Biography of Karl Dane

Last month, after watching the movie serial The Whispering Shadow, a klunky old Mascot serial from 1933, my dear movie buff wife Laura started pondering the possibility of writing a biography on the Danish actor Karl Dane, one of the stars of the serial. (It should be noted that Laura has been a movie fanatic since before the age of 9, when her request for her birthday party activity was a viewing of a 16mm print of Intolerance which drove her friends to boredom.)

Why Karl Dane? According to Laura, Karl seemed to choose her, not the other way around. Dane had an amazing life that ended tragically with suicide. Like many silent actors, his voice wasn't suited to talkies (in Dane's case, a thick Danish accent). Movie offers became few and far between, forcing Dane to look elsewhere for employment, eventually operating a hamburger stand near the MGM studios where he previously worked as an actor.

Laura has no date yet for completion of the project, which is currently in the very early stages of gathering facts, with lots of help from folks in the online geneology community, most especially Hugh Watkins, who has done research in Denmark and has created his own blog for recording his activities.

I'll keep you posted.

[This blog entry originally appeared on Dan's & Laura's Blah Blah Blog and was written by Laura's husband Dan, officially announcing her intention to write a biography on Dane. All other entries on this site are Laura's.]