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Changing short description from "American actress" to "American actress (1883–1971)"
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{{Short description|American actress (1883–1971)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=October 2013}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=October 2013}}
{{Infobox person
{{Infobox person
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| imagesize = 220px
| imagesize = 220px
| caption = Baird in ''Stars of the Photoplay'', 1916
| caption = Baird in ''Stars of the Photoplay'', 1916
| birth_name = Ada Frankenstein
| birth_name = Ada Frankenstein
| birth_date = {{birth date|1883|06|20}}
| birth_date = {{birth date|1883|06|20}}
| birth_place = [[Champaign, Illinois]], U.S.
| birth_place = [[Chicago, Illinois]], U.S.
| death_date = {{death date and age|1971|10|03|1883|06|20}}
| death_date = {{death date and age|1971|10|03|1883|06|20}}
| death_place = [[Los Angeles, California]], U.S.
| death_place = [[Los Angeles, California]], U.S.
| restingplace = [[Hollywood Forever Cemetery]]
| restingplace = [[Hollywood Forever Cemetery]]
| spouse = Arthur F. Beck <br><small>(m.1914)</small>
| spouse = {{marriage|Arthur F. Beck|1914}}
| yearsactive = 1910&ndash;1957
| yearsactive = 1910&ndash;1957
}}
}}


'''Leah Baird''' (born '''Ada Frankenstein''',<ref>https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/7893356/leah-baird</ref> June 20, 1883 – October 3, 1971) was an American actress and screenwriter.
'''Leah Baird''' (born '''Ada Frankenstein'''; June 20, 1883 – October 3, 1971)<ref name="clac">{{cite book |last1=Ellenberger |first1=Allan R. |title=Celebrities in Los Angeles Cemeteries: A Directory |date=2001 |publisher=McFarland |isbn=978-0-7864-0983-9 |page=113 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=8bOJCgAAQBAJ&q=%22Leah+Baird%22+actress&pg=PA113 |accessdate=August 9, 2020 |language=en}}</ref> was an American actress and screenwriter.


==Life==
==Life==
Baird was born in Champaign County, Illinois.<ref>She herself states her birthplace is Champaign County, Illinois
Ada Frankenstein was born on June 20, 1883, the daughter of William Frankenstein (1855&ndash;1911) and Bertha Schreiver Frankenstein Rathjen (1855&ndash;1923). She had an older sister, Mathilda Marie Emilie Frankenstein (1880&ndash;1893).


New York Passenger Lists, 1820-1957
She began her film career in 1910 in ''Jean and the Waif'' opposite [[Jean (dog)|Jean]], the [[Vitagraph Studios|Vitagraph]] Dog. She played several leads in William F. Brady's troupe, opposite [[Douglas Fairbanks]]. In the late 1910s she played in 15 episodes of the serial ''Wolves of Kultur''. Baird wrote and produced film during the 1920s.<ref>{{Cite web|url = https://wfpp.cdrs.columbia.edu/pioneer/ccp-leah-baird/|title = Leah Baird|date = |accessdate = 5 October 2015|website = Women Film Pioneers|publisher = Columbia University Libraries|last = Blaetz|first = Robin}}</ref>


Author
Baird later became a screenwriter and contributed to a number of [[Clara Bow]] features. She was married to producer Arthur F. Beck.

Ancestry.com

Publisher

Online publication - Provo, UT, USA: The Generations Network, Inc., 2006.Original data - Passenger Lists of Vessels Arriving at New York, New York, 1820-1897; (National Archives Microfilm Publication M237, 675 rolls); Records of the U.S. Customs Service, R</ref> <ref name="dr">{{cite news |title=Picture stars all work hard |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/57007738/leah-baird/ |accessdate=August 9, 2020 |work=The Daily Reporter |date=November 3, 1923 |location=Indiana, Greenfield |page=1|via = [[Newspapers.com]]}}</ref> on June 20, 1883, the daughter of William Frankenstein and Bertha Schreiver Frankenstein Rathjen. She had two older sisters, Augusta and Mathilda. Both her parents were alcoholics and her mother was one of the richest madams in Central Illinois.

An early star for [[Vitagraph Studios]],<ref>{{cite news |last1=Jungmeyer |first1=Jack |title=Famous author-actress, Leah Baird, has unique view; says don't discount 12-year-olds |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/57008900/leah-baird/ |accessdate=August 9, 2020 |work=Reading Times |agency=NEA |date=August 30, 1924 |location=Pennsylvania, Reading |page=7|via = [[Newspapers.com]]}}</ref> Baird began her film career in 1910 in ''Jean and the Waif'' opposite [[Jean (dog)|Jean]], the Vitagraph Dog. She played several leads in William F. Brady's troupe, opposite [[Douglas Fairbanks]]. In the late 1910s she played in 15 episodes of the serial ''Wolves of Kultur''. Baird wrote and produced film during the 1920s.<ref>{{Cite web|url = https://wfpp.cdrs.columbia.edu/pioneer/ccp-leah-baird/|title = Leah Baird|date = |accessdate = 5 October 2015|website = Women Film Pioneers|publisher = Columbia University Libraries|last = Blaetz|first = Robin}}</ref>

Baird later became a screenwriter and contributed to a number of [[Clara Bow]] features.{{Citation needed |date=August 2020}} She was married to producer Arthur F. Beck.<ref name=dr/>

Baird was under contract to [[Warner Bros.]] for seventeen years, where she appeared in character roles and as an extra.<ref>Slide, Anthony. ''Hollywood Unknowns: A History of the Extras, Bit Players, and Stand-Ins''. Jackson: University of Missouri Press. p 167.</ref>


==Partial filmography==
==Partial filmography==
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===Actress===
===Actress===
{{Div col}}
* ''Jean and the Waif'' (1910, Short)
* ''Jean and the Waif'' (1910, Short)
* ''Chumps'' (1912, Short) - Terpsine - the Cause
* ''Chumps'' (1912, Short) - Terpsine - the Cause
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* ''[[Lights of New York (1916 film)|Lights of New York]]'' (1916) - Yolande Cowles
* ''[[Lights of New York (1916 film)|Lights of New York]]'' (1916) - Yolande Cowles
* ''[[The People vs. John Doe]]'' (1916) - Woman Lawyer
* ''[[The People vs. John Doe]]'' (1916) - Woman Lawyer
* ''[[The Devil's Pay Day]]'' (1917) - Jean Haskins

* ''[[One Law for Both]]'' (1917)
* ''[[One Law for Both]]'' (1917) - Helen
* ''[[Wolves of Kultur]]'' (1918)
* ''Sins of Ambition'' (1917) - Laurette Maxwell
* ''[[The Echo of Youth]]'' (1919)
* ''The Fringe of Society'' (1917) - Myra Strang
* ''[[Is Divorce A Failure?]]'' (1923)
* ''A Sunset'' (1917)
* ''[[Lady Gangster]]'' (1942)
* ''Moral Suicide'' (1918) - Fay Hope
* ''Life or Honor?'' (1918) - Helen West
* ''[[Air Force (film)|Air Force]]'' (1943)
* ''[[Wolves of Kultur]]'' (1918) - Alice Grayson
* ''[[The Adventures of Mark Twain (1944 film)|The Adventures of Mark Twain]]'' (Uncredited, 1944)
* ''[[The Echo of Youth]]'' (1919) - Olive Martin
* ''[[Mildred Pierce (film)|Mildred Pierce]]'' (Uncredited, 1945)
* ''[[Shadow of a Woman]]'' (1946)
* ''[[As a Man Thinks]]'' (1919) - Elinor Clayton
* ''The Volcano'' (1919) - Ruth Carroll
* ''[[Around the World in Eighty Days (1956 film)|Around the World in Eighty Days]]'' (Uncredited, 1956)
* ''[[The Capitol (film)|The Capitol]]'' (1919) - Margaret Kennard / Agnes Blake
* ''[[The Phantom Stagecoach]]'' (Uncredited, 1957)
* ''Cynthia of the Minute'' (1920) - Cynthia
* ''[[The Heart Line]]'' (1921) - Fancy Gray
* ''The Bride's Confession'' (1921)
* ''[[Don't Doubt Your Wife]]'' (1922) - Rose Manning
* ''[[When the Devil Drives (film)|When the Devil Drives]]'' (1922) - Blanche Mansfield
* ''[[When Husbands Deceive]]'' (1922) - Viola Baxter
* ''[[Is Divorce A Failure?]]'' (1923) - Carol Lockwood
* ''[[The Destroying Angel]]'' (1923) - Mary Miller / Saraa Law
* ''[[The Miracle Makers]]'' (1923) - Doris Mansfield
* ''Fangs of the Wolf'' (1924)
* ''[[The Unnamed Woman]]'' (1925) - Billie Norton
* ''[[Bullets for O'Hara]]'' (1941) - Police Matron
* ''[[Bad Men of Missouri]]'' (1941) - Ms. Brooks (uncredited)
* ''[[Manpower (1941 film)|Manpower]]'' (1941) - Mrs. Taylor - Prison Matron (uncredited)
* ''[[One Foot in Heaven]]'' (1941) - Minor Role (uncredited)
* ''[[Blues in the Night (film)|Blues in the Night]]'' (1941) - Nurse (uncredited)
* ''[[The Body Disappears]]'' (1941) - Rest Home Nurse (uncredited)
* ''[[Dangerously They Live]]'' (1941) - Fake Telephone Operator (uncredited)
* ''[[The Man Who Came to Dinner (1942 film)|The Man Who Came to Dinner]]'' (1942) - Fan at Train Station (uncredited)
* ''[[All Through the Night (film)|All Through the Night]]'' (1942) - Woman (uncredited)
* ''[[Kings Row]]'' (1942) - Aunt Mamie (uncredited)
* ''[[The Male Animal]]'' (1942) - Trustee's Wife (uncredited)
* ''[[Lady Gangster]]'' (1942) - Prison Matron
* ''[[Yankee Doodle Dandy]]'' (1942) - Housekeeper (uncredited)
* ''[[The Big Shot (1942 film)|The Big Shot]]'' (1942) - Mrs. Carter (uncredited)
* ''[[Secret Enemies]]'' (1942) - Hotel Maid (uncredited)
* ''[[Busses Roar]]'' (1942) - Second Old Maid
* ''[[Truck Busters]]'' (1943) - Floor Nurse (uncredited)
* ''[[Air Force (film)|Air Force]]'' (1943) - Nurse #2 (uncredited)
* ''[[Action in the North Atlantic]]'' (1943) - Mother (uncredited)
* ''[[This Is the Army]]'' (1943) - Old-Timer's Wife (uncredited)
* ''[[Watch on the Rhine]]'' (1943) - Miss Drake (uncredited)
* ''[[Thank Your Lucky Stars (film)|Thank Your Lucky Stars]]'' (1943) - Bus Passenger (uncredited)
* ''[[The Desert Song (1943 film)|The Desert Song]]'' (1943) - Arab Woman (uncredited)
* ''[[The Adventures of Mark Twain (1944 film)|The Adventures of Mark Twain]]'' (1944) - Elderly Woman (uncredited)
* ''[[Make Your Own Bed]]'' (1944) - John's Wife (uncredited)
* ''[[The Last Ride (1944 film)|The Last Ride]]'' (1944) - Mrs. Bronson (uncredited)
* ''[[Pillow to Post]]'' (1945) - Sailor's Mother (uncredited)
* ''[[Mildred Pierce (film)|Mildred Pierce]]'' (1945) - Police Matron (uncredited)
* ''[[My Reputation]]'' (1946) - Minor Role (uncredited)
* ''[[Shadow of a Woman]]'' (1946) - Mrs. Calvin
* ''[[The Verdict (1946 film)|The Verdict]]'' (1946) - French Charwoman (uncredited)
* ''[[Humoresque (1946 film)|Humoresque]]'' (1946) - Professor (uncredited)
* ''[[Flaxy Martin]]'' (1949) - Tenement Resident (uncredited)
* ''[[The Girl from Jones Beach]]'' (1949) - Board Member (uncredited)
* ''[[The Man Who Cheated Himself]]'' (1950) - Police Matron (uncredited)
* ''[[How to Be Very, Very Popular]]'' (1955) - (uncredited)
* ''[[Around the World in Eighty Days (1956 film)|Around the World in Eighty Days]]'' (1956) - Minor Role (uncredited)
* ''[[The Phantom Stagecoach]]'' (1957) - Mrs. Simms (uncredited)
* ''[[The Hard Man]]'' (1957) - Townswoman (uncredited) (final film role)
{{div col end}}


===Writer===
===Writer===
* ''The Dawning'' (1912)
* ''The Dawning'' (1912)
*''Cynthia-Of-The-Minute'' (1920), scenario
* ''[[Barriers Burned Away]]'' (1925)
*''[[Don't Doubt Your Wife]]'' (1922), scenario
* ''[[The Primrose Path (1925 film)|The Primrose Path]]'' (1925)
*''[[When Husbands Deceive]]'' (1922), scenario
* ''[[Devil's Island (1926 film)|Devil's Island]]'' (1926)
* ''[[Spangles (1926 film)|Spangles]]'' (1926)
*''[[When the Devil Drives (film) | When the Devil Drives]]'' (1922), scenario
* ''[[The False Alarm]]'' (1926)
*''[[The Miracle Makers]]'' (1923), story
* ''[[The Return of Boston Blackie]]'' (1927)
*''[[The Destroying Angel]]'' (1923), scenario
* ''[[Stolen Pleasures]]'' (1927)
*''[[Is Divorce a Failure?]]'' (1923), scenario
* ''[[Jungle Bride]]'' (1933)
* ''[[Barriers Burned Away]]'' (1925), scenario
* ''[[The Primrose Path (1925 film)|The Primrose Path]]'' (1925), screenplay
*''[[The Unnamed Woman]]'' (1925), story
* ''[[Devil's Island (1926 film)|Devil's Island]]'' (1926), scenario
* ''[[Spangles (1926 film)|Spangles]]'' (1926), scenario
*''[[Shadow of the Law (1926 film) | Shadow of the Law]]'' (1926), scenario
* ''[[The False Alarm]]'' (1926), scenario
* ''[[The Return of Boston Blackie]]'' (1927), screenplay and continuity
* ''[[Stolen Pleasures]]'' (1927), story
* ''[[Jungle Bride]]'' (1933), story


===Producer===
===Producer===
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*{{IMDb name|047889}}
*{{IMDb name|047889}}
*{{Amg name|158214}}
*{{Amg name|158214}}
*[https://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/person/8284|96439/Leah-Baird#overview Leah Baird] at [[Turner Classic Movies]]

*{{Find a Grave|7893356}}
*{{Find a Grave|7893356}}
*[http://digitalgallery.nypl.org/nypldigital/dgkeysearchresult.cfm?parent_id=141254&word= Leah Baird] gallery at NY Public Library
*[https://digitalcollections.nypl.org/search/index?utf8=✓&keywords=Leah+Baird Leah Baird] gallery at NY Public Library
*[http://www.moviecard.com/zamerican/theatre/favorite/fav-baird.jpg ''Leah Baird'' early studio portrait]
*[http://www.moviecard.com/zamerican/theatre/favorite/fav-baird.jpg ''Leah Baird'' early studio portrait]


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[[Category:Women film pioneers]]
[[Category:Women film pioneers]]
[[Category:American women film producers]]
[[Category:American women film producers]]
[[Category:20th-century American women writers]]
[[Category:20th-century American screenwriters]]

Revision as of 19:23, 14 August 2024

Leah Baird
Baird in Stars of the Photoplay, 1916
Born
Ada Frankenstein

(1883-06-20)June 20, 1883
Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
DiedOctober 3, 1971(1971-10-03) (aged 88)
Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Resting placeHollywood Forever Cemetery
Years active1910–1957
Spouse
Arthur F. Beck
​
(m. 1914)​

Leah Baird (born Ada Frankenstein; June 20, 1883 – October 3, 1971)[1] was an American actress and screenwriter.

Life

Baird was born in Champaign County, Illinois.[2] [3] on June 20, 1883, the daughter of William Frankenstein and Bertha Schreiver Frankenstein Rathjen. She had two older sisters, Augusta and Mathilda. Both her parents were alcoholics and her mother was one of the richest madams in Central Illinois.

An early star for Vitagraph Studios,[4] Baird began her film career in 1910 in Jean and the Waif opposite Jean, the Vitagraph Dog. She played several leads in William F. Brady's troupe, opposite Douglas Fairbanks. In the late 1910s she played in 15 episodes of the serial Wolves of Kultur. Baird wrote and produced film during the 1920s.[5]

Baird later became a screenwriter and contributed to a number of Clara Bow features.[citation needed] She was married to producer Arthur F. Beck.[3]

Baird was under contract to Warner Bros. for seventeen years, where she appeared in character roles and as an extra.[6]

Partial filmography

Photo from The First One Hundred Noted Men and Women of the Screen by Carolyn Lowrey pub. 1920
1920

Actress

Writer

Producer

References

  1. ^ Ellenberger, Allan R. (2001). Celebrities in Los Angeles Cemeteries: A Directory. McFarland. p. 113. ISBN 978-0-7864-0983-9. Retrieved August 9, 2020.
  2. ^ She herself states her birthplace is Champaign County, Illinois New York Passenger Lists, 1820-1957 Author Ancestry.com Publisher Online publication - Provo, UT, USA: The Generations Network, Inc., 2006.Original data - Passenger Lists of Vessels Arriving at New York, New York, 1820-1897; (National Archives Microfilm Publication M237, 675 rolls); Records of the U.S. Customs Service, R
  3. ^ a b "Picture stars all work hard". The Daily Reporter. Indiana, Greenfield. November 3, 1923. p. 1. Retrieved August 9, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ^ Jungmeyer, Jack (August 30, 1924). "Famous author-actress, Leah Baird, has unique view; says don't discount 12-year-olds". Reading Times. Pennsylvania, Reading. NEA. p. 7. Retrieved August 9, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ^ Blaetz, Robin. "Leah Baird". Women Film Pioneers. Columbia University Libraries. Retrieved October 5, 2015.
  6. ^ Slide, Anthony. Hollywood Unknowns: A History of the Extras, Bit Players, and Stand-Ins. Jackson: University of Missouri Press. p 167.
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