. Louise Emerald Bates died on June 11, 1972.

Thanhouser Filmography:

1915: The Film Favorite's Finish (Falstaff 11-11-1915), Inspiration (11-18-1915), Foiling Father's Foes (Falstaff 11-29-1915), Minnie, the Mean Manicurist (Falstaff 12-6-1915), The Conductor's Classy Champion (Falstaff 12-13-1915)

1916: Hilda's Husky Helper (Falstaff 1-6-1916), Grace's Gorgeous Gowns (Falstaff 1-18-1916), Pete's Persian Princess (Falstaff 1-20-1916), Lucky Larry's Lady Love (Falstaff 1-25-1916), Levy's Fashion Exhibit (advertising film released privately circa February 10, 1916), Perkins' Peace Party (Falstaff 2-17-1916), Silas Marner (2-19-1916), What Doris Did (3-1-1916), Maud Muller Modernized (Falstaff 3-2-1916), Theodore's Terrible Thirst (Falstaff 3-14-1916), The Weakling (5-2-1916), The Kiddies' Kaptain Kidd (Falstaff 5-8-1916), Her Father's Gold (5-11-1916), Disguisers (Falstaff 5-29-1916), Advertisementers (Falstaff 6-5-1916), Real Estaters (Falstaff 6-12-1916), Guiders (Falstaff 8-15-1916), Musickers (Falstaff 9-5-1916)

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