Volume III: Biographies

 

COMPTON, Charles *

Actor (1910, 1915)

Thanhouser Career Synopsis: Charles Compton appeared in Thanhouser films in 1910 and 1915.

Biographical Notes: Born on August 10, 1886 in Mount Vernon, New York, Charles Compton was educated at the Riverview Military Academy. Later he studied singing at the Boston Conservatory and in Paris under D'Aubigny. As a youth in Mount Vernon, New York he aspired to be a magician, and whenever the opportunity presented itself, he watched notable practitioners of the craft. Compton pursued a stage career, where during the 1910-1920 decade he played mostly juvenile leads in such productions as The Queen of the Moulin Rouge, The Merry Widow, Rose Maid, Rejuvenation of Aunt Mary, Oh Boy, Three's a Crowd, The Talker, and So Much for So Much. He was also known as a comedian.

Thanhouser may have furnished his first screen opportunity, albeit a minor one, although one biography placed his start at Lubin. For Thanhouser he appeared in several films in 1910, including the part of John Reed in Jane Eyre (May 6, 1910). Later, he went to Lubin, Pathé, and, by 1916, Universal, although he did appear in a 1915 Thanhouser film. His employment with Thanhouser was intermittent.

In 1916 Charles Compton was selected by the Republican National Committee to make a series of films of Justice Charles E. Hughes, their presidential candidate. The pictures were made in Tenafly, New Jersey, home of the aspirant. In 1916 his home address was 3129 Broadway, New York City. A trade directory noted that he was 5'5" tall, weighed 138 pounds, and had brown hair and blue eyes. For recreation he enjoyed horseback riding, swimming, and writing motion picture scenarios and one-act plays.

Thanhouser Filmography:

1910: Jane Eyre (5-6-1910)

1915: The Little Captain of the Scouts (11-9-1915), Beneath the Coat of a Butler (11-21-1915)

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Copyright © 1995 Q. David Bowers. All Rights Reserved.