Volume III: Biographies

JONES, Morgan **

Actor (1913-1917)

Morgan Jones. Courtesy Trent D. Sanders (Mjones)

Thanhouser Career Synopsis: Morgan Jones was an actor with Thanhouser from 1913 to 1917.

Biographical Notes: Morgan Jones was born in 1879 in Denver, Colorado, although in an interview published in The Florida Metropolis, April 16, 1916, it was stated that many thought his birthplace was in Cardiff, Wales. Jones corrected the error. While a student at West Denver High School he earned money as a delivery boy for The Rocky Mountain News in the morning and The Denver Times in the late afternoon. Graduating from high school with honors, he went to Colorado State College, where he coached baseball, football, and track and set a record at the institution for his speed of ten and a quarter seconds in the 100-yard dash. From college he went to the Gulf League Baseball Team, after which he was transferred to Dayton, and then to Cincinnati in the National League. Known as "Skinny Jones," he pitched for Cincinnati for two years, where he established the best batting average for a National League pitcher, .284. With his baseball earnings, he went to the Chicago Music School, where he won first prize scholarships for three years. He also studied music under David Baxter, Herman DeVries, David Bispham, Herbert Miller, and Carlo Minetti.

After his musical schooling was completed, he went on the Chautauqua circuit and was seen on programs alongside such personages as William Jennings Bryan, Carry Nation, and "Champ" Clark, and on the concert stage with Mary Garden and others, and at one time was with the Metropolitan Opera Company. He became a figure on the legitimate stage and was with the Harry Davis stock company in Pittsburgh, as leading man for Sarah Truax, Eva Taylor, Laura Lozier, and others. He was also seen in Rose of the Rancho, at the Belasco Theatre in New York City.

Among his early screen appearances was a part in The Great Train Robbery (Edison, 1903). He worked in many silent films, appearing with Pearl White (at Pathé), Irene Castle, and Ben Lyon, and under the direction of Fred A. Kelsey at Universal.

Jones appeared in many Thanhouser films from 1913 until 1917. In addition to acting in regular Thanhouser pictures he played in numerous Princess and Falstaff releases. The New Rochelle Pioneer, January 16, 1915, noted that he "has been taken into Thanhouser stock." Apparently, he was not a full-time studio player before that time. In early 1916 he was among the Thanhouser players at the Jacksonville studio. While he was there, various antics involving his toupee were mentioned regularly in Tracey Hollingsworth's "Flivers From Film Folk" column in The Florida Metropolis. His son, Master "Bopps" Jones, age 5, appeared in a Thanhouser film in Jacksonville. The New Rochelle Pioneer, June 3, 1916, stated that he was among nearly two dozen Thanhouser players, directors, and cameramen who were dismissed by the studio on Saturday morning, May 27, 1916, at a time when the financial prospects for the Thanhouser Film Corporation were uncertain. However, he was rehired shortly thereafter and appeared in Thanhouser films through 1917. Morgan Jones played many supporting parts, rather than leading roles, and thus he was often omitted from publicity notices, even though his filmography comprised a lengthy list. He continued in films with various studios through at least the late 1920s.

His spare time interests included gourmet cooking, music, swimming, tennis, golf, and many other hobbies and sports. In later years Jones worked as a makeup artist for various Eastern studios. He specialized in making up prospective players for screen tests with Twentieth Century-Fox, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, and Paramount. Morgan Jones died on September 21, 1951 at his home at 22 Fairview Avenue in New York City. He was survived by his wife, Nina; two sets of twins, Morgan Jr. and Mason, and Mary Belle and Milton; four grandchildren; and two brothers, Henry and Leslie.

Thanhouser Filmography:

1913: The Problem Love Solved (12-2-1913), The Law of Humanity (Princess 12-19-1913), An Orphan's Romance (12-23-1913)

1914: A Rural Free Delivery Romance (Princess 1-2-1914), A Circumstantial Nurse (Princess 1-9-1914), The Vacant Chair (Princess 1-23-1914), Where Paths Diverge (Princess 2-6-1914), All's Well That Ends Well (Princess 2-20-1914), Her Way (Princess 3-6-1914), Too Much Turkey (Princess 4-10-1914), Her Awakening (Princess 4-17-1914), The Strike (4-21-1914), In Her Sleep (Princess 5-15-1914), A Circus Romance (Princess 5-22-1914), Rivalry (6-9-1914), The Toy Shop (Princess 6-12-1914), The Little Senorita (Princess 6-19-1914), Professor Snaith (Princess 6-26-1914), The Decoy (7-3-1914), The Veteran's Sword (Princess 7-17-1914), The Target of Destiny (Princess 7-31-1914), Her Duty (Princess 8-7-1914), A Dog's Good Deed (8-23-1914), The Keeper of the Light (Princess 8-25-1914), His Winning Way (Princess 9-4-1914), Sis (Princess 9-11-1914), The Master Hand (Princess 9-18-1914), The Final Test (Princess 9-25-1914), The Balance of Power (Princess 10-2-1914), The Diamond of Disaster (10-13-1914), The Face at the Window (Princess 10-23-1914), The Chasm (11-13-1914), Pawns of Fate (11-17-1914), A Messenger of Gladness (11-22-1914), The Barrier of Flames (12-15-1914)

1914-1915 Serial: The Million Dollar Mystery

1915: Check No. 130 (Princess 1-8-1915), The Speed King (1-12-1915), The Dog Catcher's Bride (1-24-1915), In the Jury Room (2-2-1915), The Stolen Jewels (3-21-1915), The Duel in the Dark (3-23-1915), The Magnet of Destruction (3-30-1915), A Double Exposure (4-11-1915), The Moment of Sacrifice (4-13-1915), The Actor and the Rube (Falstaff 4-16-1915), The Handicap of Beauty (Falstaff 4-23-1915), The Song of the Heart (5-11-1915), The Three Roses (5-16-1915), The Heart of the Princess Marsari (5-18-1915), The House That Jack Moved (Falstaff 5-21-1915), A Freight Car Honeymoon (6-6-1915), Through Edith's Looking Glass (6-13-1915), The Country Girl (6-15-1915), In the Valley (6-18-1915), Crossed Wires (6-29-1915), A Maker of Guns (7-6-1915), Mme. Blanche, Beauty Doctor (Falstaff 7-9-1915), The Picture of Dorian Gray (7-20-1915), When the Fleet Sailed (8-3-1915), Weighed in the Balance (8-13-1915), M. Lecoq (8-26-1915), Out of the Sea (9-12-1915), The Road to Fame (9-28-1915), The Mystery of Eagle's Cliff (10-3-1915), The Long Arm of the Secret Service (10-16-1915), The Mistake of Mammy Lou (11-7-1915), Beneath the Coat of a Butler (11-21-1915), The House Party at Carson Manor (12-5-1915), Ambition (12-21-1915)

1916: Outwitted (2-16-1916), Silas Marner (2-19-1916), What Doris Did (3-1-1916), The Net (4-1-1916), The Carriage of Death (4-29-1916), Real Estaters (Falstaff 6-12-1916), The Black Terror (9-29-1916)

1917: The Image Maker (1-21-1917), The Vicar of Wakefield (2-25-1917)

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