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Seena Owen

August 18, 2023

Seena Owen (born Signe Auen; November 14, 1894 – August 15, 1966) was an American silent film actress and screenwriter.

Seena Owen
Owen, c. 1920
Born
Signe Auen

(1894-11-14)November 14, 1894
Spokane, Washington, U.S.
DiedAugust 15, 1966(1966-08-15) (aged 71)
Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Resting placeHollywood Forever Cemetery
Spouse
​
​
(m. 1916; div. 1924)​
Children1
RelativesLillie Hayward (sister)

Early life

 
Owen, ca. 1917, Photoplay Magazine

Born Signe Auen in Spokane, Washington, she was the youngest of three children raised by Jens Christensen and Karen (née Sorensen) Auen. Her father and mother came from Denmark in the late 1880s and settled in Minnesota where they married in 1888. Within a short period of time they moved to Portland, Oregon and then Spokane, where her father became proprietor of the Columbia Pharmacy.[1][2][3][4]

In her youth Owen was enrolled at Brunot Hall, an Episcopalian girls' school in Spokane, founded by Bishop Lemuel H. Wells. She was also educated in Copenhagen. Her life as the daughter of an affluent business owner changed in her late teens when the family business failed and it became necessary to seek employment. She received her early inspiration to act while a student at the Pauline Dunstan Belden School of Elocution in Spokane before appearing in a stock production in San Francisco playing the part of a maid for $5 a week. Soon after she went to Hollywood to work as a film extra, and had the good fortune to run into actor-director Marshall Neilan, then a Hollywood "boy wonder" whom Owen had known in Spokane. Through Neilan she was hired by the Kalem Company, an early motion picture studio, at $15 a week.[5][6][7]

Career

 
Jack Holt and Seena Owen in Victory

Her first important film was A Yankee from the West (1915) under the name Signe Auen at the age of 21. She later was convinced to change her name and settled on Seena Owen, the phonetic spelling of her real name.[7] In 1916, she performed in D.W. Griffith's Intolerance. The same year, she married George Walsh whom she had met on the set of Intolerance. The marriage lasted until their divorce in 1924. A regular player for the rest of the silent era, Owen appeared in films such as Maurice Tourneur's Victory in 1919 where she was photographed to great effect by Tourneur's cameraman, Rene Guissart. Victory, long lost, was recently[when?] found in 35mm print in Europe and can be seen on DVD. In 1920, she appeared in The Gift Supreme with Lon Chaney, who appeared with her in Victory. All but one reel of The Gift Supreme is lost. She co-starred with Gloria Swanson and Walter Byron in the ill-fated Queen Kelly (1928), as the mad queen who whips Swanson in one scene.[5][8][9][10]

With the arrival of sound in movies, Owen's weak voice became a problem and forced her to retire from movies in 1933. After her retirement, she worked on a number of films in the 1930s and 1940s as a screenwriter, including two starring Dorothy Lamour: Aloma of the South Seas (1941) and Rainbow Island (1944). The former was written in part with her sister, Lillie Hayward, a successful Hollywood screenwriter.[5]

Death

Seena Owen died on August 15, 1966, at Hollywood Presbyterian Hospital, aged 71, and was interred at Hollywood Forever Cemetery.[11]

Partial filmography

 
Seena Owen with Douglas Fairbanks in The Lamb (1915)
 
Lionel Barrymore and Seena Owen in The Face in the Fog (1922)

References

  1. ^ US Census records 1900
  2. ^ The Era Druggists' Directory, 1905
  3. ^ Silent players: a Biographical and Autobiographical Study of 100 Silent Film Actors and Actresses by Anthony Slide (2002), pg. 439
  4. ^ Photoplay: the aristocrat of motion picture magazines (Volume 11) by Ruth Waterbury (1917), pg. 89
  5. ^ a b c The Spokesman Review (Spokane, WA) by Jim Kershner, February 11, 2007
  6. ^ The Olean Evening Herald, October 16, 1918, pg. 7
  7. ^ a b The Amarillo Globe, November 14, 1930, pg. 9
  8. ^ An Encyclopedic Dictionary of Women in early American films, 1895-1930, by Denise Lowe (2005), pg. 419
  9. ^ The New York Times April 19, 1966, pg. 33
  10. ^ Joseph P. Kennedy Presents: His Hollywood Years by Cari Beauchamp (2010), pg. 286
  11. ^ The Daily Review (Hayward, California), August 17, 1966

External links

 
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Seena Owen.

August 18, 2023
seena, owen, born, signe, auen, november, 1894, august, 1966, american, silent, film, actress, screenwriter, owen, 1920bornsigne, auen, 1894, november, 1894spokane, washington, diedaugust, 1966, 1966, aged, angeles, california, resting, placehollywood, forever. Seena Owen born Signe Auen November 14 1894 August 15 1966 was an American silent film actress and screenwriter Seena OwenOwen c 1920BornSigne Auen 1894 11 14 November 14 1894Spokane Washington U S DiedAugust 15 1966 1966 08 15 aged 71 Los Angeles California U S Resting placeHollywood Forever CemeterySpouseGeorge Walsh m 1916 div 1924 wbr Children1RelativesLillie Hayward sister Contents 1 Early life 2 Career 3 Death 4 Partial filmography 5 References 6 External linksEarly life Edit Owen ca 1917 Photoplay MagazineBorn Signe Auen in Spokane Washington she was the youngest of three children raised by Jens Christensen and Karen nee Sorensen Auen Her father and mother came from Denmark in the late 1880s and settled in Minnesota where they married in 1888 Within a short period of time they moved to Portland Oregon and then Spokane where her father became proprietor of the Columbia Pharmacy 1 2 3 4 In her youth Owen was enrolled at Brunot Hall an Episcopalian girls school in Spokane founded by Bishop Lemuel H Wells She was also educated in Copenhagen Her life as the daughter of an affluent business owner changed in her late teens when the family business failed and it became necessary to seek employment She received her early inspiration to act while a student at the Pauline Dunstan Belden School of Elocution in Spokane before appearing in a stock production in San Francisco playing the part of a maid for 5 a week Soon after she went to Hollywood to work as a film extra and had the good fortune to run into actor director Marshall Neilan then a Hollywood boy wonder whom Owen had known in Spokane Through Neilan she was hired by the Kalem Company an early motion picture studio at 15 a week 5 6 7 Career Edit Jack Holt and Seena Owen in VictoryHer first important film was A Yankee from the West 1915 under the name Signe Auen at the age of 21 She later was convinced to change her name and settled on Seena Owen the phonetic spelling of her real name 7 In 1916 she performed in D W Griffith s Intolerance The same year she married George Walsh whom she had met on the set of Intolerance The marriage lasted until their divorce in 1924 A regular player for the rest of the silent era Owen appeared in films such as Maurice Tourneur s Victory in 1919 where she was photographed to great effect by Tourneur s cameraman Rene Guissart Victory long lost was recently when found in 35mm print in Europe and can be seen on DVD In 1920 she appeared in The Gift Supreme with Lon Chaney who appeared with her in Victory All but one reel of The Gift Supreme is lost She co starred with Gloria Swanson and Walter Byron in the ill fated Queen Kelly 1928 as the mad queen who whips Swanson in one scene 5 8 9 10 With the arrival of sound in movies Owen s weak voice became a problem and forced her to retire from movies in 1933 After her retirement she worked on a number of films in the 1930s and 1940s as a screenwriter including two starring Dorothy Lamour Aloma of the South Seas 1941 and Rainbow Island 1944 The former was written in part with her sister Lillie Hayward a successful Hollywood screenwriter 5 Death EditSeena Owen died on August 15 1966 at Hollywood Presbyterian Hospital aged 71 and was interred at Hollywood Forever Cemetery 11 Partial filmography Edit Seena Owen with Douglas Fairbanks in The Lamb 1915 Lionel Barrymore and Seena Owen in The Face in the Fog 1922 The Old Fisherman s Story 1914 An Image of the Past 1915 The Highbinders 1915 Little Marie 1915 The Lamb 1915 The Penitentes 1915 Intolerance 1916 Madame Bo Peep 1917 A Woman s Awakening 1917 Branding Broadway 1918 Breed of Men 1919 A Man and His Money 1919 The Sheriff s Son 1919 Riders of Vengeance 1919 One of the Finest 1919 The City of Comrades 1919 The Life Line 1919 A Fugitive from Matrimony 1919 Victory 1919 with Lon Chaney Sr and Wallace Beery The Gift Supreme 1920 Sooner or Later 1920 The Price of Redemption 1920 The House of Toys 1920 The Cheater Reformed 1921 Lavender and Old Lace 1921 The Woman God Changed 1921 extant Library of Congress Back Pay 1922 extant Library of Congress The Face in the Fog 1922 extant Library of Congress Sisters 1922 The Go Getter 1923 Unseeing Eyes 1923 The Leavenworth Case 1923 The Great Well 1924 I Am the Man 1924 The Hunted Woman 1925 Shipwrecked 1926 The Flame of the Yukon 1926 The Blue Danube 1928 Man Made Women 1928 His Last Haul 1928 Sinners in Love 1928 The Rush Hour 1928 The Marriage Playground 1929 Queen Kelly 1929 Officer Thirteen 1932 last film References Edit US Census records 1900 The Era Druggists Directory 1905 Silent players a Biographical and Autobiographical Study of 100 Silent Film Actors and Actresses by Anthony Slide 2002 pg 439 Photoplay the aristocrat of motion picture magazines Volume 11 by Ruth Waterbury 1917 pg 89 a b c The Spokesman Review Spokane WA by Jim Kershner February 11 2007 The Olean Evening Herald October 16 1918 pg 7 a b The Amarillo Globe November 14 1930 pg 9 An Encyclopedic Dictionary of Women in early American films 1895 1930 by Denise Lowe 2005 pg 419 The New York Times April 19 1966 pg 33 Joseph P Kennedy Presents His Hollywood Years by Cari Beauchamp 2010 pg 286 The Daily Review Hayward California August 17 1966External links Edit Wikimedia Commons has media related to Seena Owen Seena Owen at IMDb Seena Owen at AllMovie Seena Owen at Find a Grave Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Seena Owen amp oldid 1170694510, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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