Biography
Kathlyn Williams was born Kathleen Mabel Williams on May 31, 1879 in Butte, Montana, and the only child born to Joseph Edwin "Frank" Williams, a boarding house proprietor, and Mary C. Boe (1846–1908) of Welsh and Norwegian descent. Many biographies state her birth year as 1888; however, she is listed on the 1880 United States Census as being a year old. Williams displayed an early interest in becoming an actress in her youth which lead her to become a member of a community thespian group. She also joined the Woman's Relief Corps that allowed her to showcase her vocal prowess at local recitals. Williams began her career with Selig Polyscope Company in Chicago, Illinois and made her first film in 1908 under the direction of Francis Boggs. By 1910, she was transferred to the company's Los Angeles film studio. Williams played "Cherry Malotte" in the first movie based upon Rex Beach's 1906 novel The Spoilers in 1914, a role portrayed in subsequent versions by Betty Compson (1930), Marlene Dietrich (1942), and Anne Baxter (1955). In 1916, she starred in the thirteen episode adventure film serial, The Adventures of Kathlyn. She was busy throughout the silent film era but age and the adve…
Movies & TV Shows
-
Our Dancing Daughters (1928) — Ann's Mother
-
Souls for Sale (1923) — Self - Celebrity Actress in Commisary
-
The Whispering Chorus (1918) — Jane Tremble
-
Forbidden Fruit (1921) — Mrs. Mallory
-
Road to Paradise (1930) — Mrs. Wells
-
Blood Money (1933) — Nightclub Woman Wearing Monocle (uncredited)
-
The Single Standard (1929) — Mrs. Glendenning
-
Unholy Love (1932) — Mrs. Bradford
-
Conrad in Quest of His Youth (1920) — Mrs. Adaile
-
Daddy Long Legs (1931) — Mrs. Paula Pendleton
-
Locked Doors (1925) — Laura Carter
-
The Spanish Dancer (1923) — Queen Isabel of Bourbon
-
The Spoilers (1914) — Cherry Malotte
-
The Wanderer (1925) — Huldah
-
Lines of White on a Sullen Sea (1909) — Extra
-
The Tree of Knowledge (1920) — Belle
-
The Cost of Hatred (1917) — Elsie Graves / Sarita Graves
-
The Adventures of Kathlyn (1916) — Kathlyn Hare
-
The Witch of the Everglades (1911) — Dora - the Witch
-
The Rose of Old St. Augustine (1911) — Dolores, the Rose of St. Augustine
-
The Girl at the Cupola (1912) — Jessie Wilson
-
The Enemy Sex (1924) — Mrs. Massingale
-
Life on the Border (1911) — The Pioneer Wife
- 1861 (1911)
-
The Better Wife (1919) — Lady Beverly
-
A Single Man (1929) — Mrs. Cottrell
-
Morals (1921) — Judith Mainwaring
-
The Man from the East (1911) — Elsie Dean
-
Honeymoon Flats (1928) — Mrs. Garland
-
The Best People (1925) — Mrs. Lenox
-
The House of His Master (1912) — Mrs. Robert Steem
-
Clarence (1922) — Mrs. Wheeler
-
The U.P. Trail (1920) — "Beauty" Stanton
-
Trimmed in Scarlet (1923) — Cordelia Ebbing / Madame de laFleur
-
The Adventures of Kathlyn (1913) — Kathlyn Hare
-
The World's Applause (1923) — Elsa Townsend
-
A Private Scandal (1921) — Carol Lawton
-
Wanderer of the Wasteland (1924) — Magdalene Virey
-
Broadway Gold (1923) — Jean Valjean
-
Rendezvous at Midnight (1935) — Mrs. Arthur Dewey