Charlotte Pierce (October 22, 1904 – November 23, 1996) was an American actress in silent films.

Charlotte Pierce
Publicity photo (probably for Peaceful Valley) from the April 23, 1921, issue of the publication Camera!
Born(1904-10-22)October 22, 1904
DiedNovember 23, 1996(1996-11-23) (aged 92)
NationalityAmerican
Occupationactress
Known forsilent films

Early life edit

Charlotte Elaine Pierce was born in Girard, Illinois,[1] and raised in Salina, Kansas,[2] the daughter of Schuyler Rensselaer Pierce and Faye Ransom Pierce. Her father was an engineer involved in construction.[3][4]

Career edit

 
Advertisement for The Super-Sex (1922), starring Charlotte Pierce.

Pierce was a dancer[5] and dance teacher as a young woman.[6] She was helped into movies by actress Cathrine Curtis[1] and by screenwriter Elinor Glyn.[7]

Pierce appeared in the silent films beginning in her teen years, as "an ingenue of the Pickford type",[8] including roles in Peaceful Valley (1921),[9] The Man of the Forest (1921),[7] The Barnstormer (1922),[10] Gas, Oil and Water (1922),[11] The Woman He Married (1922),[2] Colleen of the Pines (1922),[12] A Tailor-Made Man (1922),[5] The Veiled Woman (1922), The Lavender Bath Lady (1922), The Super-Sex (1922),[13] Thru the Flames (1923), The Courtship of Miles Standish (1923), Sky's the Limit (1925), The Wildcat (1925),[14] Queen of Spades (1925), West of Mojave (1925), The Sheep Trail (1926), and The Fighting Gob (1926).[15]

Personal life edit

Charlotte Pierce married actor and musician William Virgil Mays in 1922.[5][16] They divorced in 1923.[17] In 1926,[18] she married a second time, to Salvino J. "Solly" Baiano, a talent scout, casting director, violinist, and tennis champion.[19] They had a daughter, Lonnie, and a son, Michael. Both of their children acted in films.[20] Michael Baiano married singer Jaye P. Morgan in 1954.[21] Charlotte Pierce Baiano was widowed when Solly Baiano died in 1992,[22] and she died in Los Angeles, November 23, 1996, aged 92 years. Her grave is with her husband's, in Holy Cross Cemetery in Culver City, California.

Selected filmography edit

References edit

  1. ^ a b "Sought a Small Part and was Chosen to Play Lead". The Ottawa Citizen. October 7, 1922. p. 19. Retrieved August 15, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  2. ^ a b "Charlotte Pierce at Palace". The Salina Evening Journal. November 18, 1922. p. 16. Retrieved August 14, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. ^ "Charlotte Pierce Married". The Salina Daily Union. August 13, 1922. p. 6. Retrieved August 14, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ^ "Schuyler R. Pierce". The Los Angeles Times. March 13, 1946. p. 12. Retrieved August 15, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ^ a b c "Actress Will Dance". The Los Angeles Times. August 17, 1922. p. 29. Retrieved August 14, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ^ "Sheer Luck Opens Career For Charlotte Pierce". San Pedro News Pilot. April 19, 1924. p. 6. Retrieved August 14, 2019 – via California Digital Newspaper Collection.
  7. ^ a b "New Screen Favorite". Los Angeles Herald. June 6, 1921. p. B3. Retrieved August 14, 2019 – via California Digital Newspaper Collection.
  8. ^ "First El Paso Film, 'Treasure Trail', to Cost $50,000, is Brenon Estimate". El Paso Herald. August 17, 1920. p. 12. Retrieved August 15, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. ^ "Charlotte Pierce Comes Back Home with Charles Ray". The Salina Evening Journal. December 11, 1920. p. 16. Retrieved August 14, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ^ "Charlotte Pierce Again Ray's Leading Lady". Santa Ana Register. July 7, 1922. p. 14. Retrieved August 14, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. ^ McElliott (July 6, 1922). "This Guileless Youth Detects the Villain". Daily News. p. 17. Retrieved August 14, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. ^ "Mounted Police and Charlotte Pierce at Grand This Week". The Salina Daily Union. September 19, 1922. p. 3. Retrieved August 14, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  13. ^ "The Super-Sex (advertisement)". Motion Picture News. 26: 2851. December 9, 1922 – via Internet Archive.
  14. ^ "The Wildcat (1925)". Silent Era : Progressive Silent Film List. Retrieved August 14, 2019.
  15. ^ "Advertisement". The Paducah Sun-Democrat. August 3, 1928. p. 7. Retrieved August 14, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  16. ^ "Charlotte Pierce Has Signed Life Contract". The Capital Times. August 3, 1922. p. 7. Retrieved August 15, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  17. ^ "Husband Too Costly, She Says". The Los Angeles Times. May 1, 1923. p. 19. Retrieved August 15, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  18. ^ "Marriage Licenses". The Los Angeles Times. July 10, 1926. p. 16. Retrieved August 15, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  19. ^ "Baiano Cops Honors in Net Event". The Los Angeles Times. May 31, 1936. p. 27. Retrieved August 15, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  20. ^ "Mike Goes it Alone". Oakland Tribune. March 7, 1959. p. 5. Retrieved August 15, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  21. ^ Cohen, Martin (1954). "More than Money can Buy". Radio TV Mirror. pp. 44–45, 78. Retrieved August 14, 2019 – via Internet Archive.
  22. ^ "Salvino J. 'Solly' Baiano". The Los Angeles Times. December 29, 1992. p. 98. Retrieved August 15, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.

External links edit