Cleo Madison

Cleo Madison
Born March 26, 1883
Bloomington, Illinois, United States
Died March 11, 1964 (aged 80)
Burbank, California, United States
Spouse(s) Don Peake (1916-?)

Cleo Madison (March 26, 1883 – March 11, 1964) was a theatrical and silent film actress, screenwriter, producer, and director who worked heavily in early Hollywood in a career spanning from the late 1910s to the mid-1920s.

Madison began her career travelling throughout vaudeville stages. By 1910, she had begun performing as part of a theatre troupe known as the Santa Barbara Stock Company in California. In 1913, she was contracted by The Universal Manufacturing Company, Incorporated to begin appearing in feature films. Known for her versatility as an actress and continual devotion to improving her craft, Madison established a name for herself with acclaimed performances in films such as The Trey o' Hearts (1914), A Soul Enslaved (1916), and Her Bitter Cup (1916).

By 1915, Madison was one of the few women in Hollywood directing her own motion pictures. She produced several one-reeler films and two feature films before her abrupt exit from show business in 1924. She died from a heart-attack in 1964 at the age of 80.

Early life

Cleo Madison was born in Bloomington, Illinois on March 26, 1883. She attended what is now Illinois State University in Normal, Illinois. After completing her education, she moved to California in order to pursue her dream of performing professionally.

Early career

She made her first professional appearances on the Burbank and Belasco stages in 1911. Her initial engagement was in Santa Barbara, California. She played the role of the mother in Captain Swift. In March 1912 she debuted as the leading female player in Ernest Shipman's stock company in Phoenix, Arizona; her first production was When We Were Twenty-One.

Madison demonstrated her dedication and versatility in shipwreck scenes in The Trey o' Hearts (1914), produced by Universal Pictures. The filming was done in Bear Canyon, San Diego, California, Coronado, California, Tijuana, Mexico, Point Loma, California, San Pedro, California, and Dead Man's Island. This film is most notable for including what is perhaps Madison's most acclaimed performance displaying her versatility as an actress. Madison played three roles in the movie's fifteen iinstallments Her range of was displayed by portraying both the protagonist, the resilient Judith Trine and the villain, her evil twin Rose Trine.[1] Madison subsequently became a well-known and respected actress within Hollywood.

Madison was signed by Metro Pictures in June 1920 to play in Big Game. Written by Willard Robertson and Kilbourn Gordon, the play was first produced at the Hudson Theater in New York City. It was adapted for the screen by Ruth Baldwin.

Acting Style

Madison's performances were based on an acting style developed by Madison during her days as a vaudeville performer. She relied heavily on large gestures, melodramatic facial expressions, and physical exertion of her own body. This was evidenced especially in The Trey of Hearts (1914), in which her character was put through several physical obstacles such as being in a car crash, being shot at, and escaping a forest fire. Her characters often defied stereotypical roles of women in film; many were heroines, free-thinkers, villains, temptresses, and adventurers. Madison's acting style employed her total commitment and passion to each role, and her performances were often acclaimed as such. Film critic William Henry once remarked on her emotional strength, saying "...to see Madison in pictures tells you absolutely nothing about her character. Before the camera she smiles and weeps with the wonderful sympathy of which only a women is capable"

By 1915, Madison's name had become well known as one of the foremost women working in Hollywood, and she began to look to new challenges within the industry to tackle such as screenwriting, producing, and directing.

Career as director

By 1915, Madison became one of the few working females in Hollywood to begin directing her own short and feature films. Madison was a part of the unprecedented wave of female directors employed by Universal that included Grace Cunard, Jeanie MacPherson and Lois Weber. Madison, known for her progressive views, was eager to begin work and was confident in her own ability, once remarking to Photoplay Magazine:

“One of these days, men are going to get over the fool idea that women have no brains,” Cleo Madison told Photoplay magazine in 1916, “and quit getting insulted at the thought that a skirt-wearer can do their work quite as well as they can. And I don’t believe that day is very far off” (109)”'

Madison directed sixteen shorts and two feature-length films in a directorial career lasting only one year. Her most notable credits included the short films Her Defiance (1916), Eleanor's Catch (1916), and Triumph of Truth (1916). Eleanor's Catch was notable from a directorial perspective as it was one of the first films to use the twist ending, as Madison's heroine protagonist was revealed to be a double agent.

Both of Madison’s feature film efforts have been praised in recent history by film historians; Her Bitter Cup (1916)[2] is the underdog tale of unionized workers led by Madison's character staging a protest against their oppressive boss. A Soul Enslaved (1916)[3] features a desperate heroine attempting to free herself from the sexual restrains of an overbearing lover.

An undated photo of Cleo Madison.

Madison's role as director allowed her to incorporate themes previously ignored by mainstream Hollywood such as oppression, sexuality, and power from a female perspective. She believed being female positively influenced her directing style, remarking once that each of her directed pieces had to have a certain "feminine touch" (Moving Picture Stories, July 28, 1916)[4]

Madison's directorial credits end after 1916 for unexplained reasons, although film historians have speculated that her status and workload led to a nervous breakdown that forced her into an early retirement.

Personal life

She was enthusiastic about cars and driving. Madison purchased a 1915 auto manufactured by the Haynes Automobile Company in December 1914. In her work for the Universal Gold Seal Company she occasionally drove a car.

In November 1916 Madison married Don Peake of San Francisco, California. He was western sales manager of the Briscoe Motor Corporation. Before her marriage she resided with her sister, Helen, in a bungalow in Hollywood. Helen was disabled and used a wheelchair. She was nicknamed Sunshine for her bright disposition. By 1916 she had been an invalid for eight years. Madison was especially devoted to her care.

Alias

Many accounts of Madison's life fail to highlight Madison's marriage to Don Peake. Upon inspection of the marriage license, it was later discovered that although information regarding the wedding matched that of Madison's marriage (identical dates, groom's name, and location), the bride was listed as Lulu Bailey. This led to the conclusion that in Madison's life she was also was known under the aliases of Lulu Bailey and Lulu Peake.[5] This claim was evidenced in several ways, as explained by Women's Film Pioneers Project:

"A 1916 Motography story identifies Cleo Madison’s invalid sister as Helen Bailey (622). Also, Universal credited Grace Helen Bailey as the author or scenarist of nine titles between 1915 and 1917. Second, in 1917, Lulu Peake filed a complaint for divorce, included here, that identifies her as an actress. The case was dismissed in July of 1918, which makes it uncertain whether the Peakes actually divorced"[6]

Death

By the early 1920s, Madison’s career had been steadily declining. Although she was still remaining active with bit parts in several Universal shorts, she no longer possessed the star power or necessary to inhabit lead roles. Many film historians point to her enormous output of work throughout the mid-1910s as a cause of exhaustion and exasperation for Madison.

She was rumored to have suffered a nervous breakdown in 1922, attempted a career-comeback in 1923, and by 1924 had permanently withdrawn from the film industry. She lived her remaining years in California with her husband, Don Peake. In 1984, Madison suffered a heart-attack and died at the age of 80. She is buried in Glendale's Grand View Memorial Park Cemetery.

Partial filmography

Actress

Director

References

  1. ↑ "Cleo Madison profile". Retrieved April 9, 2015.
  2. ↑ "IMDb".
  3. ↑ "IMDb".
  4. ↑ "The Dual Personality of an Actress".
  5. ↑ "Women Film Pioneers Project".
  6. ↑ "Cleo Madison Biography".

External links

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