British postcard by Photochrom Co. Ltd., London no. 111. Photo: Triangle / Keystone.
British postcard by Trans-Atlantic Film Company, 1914. Photo: Witzel, Hollywood.
Swedish postcard by Förlag Nordisk Konst, no. 897. Photo: Triangle Film.
Joker comedies
Louise Fazenda was born on the 17th of June 1895 or 1896 in Indiana, U.S.A. Her father, Joseph Fazenda, was born in Mexico and was of European descent, and her mother, Nelda Schilling, was born in Chicago.
At the beginning of the 1910s, her father’s grocery store folded and Louise had to find a way to support her family.
She then turned to acting and was soon signed by Universal, which quickly made her join their new Joker Comedy unit.
In 1913 and 1914, she often appeared as leading lady to comedians such as Max Asher, Harry McCoy or Bobby Vernon.
Her Joker shorts include Almost an Actress (1913), Lazy Louis (1913), She Should Worry (1913), The Mystery of a Taxicab (1914), Heaven Will Protect the Working Girl (1914), Love, Roses and Trousers (1914), What Happened to Schulz? (1914), Lizzie’s Fortune (1914), etc.
Artura postcard, no. 108.
British postcard in the Famous Cinema Stars Series by Beagles, no. 187 V. Photo: Gaumont Co. LTD.
A contract to Mack Sennett
In the mid-1910s, Louise Fazenda had her big break when she got a contract from Mack Sennett and her popularity quickly soared.
Although an attractive woman in real life, Louise Fazenda never hesitated to appear unglamorous or gawky onscreen for comic effects, wearing plain clothes or sporting eccentric hairdos. She was not averse to playing country girls, maids, cooks or other unprepossessing characters.
She became one of the most famous female clowns of her time and was featured until the beginning of the 1920s in countless shorts such as Willful Ambrose (1915), A Versatile Villain (1915), Her Marble Heart (1916), Bombs! (1916), Maggie’s First False Step (1917), Her Fame and Shame (1917), Her Torpedoed Love (1917), The Betrayal of Maggie (1917), Are Waitresses Safe? (1917), The Kitchen Lady (1918), Her Screen Idol (1918), The Village Chestnut (1918), Heart and Flowers (1919), Back to the Kitchen (1919), The Gingham Girl (1920), Let’er Go (1920), Bungalow Troubles (1921), Made in The Kitchen (1921), Astray from the Steerage (1921), …
In the feature-length rural comedy Down on the Farm (1920), she played, with her usual zest, a farmer’s daughter opposite other Sennett popular players such as Ben Turpin, James Finlayson, Bert Roach, Harry Gribbon, Marie Prevost and Teddy, the dog.
Louise Fazenda's last film for Mack Sennett was Bow Wow (1922).
Austrian postcard by Iris Verlag, no. 5591. Photo: Monroe, L.A. / DPC.
Mexican postcard by CIF, no. 2355.
A prolific and eclectic actress
In the 1920s, Louise Fazenda played comedy as well as dramatic roles for various studios.
Among her films were Quincy Adams Sawyer (1922), The Fog (1923), The Gold Diggers (1923), The Old Fool (1923), The Galloping Fish (1924), Listen Lester (1924), Being Respectable (1924), The Lighthouse by the Sea (1924), The Night Club (1925), The Love Hour (1925), Compromise (1925), Hogan’s Alley (1925), The Bat (1926), Footloose Widows (1926), The Passionate Quest (1926), Millionaires (1926), Ladies at Play (1926), Finger Prints (1927), The Cradle Snatchers (1927), Simple Sis (1927), Domestic Troubles (1928), Tillie’s Punctured Romance (1928), Pay as You Enter (1928), Five and Ten Cent Annie (1928), …
Thirteen years apart, she played the same character, Bea Sorenson, in Main Street (1923) and I Married a Doctor (1936), both adapted from Sinclair Lewis’s famous novel about small-town life.
Occasionally, she again appeared in several shorts such as Pest of the Storm Country (1923), Cold Chills (1923) and Dizzy Daisy (1924).
Gevaert postcard, no. 092.
British postcard by Picturegoer, no. 367.
The talkies
Louise Fazenda made her talking debut in the mystery thriller The Terror (1928) and found herself still in demand during the following years.
She often performed in comedies and musicals but could also be seen in dramas now and then.
She was offered roles in, for example, On with the Show (1929), Stark Mad (1929), The Broadway Hoofer (1929), No, No, Nanette (1930), Rain or Shine (1930), Misbehaving Ladies (1931), Newly Rich (1931), The Mad Parade (1931), Racing Youth (1932), Once in a Lifetime (1932), Caravan (1934), The Winning Ticket (1935), The Casino Murder Case (1935), Broadway Gondolier (1935), Doughnuts and Society (1936), The Road Back (1937), Merry-Go-Round of 1938 (1937), Swing Your Lady (1938), Down on the Farm (1938), etc.
Fazenda also appeared in the star-studded fantasy film Alice in Wonderland (1933), as the White Queen.
She starred again in shorts such as Faro Nell (1929), So This Is Paris Green (1930), A Fall to Arms (1930), Second Hand Kisses (1931), Hunting Trouble (1933) or Stung Again (1933). She retired after The Old Maid (1939), a successful Bette Davis melodrama.
Spanish postcard in the Kursaal series.
German postcard by Ross Verlag, no. 6615/1, 1931-1932. Photo: RKO Radio Pictures.
Mrs. Hal B. Wallis
After her divorce in 1926 from her first husband, director Noel M. Smith, Louise Fazenda married publicist Hal B. Wallis in 1927. He would later become a famous producer, known for such classics as The Maltese Falcon (1941), Now, Voyager (1942), Casablanca (1942) and Gunfight at the O.K. Corral (1957).
In Hollywood circles, he was often wittily referred to as 'The Prisoner of Fazenda', in reference to the successful adventure novel 'The Prisoner of Zenda'. They had a son in 1933.
Louise Fazenda devoted herself to philanthropy and charity work after her prolific movie career had ended. She spent time helping people in need and volunteering at hospitals.
She was also one of the main benefactors of the McKinley Home for Boys, which looked after orphans or kids whose families could not care for them. A framed quote she kept on her night table read: "May I never leave a lame dog by a stile, but lift it to the other side and make its life worthwhile."
After several years of failing health, Louise Fazenda passed away on the 17th of April 1962, from a brain haemorrhage.
Cigarette card issued with Albert cigarettes in the 'Artistes de cinéma' series, no. 88.
Autographed photograph. Photo: Hoover, L.A.
Text and postcards: Marlene Pilaete.
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