Lew Cody

Lew Cody (born Louis Joseph Côté; February 22, 1884 – May 31, 1934) was an American stage and film actor whose career spanned the silent film and early sound film age. He gained notoriety in the late 1910s for playing "male vamps" in films such as Don't Change Your Husband.[1]

Lew Cody
Cody, c. 1915
Born
Louis Joseph Côté

(1884-02-22)February 22, 1884
DiedMay 31, 1934(1934-05-31) (aged 50)
Resting placeSt. Peter's Cemetery
NationalityAmerican
Alma materMcGill University
OccupationActor
Years active1907–1934
Spouses
(m. 1910; div. 1911)
    (m. 1913; div. 1914)
      (m. 1926; died 1930)

      Early life and career

      Cody was born on February 22, 1884 (some sources say 1885)[2] to Louis Joseph Côté and Elizabeth Sarah Côté (née Herbert). His father was French Canadian, with his ancestral lineage dating back to France and Germany, and his mother was a native of Maine. Cody and his younger brothers and sisters were born in Waterville, Maine.[3][4][5][6] After Elizabeth's death, Louis remarried to Marie Lena Rose Toussaint, and they had a daughter named Cecile Côté.

      The family moved to Berlin, New Hampshire, where Cody's father owned a drug store. In his youth, Cody worked at his father's drug store as a soda jerk. He later enrolled at McGill University in Montreal where he intended to study medicine but abandoned the idea of setting up in practice and joined a theatre stock company in North Carolina.[4]

      He made his debut on the stage in New York in Pierre of the Plains.[5] Cody moved to Los Angeles and began a minor film career at The Balboa Film Studios with Thomas Ince. [4] Cody had at least 99 film credits from 1914 to 1934.

      Personal life

      Cody was married three times. His first two marriages were to actress Dorothy Dalton. They first married in 1910 and divorced in 1911. They remarried in 1913 and were divorced a second time in 1914.[7] Playing the debonnaire leading man, Cody enjoyed the later single life of "a man's man", which added to his acting persona. In what may have been started as a mutual lark, Cody married Mabel Normand in 1926.[8] Having pre-med schooling, Cody understood that Mabel had acute tuberculosis and they lived separately and attended all he possibly could to Mabel's comfort. They remained married until Normand's death from tuberculosis in February 1930.[8][9]

      Death

      After Mabel's passing, he successfully transitioned into talking pictures and to even better roles. On May 31, 1934, Cody died of a sudden heart attack in his sleep at his home in Beverly Hills, California.[3] He is buried in St. Peter's Cemetery, Lewiston, Maine, in the family plot.[6][10]

      Partial filmography

      Year Title Role Notes
      1914 Harp of Tara Short
      1915 The Mating 'Bullet Dick' Ames Credited as Lewis J. Cody
      1917 A Branded Soul John Rannie
      1918 Mickey Reggie Drake Credited as Lewis Cody; co-starring Mabel Normand
      1918 For Husbands Only Rolin Van D'Arcy
      1918 Treasure of the Sea Jim Hardwick
      1919 Don't Change Your Husband Schuyler Van Sutphen co-starring Gloria Swanson; directed by Cecil B. DeMille
      1919 Are You Legally Married? John Stark
      1919 Our Better Selves Willard Standish
      1919 The Life Line Philip Royston co-starring Wallace Beery
      1919 The Beloved Cheater Bruce Sands
      1919 As the Sun Went Down Faro Bill
      1920 The Butterfly Man Sedgewick Blynn
      1922 The Secrets of Paris King Rudolph
      1922 Dangerous Pastime Barry Adams
      1923 Rupert of Hentzau Rupert of Hentzau Sequel to The Prisoner of Zenda
      1923 Jacqueline Raoul Radon
      1923 Souls for Sale Owen Scudder
      1924 Defying the Law Pietro Savori
      1924 Nellie, the Beautiful Cloak Model Walter Peck
      1924 Three Women Edmund Lamont
      1925 Man and Maid Sir Nicholas Thormonde
      1925 The Sporting Venus Prince Carlos starring Blanche Sweet and Ronald Colman
      1925 A Slave of Fashion Nicholas Wentworth co-starring Norma Shearer
      1925 The Tower of Lies Victor Seastrom co-starring Lon Chaney and Norma Shearer[11]
      1925 Exchange of Wives John Rathburn
      1925 His Secretary David Colman co-starring Norma Shearer
      1926 Monte Carlo Tony Townsend
      1926 The Gay Deceiver Toto/Antoine di Tillois Lost film
      1927 The Demi-Bride Philippe Levaux Lost film
      1929 A Single Man Robin Worthington
      1930 What a Widow! Victor co-starring Gloria Swanson
      1931 Three Girls Lost William (Jack) Marriott starring John Wayne and Loretta Young
      1931 Beyond Victory Lew Cavanaugh co-starring ZaSu Pitts
      1931 Stout Hearts and Willing Hands The Villain Short
      1931 A Woman of Experience Captain Otto von Lichstein
      1931 The Common Law Dick Carmedon co-starring Constance Bennett and Hedda Hopper
      1931 Meet the Wife Philip Lord co-starring Laura La Plante
      1931 Sporting Blood Tip Scanlon co-starring Clark Gable
      1931 X Marks the Spot George Howe
      1932 The Crusader Jimmie Dale
      1932 The Unwritten Law Roger Morgan
      1932 A Parisian Romance Baron co-starring Gilbert Roland
      1933 By Appointment Only Dr. Michael Travers
      1933 File 113 Gaston Le Coq
      1933 Sitting Pretty Jules Clark co-starring Ginger Rogers and Thelma Todd
      1934 Private Scandal Benjamin J. Somers co-starring ZaSu Pitts
      1934 Thank Your Stars Axel Hanratty

      References

      1. St. Johns, Adela Rogers (March 1919). "The Confessions of a Male Vampire". Photoplay. New York: Photoplay Publishing Co. Retrieved November 27, 2015.
      2. (Chicago), Photoplay (1924). "Stars of the Photoplay".
      3. Vazzana, Eugene Michael (2001). Silent Film Necrology. McFarland & Company Incorporated Pub. p. 96. ISBN 0-7864-1059-0.
      4. Beale, George H. (June 1, 1934). "Lew Cody, Noted Star, Found Dead". San Jose News. p. 7. Retrieved April 21, 2014.
      5. "Lew Cody Dies In His Sleep After Many Years Of Work On Stage and In Pictures". The Evening Independent. June 1, 1934. p. 3-A. Retrieved April 21, 2014.
      6. Connor, Sam E. (July 16, 1934). "Lew Cody: Behind the Scenes With Late Hollywood Actor". Lewiston Evening Journal. p. A-12. Retrieved April 21, 2014. I love Maine, perhaps because I was born in Waterville, but I don't think that's it." (Quote by Lew Cody)
      7. Houseman, Victoria (1991). Made in Heaven: The Marriages and Children of Hollywood Stars. Bonus Books. p. 72. ISBN 0-929387-24-4.
      8. "Lew Cody Dead In Film Capital". Spokane Daily Chronicle. June 1, 1934. p. 1. Retrieved April 21, 2014.
      9. Warwick White, Wendy (2007). Ford Sterling: The Life and Films. McFarland. p. 20. ISBN 978-0-7864-8220-7.
      10. Wilson, Scott; Mank, Gregory W. (forward) (2016). "Cody, Lew #2486". Resting Places: The Burial Sites of More Than 14,000 Famous Persons (3rd ed.). McFarland & Company, Inc. ISBN 978-0786479924. OCLC 948561021.
      11. Blake, Michael F. (1998). "The Films of Lon Chaney". Vestal Press Inc. Page 151. ISBN 1-879511-26-6.
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