 | The 'brains' and 'action' heavies who had meaty roles and lots of dialog ... and the players who were fathers, ranch owners, lawman, mayors, judges, lawyers, storekeepers, newspaper editors, wardens, etc. |
William Desmond Real name: William Desmond Mannion Nickname: "Bill" 1878 - 1949 Known as: "the King of the Silent Serials" |  |  (Image courtesy of Jack Tillmany) |
 Above is a circa 1918 photo of actress Mary MacIvor / McIvor, William Desmond's second wife. Her real name was Mary Ellsworth McKeever. She was the heroine to William S. Hart in THE SQUARE DEAL MAN (Triangle, 1917) and she also appeared in a few silents with Desmond. Mary married Desmond in 1919 and she passed away in 1941 from a heart attack.  Above is a 1925 photo of Bill Desmond, wife Mary and daughter Mary Jo from a multi-page article and photo spread of the Desmond family in the September, 1925 issue of Movie Monthly (available at the Internet Archive). | |
Many of the familiar faces in B westerns and serials of the 1930s - 1940s began their acting careers on the legitimate stage and vaudeville and some progressed to playing leads - and even heroes - in silent films. Names that come to mind are William Farnum, Bob Burns, Franklyn Farnum, Herbert Rawlinson ... and the subject of this profile, William Desmond.
Some Desmond biographies have him born in Ireland. Not so! A Desmond family member advised that he was born January 23, 1878 in Horseheads, Chemung County, New York. His father Richard worked for the railroad and when the 1880 census was taken, the Mannion family had moved to Salamanca, Cattaraugus County, New York, which is about sixty miles south of Buffalo. His father hailed from Ireland and his mother was born in New York and William was their first child. At the time of the 1900 census, the Mannion family was in New York City and both parents passed away there - father Richard J. Mannion died in 1916 and mother Joanna in 1931. Also of note in that 1900 census - soon-to-be actor William Desmond isn't acting yet. He's a "plasterer", probably working for his father (who was also a plasterer). His job status changed in the 1905 New York census - 27 year old William D. Mannion was living with his parents in Manhattan, New York City ... but hs's now an actor. William D. Mannion's full name was William Desmond Mannion. The Desmond middle name came from his grandmother (his father's mother). And a later Social Security Application and Claims record confirms his full name was William Desmond Mannion. Most of Desmond's early stage and vaudeville work was tied to noted theatrical producer Oliver Morosco. During this period, his Morosco credits include the brief 1906 run of "The Judge and the Jury" in New York City as well as a multi-year stay at Morosoco's Burbank theater in Los Angeles. He signed with the J. C. Williamson organization and toured Australia during 1910 - 1913. With him was wife Lilian Lamson, the older sister of Gertrude Lamson (Gertrude became stage and screen actress "Nance O'Neil"). But tragedy struck - Lilian was injured in Australia and became an invalid, passing away at age 39 on October 24, 1917 at the Desmond home in Hollywood. After his return from Australia, Desmond re-teamed with Oliver Morosco for more plays and some early films which Morosco did in collaboration with Hobart Bosworth. He was with the Morosco touring company for a couple years in "The Bird of Paradise" which played in various cities in the U. S. and Canada. Lenore Ulrich was his leading lady. Appears that Morosco liked the chemistry between Desmond and Ulrich and he paired them in KILMENY (Oliver Morosco Photoplay Company/Paramount, 1915). a film that was the cinema debut for both players. Circa 1915, Desmond connected with Thomas H. Ince for additional movies churned out by Ince's NYMP company (New York Motion Picture) and distributed by Triangle. His first for Ince was the drama PEGGY (Ince/Triangle, 1916) with Desmond as a minister in love with Billie Burke (the wife of Florenz Ziegfeld). Other Triangle stars during this period included William S. Hart, Charles Ray and Bessie Love. Circa 1918, Desmond signed with Jesse D. Hampton for another batch of movies which were released through Exhibitors Mutual, Robertson-Cole, and Pathé. Helming many of these was actor and director Joseph Franz and the mix of films included a few westerns such as BARE-FISTED GALLAGHER (Jesse D. Hampton Prod, 1919) and A BROADWAY COWBOY (Jesse D. Hampton Prod, 1920). Desmond even created his own production company for another cowboy adventure, FIGHTIN' MAD (William Desmond Prod/Metro, 1921), which was directed by Franz and distributed by Metro (forerunner of MGM). Appearing in some Ince and Hampton productions was pretty actress Mary MacIvor/McIvor (real name: Mary Ellsworth McKeever). Her biggest role was leading lady to William S. Hart in THE SQUARE DEAL MAN (Thomas H. Ince/Triangle, 1917). She and Desmond married in 1919 and they had two daughters - Mary Joanna (born 1920 and William S. Hart was her godfather) and Elizabeth Terry (born 1932). Mary Jo Desmond did a few films including the portrayal of "Aggie Kirby" in the serial THE LAST FRONTIER (RKO, 1932). Her father portrayed Custer in that chapterplay. Up to this point, Desmond's Hollywood career was mostly starring roles in comedies, romances, melodramas, detective/mysteries ... and a few sagebrush yarns. His next stop was Universal Pictures and during the years 1922-1928, he reached his peak as western/action hero and became known as "the King of the Silent Serials". You'll find more about Desmond's time at Universal below. During break time between feature and cliffhanger assignments at the "U", he did a quartet of non-westerns for Jesse J. Goldburg's Independent Pictures company. His co-star was Helen Holmes, who along with Pearl White, were the major female stars of many silent serials. Directing the Goldburgs was J. P. McGowan, who at that time, was married to Holmes. In between movie jobs, Desmond and wife Mary toured the Keith and Orpheum circuits. Trade reviews from theater managers/owners were generally positive on Desmond's serials (especially THE RIDDLE RIDER in 1924). While his Universal oaters had some positive feedback, many reviews called them ordinary, average, fair, weak, tame. When talkies arrived, Desmond was about fifty years old and his leading man days were over. At Universal, he developed friendship - or a strong work relationship - with director-producer Henry MacRae or director Ray Taylor ... or both. MacRae and / or Taylor got him many meaty (credited) roles in early 1930s chapterplays. He also shows up in several cliffhangers from Nat Levine's Mascot serial factory. There were financial problems, medical issues and personal tragedies. Circa late 1928-early 1929, his paydays as a star came to an end. That - coupled with the 1929 stock market crash - severely impacted Desmond who lost his Hollywood home to foreclosure. While he and wife Mary headlined the Barnett Bros. Circus in 1938, he suffered a stroke and was hospitalized. And Mary passed away from a heart attack in 1941. By the late 1930s, Desmond found himself relegated to mostly bit parts and extra work, and the probable cause was age and heart problems. Desmond continued to suffer from heart issues and lived with daughter Mary Jo during the last year of his life. The "King of the Silent Serials" passed away on November 2, 1949 at Cedars of Lebanon Hospital, Los Angeles. His stage and movie career spanned 40+ years, from roughly 1905 through 1948. Les Adams has Desmond in about 100 sound era films, and that number includes about 50 oaters and three dozen serials.
Wikipedia has a biography on Oliver Morosco: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oliver_Morosco The Internet Broadway Database has Desmond in a couple of New York plays: https://www.ibdb.com/Person/View/37931 The Playbill Vault has a playbill from Desmond's starring role in the 1932 "Three Men and a Woman" at the Lyceum Theater in New York City: http://www.playbill.com/person/william-desmond-vault-0000101676 Daniel Neyer's "The Files of Jerry Blake" serial website has a webpage with more on Desmond's support/character roles in 1930s serials: https://filesofjerryblake.com/serial-character-actors-2/william-desmond/ The Serial Squadron has a clip from the trailer of Desmond in THE RETURN OF THE RIDDLE RIDER (1927) on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w0FZrjlUMpA
The New York Public Library Digital Collections has a cigarette card of a young Desmond: The Silent Hollywood website had some production stills of Desmond and wife Mary in THE BURNING TRAIL (Universal, 1925). But that website is no longer working. A saved copy is available at the Internet Archive Wayback Machine: https://web.archive.org/web/20210420061600/https://silenthollywood.com/theburningtrail1925.html |
Desmond at Universal, 1922-1928.
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Universal in the 1920s was a very busy studio churning out lots of product. And western and serial fans were treated with a steady stream of oaters and cliffhangers.
There were "Mustang" two-reel shorts starring Edmund Cobb, Jack Mower, Fred Gilman, Kent Sanderson (Buddy Roosevelt), others. Some were comedies featuring Benny Corbett and Gilbert 'Pee Wee' Holmes (as "Magpie" and "Dirty Shirt"). During this period, Universal's main cowboy star was Hoot Gibson. But Universal also had their "Blue Streak" series of westerns which starred Jack Hoxie, Art Acord, Fred Humes, Pete Morrison, more. Serial heroes included Art Acord, William Duncan, Jack Daugherty and strongman Joe Bonomo. They even had Frank Merrill as "Tarzan the Mighty" (1928) and "Tarzan the Tiger" (1929). The "U" added William Desmond to their talent pool and during the years 1922-1928, he starred in some Blue Streak westerns and many serials. He was not tied exclusively to Universal, but under a mix of contract deals. During those years, Desmond (and wife Mary) continued to tour with his stage/vaudeville act, and he also co-starred with Helen Holmes in some non-westerns for independent producer Jesse J. Goldburg.
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William Desmond timeline and tidbits/excerpts from fan and trade publications and newspapers.
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On the trail of William Desmond
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The Family Search website (free), Ancestry.com (subscription), California Death Index, death certificate, and newspapers and trade publications provide more on William Desmond and family:
Find A Grave website has info on William Desmond, wife Mary McIvor, and Desmond's father, Richard J. Mannion: |
Although some of the data is incomplete or inaccurate, the Internet Movie Database (IMDB) has information on:
