Louise Carter
Louise Carter was an American stage and film actress. She appeared in 48 films between 1924 and 1940, mostly in maternal supporting roles. Among her roles were the mother of Paul Muni in I Am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang, the wife of Lionel Barrymore in Broken Lullaby and the wife of W. C. Fields in You're Telling Me!.
Early years
Carter was born Betty-Lee Carter on March 17, 1875, in Denison, Iowa. Her parents, Lawrence "Louis" J. Carter and Philomine Richards Carter, were French-Canadian. She had five younger siblings, and she was a graduate of Denison High School.
Career
By 1902, Carter had acted in Boston, New London, and New York City. She became the leading lady of the Gotham Stock Company in New York City in 1911. The company performed in Orpheum Company vaudeville houses owned by Percy G. Williams, who often had the cast of a play present it in one theater, then hurry to a second theater in the chain for another performance in the same evening. In 1928, Carter and her daughter Betty-Lee acted together in Skidding at the Bayes Theatre in New York City.
Carter also wrote plays, including the one-act The Soldiers, which was presented in Toronto by a stock touring company headed by Miss Percy Haswell. She went on to write at least six more plays. In 1931, Thomas Nelson and Sons published Bible Jingle Rymes, Carter's adaptation of Bible stories into "delightful children's verse".
Personal life
When Carter was 21, she married Frederick Seymour. They had two daughters before they separated. By that time Carter was living in Silver City, New Mexico, to which the rest of her family had moved. By 1915, the two had apparently divorced. She had married Cobrun Broun, and they were living in Toronto.
Partial filmography
The Truth About Women - Bronson's MotherScandal Street - Cora FormanThe Lost Chord - PhyllisThe Substitute Wife - Evelyn WentworthIn Borrowed Plumes - Clara RaymondStriving for Fortune Broken Lullaby - Frau HolderlinAre You Listening? - Mrs. O'Neil The Strange Case of Clara Deane - Couturiere Week-End Marriage - Mrs. DavisStranger in Town - Mrs. Croaker The Last Mile - Mrs. WaltersBlondie of the Follies - Ma CallahanTwo Against the World - Mrs. Polansky Hell's Highway - Mrs. EllisTrouble in Paradise - Woman with Wrong Handbag I Am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang - James Allen's MotherTess of the Storm Country - Mrs. Garfield Madame Butterfly - SuzukiThe Monkey's Paw - Mrs. WhiteLadies They Talk About - Lefty's Landlady Jennie Gerhardt - Mrs. GerhardtPilgrimage - Mrs. RogersThis Day and Age - Grace SmithBeauty for Sale - Mrs. LawsonDoctor Bull - Mrs. Ely, New Winton's Gossip Footlight Parade - Old Maid in Elevator in 'Honeymoon Hotel' The Right to Romance - First Face Lift PatientEast of Fifth Avenue - Mrs. Mary LawtonBeloved - Mrs. TarrantYou're Telling Me! - Mrs. Bessie BisbeeReady for Love - Mrs. Sarah Thompson Here Is My Heart - Charity Lady The Mystery of Edwin Drood - Mrs. Crisparkle Straight from the Heart - Mother in BreadlineParty Wire - Grandma Kern Reckless Roads - Mrs. AdamsRose of the Rancho - GuadalupePaddy O'Day - Aunt JaneThe Bold Caballero - Indian woman The Last Train from Madrid - Rosa Delgado Angel - Flower Woman Inside Story - DoraUnmarried - Mrs. CharlesNancy Drew and the Hidden Staircase - Miss Floretta TurnbullGone with the Wind - Bandleader's Wife Brother Orchid - Scrub Woman at End