Louise Owen

Louise Owen
A young white woman, one hand on her shoulder
Louise Owen, from a 1916 publication
Born
Louise Alva Owen

February 1, 1895
New York, New York, U.S.
DiedNovember 17, 1973 (age 78)
Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Other namesLouise O. McConville
OccupationActress
SpouseBernard McConville

Louise Alva Owen McConville (February 1, 1895 – November 17, 1973) was an American actress on Broadway and in silent films in the 1910s.

Early life and education

Owen was born in New York City, the daughter of Alva Owen and Dorothy Bessenger Owen. Her mother was born in Canada,[1] and her father was a physician who died in 1897, when he was kicked by a horse.[2] Owen was an actress by age 15, when she and her widowed mother were living with her German-born maternal grandparents in 1910.[3]

A young white woman seated outdoors, holding an umbrella and wearing a floral-print dress and a hat with plumes
Louise Alva Owen on a set, from a 1916 publication

Career

Owen's Broadway credits included roles in The Wife Hunters (1911), Hokey-Pokey/Bunty, Bulls, and Strings (1912), The Honeymoon Express (1913) and Cheer Up (1917–1918). She appeared in dozens of silent short films between 1914 and 1916, mostly comedies for Vogue Films.[4] "Miss Owen is the athletic type who would much rather take long walks in the foothills than sit at home doing embroidery or playing with the cat" reported Motography in 1916.[5]

Owen was also known as a visual artist.[6] In the 1930s she wrote the lyrics for songs in a radio musical drama, The Song of Araby.[7] During World War II, she served on the Eagle Rock gasoline rationing board.[8]

Selected filmography

  • The Boob and the Baker (1915)
  • The Skating Rink (1916)[9]
  • She Wasn't That Kind of a Girl (1916)[10]
  • Igorrotes, Crocodiles and a Hat Box (1916)[11][12]
  • Heaven Will Protect a Woiking Goil (1916)[12]
  • The Lion Hearted Chief (1916)
  • Bungling Bill, Detective (1916)[13]
  • Bungling Bill's Dream (1916)
  • A Fool and His Dream (1916)

Personal life

Owen married writer Bernard McConville in 1917.[6][14] They had children Patricia, Sheila, and Lee Bernard Jr. Her daughter Sheila died in 1950,[15] her husband died in 1961,[16] and she died in 1973, at the age of 78, in Los Angeles.

References

  1. ^ "Dorothy B. Owen". Eagle Rock Sentinel. 1948-12-16. p. 7. Retrieved 2025-08-03 – via Newspapers.com.
  2. ^ "Dr. Alva Owen". The Inter Ocean. 1897-06-10. p. 2. Retrieved 2025-08-03 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. ^ 1910 United States census, via Ancestry.
  4. ^ "Mutual Reports Large Volume of Business for Vogue". Motion Picture News. 13 (9): 1278. March 4, 1916 – via Internet Archive.
  5. ^ "Louise Owen Vogue 'Heavy'" Motography 15(15)(April 8, 1916): 832.
  6. ^ a b "Two Hearts and Two Arts are United; Miss Louise Owen and Lee Bernard McConville Are Married". Pasadena Star-News. 1917-09-10. p. 9. Retrieved 2025-08-04 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ^ Canfield, Home (1934-02-20). "What's on the Air; Radio Programs Tonight and Tomorrow". Monrovia News-Post. p. 3. Retrieved 2025-08-04 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ^ "Members of E. R. Gas Ration Board; Marsh Chairman". Eagle Rock Sentinel. 1942-11-13. p. 1. Retrieved 2025-08-04 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. ^ "Reviews of Current Productions". The Moving Picture World. 26 (14): 2380. December 25, 1915.
  10. ^ "Pacific Coast Notes". Motography. 15 (15): 833. April 8, 1916.
  11. ^ Campbell, Craig W. (1985). Reel America and World War I : a comprehensive filmography and history of motion pictures in the United States, 1914-1920. Internet Archive. Jefferson, N.C. : McFarland. p. 201. ISBN 978-0-89950-087-4.
  12. ^ a b "Vogue". The Moving Picture World: 1360. February 26, 1916 – via Internet Archive.
  13. ^ Wlaschin, Ken (2009-10-21). Silent Mystery and Detective Movies: A Comprehensive Filmography. McFarland. pp. 40–41. ISBN 978-0-7864-5429-7.
  14. ^ "Pictures of Prominent Writers are Identified". The Pasadena Post. 1937-07-20. p. 3. Retrieved 2025-08-04 – via Newspapers.com.
  15. ^ "Sheila McConville". Eagle Rock Sentinel. 1950-02-16. p. 6. Retrieved 2025-08-03 – via Newspapers.com.
  16. ^ "Lee Bernard McConville Dies at 74". The Los Angeles Times. 1961-12-28. p. 49. Retrieved 2025-08-04 – via Newspapers.com.
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