Olga Grey

Olga Grey (born Anushka Zacsek[1][2] or Anna Zacsek, November 10, 1896 – April 25, 1973[3]) was an American silent film actress, sometimes billed with the alternate spelling of her last name, Olga Gray.[4]

Olga Grey
From The Photo-Play Journal, 1916.
Born
Anna Zacsek

November 10, 1896
DiedApril 25, 1973 (aged 76)
Other namesOlga Gray
OccupationActress
Years active1915 - 1920

She was born in New York city[5] to Hungarian immigrants. Her father wanted her to become a violinist, so she studied music while harboring dreams of being an actress. She appeared in some amateur productions before joining a Little Theatre in Los Angeles. Her success there paved the way for her work in films.[1]

By her late teens, she was pursuing an acting career in Hollywood. She began working as an extra.[1] Her first film appearance was in the 1915 film His Lesson, in which she had the lead role. She would have twelve film roles that year, including a role (as the actress Laura Keene) in the now classic film The Birth of a Nation, starring Lillian Gish, Mae Marsh, and directed by D. W. Griffith.

In 1916 she appeared in seven films, including the role of "Lady Agnes" in Macbeth. She would have another eleven roles between 1917 and 1920, with a steady decline of quality roles.

She left the business in 1920, and became an attorney under her original name, Anna Zacsek. In 1942 she was one of the defense attorneys in the "Sleepy Lagoon" trials, defending gang members Henry Leyvas, Victor Segobia, and Edward Grandpré.[6] She was the only woman attorney in the courtroom for these trials.[7]

Anna Zacsek was residing in Los Angeles at the time of her death on April 25, 1973, aged 76.

Filmography

Year Title Role Notes
1915The Birth of a NationLaura KeeneUncredited
1915The AbsenteeRuth Farwell / Justice
1915The FailureRose
1915Double TroubleMadame Leclaire
1916MacbethLady Agnes
1916A Wild Girl of the SierrasMoll
1916Pillars of SocietyMadame Linda Dorf
1916IntoleranceAdultress
1917The Little LiarFanny
1917Jim BludsoGabrielle
1917Love's LawJealousy
1917The Girl at HomeDiana Parish
1917The Ghost HouseAlice Atwell
1917The Woman God ForgotAztec woman
1917FanaticsLola Monroe
1919When a Man Rides AloneBeatriz de Taos
1919The Modern HusbandCleo
1919The Mayor of FilbertMiss Greta Schwartz
1919Trixie from BroadwayGertie Brown
1920The Third EyeZaida SavoySerial, (final film role)

References

  1. "A Vamp With a Goulash Name". Photoplay Magazine. XI (3): 73. February 1917. Retrieved March 15, 2019.
  2. Slide, Anthony (2010). Silent Players: A Biographical and Autobiographical Study of 100 Silent Film Actors and Actresses. University Press of Kentucky. ISBN 9780813127088. Retrieved March 15, 2019.
  3. Social Security Death Index, listed as Anna Zacsek Accessed April 25, 2009
  4. "Olga Gray". American Film Institute. Retrieved September 22, 2018.
  5. "Silents of the Vamps: Bad Girls You Don't Know - But Should".
  6. Pagán, Eduardo Obregón (2004). Murder at the Sleepy Lagoon: Zoot Suits, Race, and Riot in Wartime L.A. Univ of North Carolina Press. pp. 77–87. ISBN 9780807862094. Retrieved March 15, 2019.
  7. Catherine Sue Ramirez, The Woman in the Zoot Suit: Gender, Nationalism, and the Cultural Politics of Memory (Duke University Press 2008): 99-100.

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