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Creator
Markey, Enid, 1890-1981
Call number
*T-Mss 1973-001
Physical description
4.51 linear feet (11 boxes, 1 volume, 1 oversized folder)
Preferred Citation

Enid Markey papers, *T-Mss 1973-001. Billy Rose Theatre Division, The New York Public Library.

Repository
Billy Rose Theatre Division
Access to materials
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Enid Markey (1890-1981) was an American actress in film, theater, and television. The Enid Markey papers date from 1895 to 1971 and contain correspondence, photographs, scrapbooks, scripts, and articles.

Biographical/historical information

Enid Markey (1890-1981) was an American actress in film, theater, and television. She was best known as a silent film actress and for her role as the original Jane in the 1918 film, Tarzan of the Apes. She began acting as a child in Denver, Colorado, and moved to the West Coast at the age of fifteen. Between 1911 and 1916, she performed in several silent shorts, working closely with Thomas H. Ince, Scott Sidney, William S. Hart, Reginald Barker, and Richard Stanton. She worked with Ince on over thirty films, the first being Markey's screen debut, The Fortunes of War, in 1911. Among her best-known silent films were Aloha Oe, Civilization, The Fugitive, The Iron Strain, The Yankee Way, Tarzan of the Apes, and The Romance of Tarzan.

Following her success in motion pictures, Markey transitioned to the stage. In 1919, she made her Broadway debut in Up in Mabel's Room. She performed on Broadway throughout most of the 1920s, and in regional productions in Richmond, Boston, and Chicago, through the 1930s. After settling in Chicago, she performed with DeWolf Hopper in a 1933 revival of Uncle Tom's Cabin, and with Edna Hibbard in On the Make that same year. In 1934, Markey returned to Broadway. Among her most successful later Broadway shows were The Women, Mornings at Seven, and Happy Birthday. She also played Aunt Emily in both the Broadway and film versions of Snafu.

Markey acted in several television series during the 1950s and 1960s, including Kraft Theatre, Bringing Up Buddy, Camera Three, and the Adventures of Ozzie & Harriet. She remained active in Chicago theater and summer stock through the 1950s and 1960s. She made her final Broadway appearance in 1976 in What Did We Do Wrong?

She was married to Colonel George W. Cobb from 1942 to 1948.

Scope and arrangement

Enid Markey (1894-1981) was an American actress in film, theater, and television. The Enid Markey papers date from 1895 to 1971 and contain contracts, correspondence, drawings, photographs, scrapbooks, scripts, programs, publicity materials, and articles.

Correspondence consists primarily of incoming letters, the majority of which are fan letters dating from 1916 to the 1920s. These letters reveal the impact of silent film on the viewing public in the United States as well as England, Australia, New Zealand, and Japan. Many letters dating from the 1930s to the 1940s are telegrams that document Markey's theater career in New York City and Chicago. Correspondence from the early 1960s consists of fan letters written to Markey during the television series Bringing Up Buddy. These letters frequently mention Markey's silent film work, as many of the viewers of the television show were also fans of her movies. Letters from actor and director Richard (Dick) Stanton written to Markey between 1916 and 1919 are located throughout the correspondence files. Stanton discusses his work in film during that time. Letters that date from 1907 to 1912 are largely personal in nature.

Photographs in the collection consist of headshots and portraits of Markey; headshots and portraits of other actors; photographs of Markey with friends and colleagues; production stills; and personal photographs. Among the productions documented in the production stills are Mrs. McThing, Happy Birthday, and Ah, Wilderness! Some of Markey's silent films are documented, including The Mexican Rebellion. Portraits and heashots of other actors include Beverley Bayne, Roscoe Karns, Monte Blue, Dick Stanton, Frank Keenan, William S. Hart, Milton Markwell, and several others. The photographs of Markey with friends and colleagues document her work, travels, and friendships between 1912 and the 1930s. The photographs depict Markey with William S. Hart, Dorothy Cheatham, Helen Jones, Richard Stanton, and many others. Personal photographs are mostly family photographs and portraits of Markey as a child.

Programs and publicity materials chiefly document Markey's theater career between the 1920s and the 1940s. Regional productions in Denver and Chicago are documented, as well as summer stock productions between 1950 and 1964 in Massachusetts. Scrapbooks contain clippings, articles, and photographs regarding Markey's performances in film and theater. The films Aloha Oe and The Iron Strain are well documented through photographs and clippings. Photographs depict Markey with others on the set of Aloha Oe, including director Richard Stanton and other members of the crew. Stage productions documented in the scrapbooks include Barnum was Right, Mornings at Seven, and Happy Birthday.

Scripts are usually individual parts that Markey played for stage productions, including Mornings at Seven, Mr. Aladdin, Go Easy Mabel, The Women, Happy Birthday, The Night Hawk, The Two Bouquets, and Snafu.

Personal materials in the collection include primary school and high school memorabilia, financial documents and invoices, certificates, and ephemera.

Arrangement

The collection is arranged by format.

Administrative information

Source of acquisition

Donated by Mrs. John Sehell, 1973.

Processing information

Compiled by Robyn Hjermstad, 2015.

Previously assigned NYPL catalog numbers were retained in the container list.

Using the collection

Location

Billy Rose Theatre Division
New York Public Library for the Performing Arts, Dorothy and Lewis B. Cullman Center
40 Lincoln Center Plaza, New York, NY 10023-7498
Third Floor

Conditions Governing Use

The author/creator retains copyright of materials. For information on obtaining permission to publish, contact the Theatre Division at theatre@nypl.org.