Myrtle Gonzalez at Cinecon

Forgotten Mexican-American Actress Makes a Comeback

The Siren is taking the unusual step of publishing another author, or should we say another Siren—the marvelous film historian Angela Aleiss—in order to let her West Coast readers know about a rare opportunity to see some of the work of Myrtle Gonzalez, a pioneering Latina actress in early Hollywood. What follows is from Angela, and this looks like a must for anyone who is swinging by Cinecon in Los Angeles. The Siren envies you this chance!

Long before the sultry Delores del Río and “Mexican Spitfire” Lupe Vélez graced the American screen, Myrtle Gonzalez achieved success in the world of silent films. Gonzalez, believed to be Hollywood’s first Mexican-American star, was thrilled to be dubbed “The Virgin White Lily of the Screen,” notwithstanding her diverse portrayals of Native American, Arabic, and Mexican characters. The diminutive light brown-haired actress will soon be fêted at the Cinecon 60 Classic Film Festival from August 29 to September 2 at the Writers Guild of America Theatre in Beverly Hills.

Gonzalez was born 1891 in Los Angeles to a mother of Irish descent and a Californio father, a proud descendent of the state’s early Mexican settlers. Her brief Hollywood career of some 80 short and feature-length silent films included five starring roles opposite actor-turned-director William Desmond Taylor (before his sensational murder in 1922) and top billing as an adventurous outdoorsy-type of heroine for Universal. She continued acting until 1917 then retired from the screen following her marriage to her second husband, actor/director Allen Watt.

But her life came to a tragic end at age 27 reportedly from heart disease (according to her death certificate), and thus her brief career escaped today’s silent movie fans. That’s about to change on August 30 when Cinecon screens a few of her extant films restored by the Library of Congress. “Since I started this odyssey, several more films have come to light and are now in the process of being preserved,” says Cinecon President Stan Taffel. “The response to the Myrtle Tribute at Cinecon is very rewarding. The renewed interest has humbled her relatives.” Look for another tribute for her September 28 birthday on the American Film Institute Catalog homepage, which fittingly coincides with National Hispanic Heritage Month.
ANGELA ALEISS