Volume III: Biographies

ILLIAN, Isolde C. *

Actress (1915-1916)

Thanhouser Career Synopsis: Isolde C. Illian appeared in Thanhouser films in 1915 and 1916.

Biographical Notes: Born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin on May 28, 1898 (information from her death certificate; certain other sources say May 22, 1899), Isolde C. Illian was educated there at the Downer Seminary. From the age of six she followed a career on the stage in stock in Milwaukee, where she first appeared as Florence in The Suburban, at the Shubert Theatre. Subsequently, she was seen at the Davidson, Majestic, Columbia, Bijou, and Juneau theatres and was the subject of many articles in the local press. Her vehicles included East Lynne, Sheridan Keene, The Sign of the Four, Seven Sisters, Mary Jane's Pa, Peter Pan (as Wendy), Mother, and several Shakespeare plays, including The Taming of the Shrew, The Merchant of Venice, Romeo and Juliet, and Hamlet. During the time of her stage activity she attended grade and high schools and announced her intention to go to college. In 1912 and 1913 she was seen on the stage only at infrequent intervals as she was devoting most of her time to her education.

An article in The Milwaukee News, June 11, 1913, stated: "Her spare time at home is devoted to household tasks, which most girls abhor and which she delights in, such as cooking, sewing, cleaning, and 'just keeping house,' as she calls it. Her parents, Mr. and Mrs. George Illian [who lived at 728 Muskegon Avenue, Milwaukee], are frequently treated to an elaborate dinner ordered and prepared by their daughter, and occasional guests are astonished at the wonderful orderliness of the service when they are let into the secret."

With Thanhouser: Isolde Illian's screen career included playing ingenue parts for Thanhouser in regular films and in various 1915 and 1916 Falstaff comedies. A notice in the Milwaukee Evening Wisconsin, December 3, 1915, stated: "Mr. Thanhouser became acquainted with the young Illian girl through her work with local stock organizations, and it was through him that she received an opportunity to appear in [The Crimson Sabre]." The Crimson Sabre, her first Thanhouser film, had its Milwaukee premiere at the Butterfly Theatre, which was well known for the large butterfly-goddess figure outlined in lights, which dominated the facade of the ornate structure, and which at the time was owned by John Freuler.

The October 1916 Motion Picture News Studio Directory noted that Isolde Illian was 5' tall, weighed 105 pounds, and had blonde hair and dark blue eyes. At the time she worked for Thanhouser she lived at 11 LeRoy Place in New Rochelle. The 1917 and 1918 editions of the same directory gave her home address as 62 Vernon Avenue, Mount Vernon, New York. Her pastimes included swimming, horseback riding, and dancing. In New York City and in touring companies she was seen in various stage plays from 1916 to 1919, including Nothing But the Truth (which went on the road), Yes or No, and the vaudeville sketch He Talked in His Sleep. In 1919 Isolde Illian was back on stage in Milwaukee in The Man Hunt, at the Palace Theatre. Her brother George, an artist, encouraged her stage career.

In 1946 she married George Mandel, a film producer (who died in 1958). Isolde Illian's death occurred in Beverly Hills, California on November 5, 1963.

Thanhouser Filmography:

1915: The Crimson Sabre (11-30-1915), Checking Charlie's Child (Falstaff 12-2-1915), The Mill on the Floss (12-16-1915)

1916: Harry's Happy Honeymoon (Falstaff 2-3-1916), Booming the Boxing Business (Falstaff 2-8-1916), The Reunion (2-23-1916), Rustie Reggie's Record (Falstaff 2-29-1916), Theodore's Terrible Thirst (Falstaff 3-14-1916), Rupert's Rube Relation (Falstaff 3-16-1916), The Man's Sin (4-20-1916), Steven's Sweet Sisters (Falstaff 5-20-1916)

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