Wallace MacDonald

Wallace MacDonald
The Moving Picture World, 1916
Born(1891-05-05)5 May 1891
Mulgrave, Nova Scotia, Canada
Died30 October 1978(1978-10-30) (aged 87)
Santa Barbara, California, U.S.
OccupationsActor
Film producer
Years active1912–1959
SpouseDoris May (1921-1978, his death)

Wallace Archibald MacDonald (5 May 1891 – 30 October 1978) was a Canadian silent film actor and film producer.

Biography

MacDonald was born in Mulgrave, Nova Scotia, Canada, and attended school in Sydney, Nova Scotia.

He started as a messenger boy with the Dominion Steel Company in Sydney, Nova Scotia. He later worked up to teller with the Royal Bank branch in Sydney before the bank transferred him to Vancouver, British Columbia. His first venture into acting came with a stock theater company in Vancouver. From there, he moved to California, where he acted on the stage before making inroads into Hollywood. He gained other acting experience with stock companies in Texas and Arizona.

Signed Portrait
MacDonald handing Norma Talmadge a bouquet in The Lady, 1925

MacDonald owned a small theater in Los Angeles, doing most of the work there himself. When he tired of working 80 hours per week he approached a producer who was having difficulties, offering to show all of that studio's films in return for being allowed to act in them. The producer agreed. He started as an actor in films in 1914 and starred in almost 120 motion pictures between then and 1932. He had notable roles in such films as Youth's Endearing Charm in 1916 working with Mary Miles Minter and Harry von Meter.

Late in World War I, he returned briefly to Nova Scotia to enlist in the 10th Canadian Siege Battery where he assisted in recruiting for the Canadian Army. With the advent of sound, MacDonald's acting career diminished, and most of his roles between 1927 and 1932 went uncredited.[citation needed] He began directing in 1927 with the comedy Silly Sailor for Rox Films. He retired from acting in 1932 to concentrate on script writing. However, by 1937 he had recognized the potential of film production. It is in his role of producer that MacDonald is now probably best remembered. He produced well over 100 films between 1937 and 1959.

MacDonald married actress Doris May in Los Angeles on May 5, 1921, and they remained wed until his death. He died in 1978 in Santa Barbara, California.

MacDonald is sometimes mistaken as a brother of actor Francis McDonald. Though they bear a physical resemblance and were born in 1891, they were born three months apart and spelled their surnames differently.[citation needed]

Selected filmography

As actor

As writer

As producer

As director

References

  1. 1 2 Katchmer, George A. (2015). A Biographical Dictionary of Silent Film Western Actors and Actresses. McFarland. p. 224. ISBN 978-1-4766-0905-8. Retrieved 24 June 2020.
  2. 1 2 3 Kerr, J. Ernest (1959). Imprint of the Maritimes. Boston: Christopher Publishing. pp. 128–9.
  3. 1 2 "Wallace MacDonald is the leading man in two films at the Centre next week". The Citizen. Canada, Ontario, Ottawa. 19 March 1921. p. 10. Retrieved 4 September 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ↑ "Wallace MacDonald Once an Exhibitor". The Buffalo Sunday Times. 14 March 1926. p. 42. Retrieved 4 September 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ↑ "Attestation Papers". Archived from the original on 6 October 2012. Retrieved 31 January 2009.
  6. ↑ "Wallace MacDonald Starts As Director". Portland Sunday Telegram and Sunday Press Herald. 25 September 1927. p. B 9. Retrieved 4 September 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ↑ "Doris May and Wallace MacDonald, Film Stars, Wed". Daily News. New York, New York City. 6 May 1921. p. 16. Retrieved 4 September 2026 – via Newspapers.com.