Agnes Gavin

Agnes Gavin (1872–1947) was an Australian actor and screenwriter of the silent era, who worked in collaboration with her husband John Gavin. She wrote the majority of his films and was arguably the first specialist screenwriter in the history of the Australian film industry.[1] She was advertised in newspapers as "that well known picture dramatizer"[2] and was praised for creating "cleverly constructed stories".[3]

Biography

She was born Agnes Adele Wangenheim. At aged eighteen she married Barnett Kurtz, but divorced him in 1897 in a well publicized case.[4][5]

On 3 October 1898 she married stage actor John Gavin[6] and together they worked for many years in vaudeville and Bland Holt's stage company.

In 1910 the Gavins made their first film. She and her husband were best known for making films about bushrangers such as Captain Thunderbolt, Captain Moonlite, Ben Hall and Frank Gardiner, and convict-era melodramas.[7][8]

She adapted her 1917 film The Murder of Captain Fryatt into a play Captain Fryatt; Or, For King and Country.

In 1904 Agnes Gavin was accused of abusing her neighbor with violent language. The court ordered her bound to the peace for six months.[9]

She had a daughter by an early marriage, Isadore, who died in 1917.[10] Her husband died in 1938 and Agnes died in 1947, survived by two daughters and several grandchildren.[11]

Filmography

Unfilmed scripts

Books

Plays

References

  1. ↑ Stephen Vagg, 'A Brief History of Australian Screenwriting'. Lumina Issue 7, May 2011
  2. ↑ "Advertising.". The Referee (Sydney: National Library of Australia). 19 July 1911. p. 16. Retrieved 13 November 2014.
  3. ↑ "GENERAL GOSSIP.". The Referee (Sydney: National Library of Australia). 15 November 1911. p. 16. Retrieved 13 November 2014.
  4. ↑ "A SINGULAR LETTER.". The Australasian (Melbourne: National Library of Australia). 4 December 1897. p. 24. Retrieved 13 November 2014.
  5. ↑ "Without Prejudice.". Table Talk (Melbourne: National Library of Australia). 3 December 1897. p. 3. Retrieved 13 November 2014.
  6. ↑ "Family Notices.". The Sydney Morning Herald (National Library of Australia). 5 September 1899. p. 1. Retrieved 13 November 2014.
  7. ↑ "A Well-known Biograph Actor.". The Newsletter: an Australian Paper for Australian People (Sydney: National Library of Australia). 4 February 1911. p. 3. Retrieved 3 October 2013.
  8. ↑ "A Great Australian.". The Newsletter: an Australian Paper for Australian People (Sydney: National Library of Australia). 4 November 1911. p. 3. Retrieved 13 November 2014.
  9. ↑ "THEATRICALS IN COURT.". The Evening News (Sydney: National Library of Australia). 25 August 1904. p. 5. Retrieved 13 November 2014.
  10. ↑ "Family Notices.". The Sydney Morning Herald (National Library of Australia). 12 September 1917. p. 8. Retrieved 13 November 2014.
  11. ↑ "Family Notices.". The Sydney Morning Herald (National Library of Australia). 10 January 1947. p. 14. Retrieved 13 November 2014.
  12. ↑ "THE KEY OF FATE.". The Sunday Times (Sydney: National Library of Australia). 8 August 1926. p. 24. Retrieved 3 October 2013.
  13. ↑ Copyright registration at National Archives of Australia
  14. ↑ Copyright registration at National Archives of Australia
  15. ↑ Copyright registration at National Archives of Australia
  16. ↑ Copyright registration at National Archives of Australia

External links