Silent Film Star Heartthrob & Bachelor for Life

Posted by keelsetter on November 29, 2007

I found a newspaper clipping dated February 2, 2004 from the local paper this morning that was written by Silvia Pettem, a Boulder historian. The subject was Eugene O’Brien, a silent-film actor who worked with the likes of Mary Pickford, Norma Talmadge, and Gloria Swanson. O’Brien was born Louis O’Brien (he later changed his name to Eugene). He was raised here in Boulder, Colorado and, at the age of 21 in 1902, he got his first minor acting role at Elitch Gardens in Denver. He was a University of Colorado medical school drop-out who then moved to New York City. An amusing excerpt relating to his ambitions relates the following:

After leaving college, he studied to become a doctor, hoping all the time that something would prevent him from realizing the ambition, which was wished on him by his family. His idea of a career was to go on the stage, but in a family of professional men this was not to be considered for a moment. So he studied a little and went in for athletics. At last, after the family saw that he would never succeed as a surgeon, they permitted him to switch to civil engineering. He took that up, vowing that it would be but a temporary avocation. (The Blue Book of the Screen, 1923)

And, sure enough, it was. In New York, O’Brien landed a part in a vaudeville play, was praised by critics, got bigger parts, and eventually broke into the movie business. Pettem observes that “Boulder family and friends finally got to see O’Brien perform when he appeared in his first silent film, The Lieutenant Governor. It was shown in February 1915 at the Curran Theater, the current site of the Boulder Theater on 14th Street.”

Recent exterior of the Boulder Theater.
(For historical pictures and more information on the Boulder Theater see: http://www.bouldertheater.com/history.php)

O’Brien’s status as a heartthrob was helped along by his dashing good looks and athletic build. He was six feet tall, came in at a trim 160 pounds, had light brown hair and blue eyes. “A female reporter who interviewed him on the set of The Perfect Lover found him only a bit better looking than I ever imagined any man could be.’” (Pettem.) That was in 1919. O’Brien never transitioned into the talkies and, in 1928, he left the movie industry.

Eugene Perfect Lover t-shirts easily available on web.

My favorite excerpt from Pettem’s article is one that should serve as a source of inspiration for single men everywhere: “In 1929, at the age of 48, O’Brien moved into a Hollywood hacienda, ‘untroubled by girls and reveling in athletics, gardening, and most of all bachelorhood.’ He told a reporter that he would never marry because women were too possessive. He said he liked to do as he pleased at all hours and particularly enjoyed mornings alone.”

O’Brien died when he was 85 in 1966. A funeral was held in Hollywood, but his body was buried in the Green Mountain Cemetery in Boulder, in a family plot next to his parents and brothers. I decided to visit the cemetery on my way home tonight and snapped a couple pictures with my phone in the twilight. Rest in peace, Eugene. It sounds like you did a pretty good job of attaining it in life, too.

Gravestone headstone looking north.

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8 Responses Silent Film Star Heartthrob & Bachelor for Life

Posted By GraceAN : November 29, 2007 9:00 am

This was a very enjoyable glimpse at Eugene O'Brien, an unfortunately forgotten actor. I particularly enjoyed your photo of the art deco exterior of the Boulder Theater too. Are any of O'Brien's films available on vhs or dvd? Fine Manners (1926) with Gloria Swanson and The Romantic Age (1927) directed by Robert Florey seem to be two films that may have been preserved from this period since they have comments about them in IMDb. Have you had a chance to see this actor's films? Perhaps a film society in the Boulder area might be interested in promoting this native son? Thanks so much for bringing this man to my attention.

Posted By Medusa : November 29, 2007 10:55 am

Unfortunately I can't access the article from home here, but Anthony Slide in his "The Silent Closet" article in Film Quarterly (July 1999) evidently discusses that O'Brien's confirmed bachelorhood was more about him being in the closet, and certainly not the only Hollywood idol who was at that time.Not that there's anything wrong with that, of course! Just makes his life even more interesting, and it's too bad that he was one of those silent actors who never made the transition to sound at all.I love the story that he was trying to do anything but become an M.D.. Boy, he must have bucked a lot of family and societal pressures during his lifetime. Couldn't have been easy. Eugene sounds like an all-right guy. Thanks for a great story!

Posted By kjolseth : November 29, 2007 2:04 pm

I’ll answer Grace’s question first and then get to Medusa’s observation separately. A cursory look into what films starring Eugene might readily be available on vhs or dvd is not very promising. So far, I can’t find anything.And, no, I have not seen any of his films and just emailed Ray Tuomey, a friend of mine who used to program the Chautauqua Silent Film Series here in Boulder. His answer: “No, unfortunately I did not have the great honor of presenting any of his films that I know of. I’m forwarding this to both Rodney Sauer of Mont Alto (Motion Picture Orchestra) and (pianist) Hank Troy.”I agree that it would be a stellar idea to somehow revive Eugene’s work here in Boulder. The only thing that seems to be available, so far, is a 16mm print of SECRETS (1924) from MoMA, but it’s not yet clear if it’s available for exhibition. A call has been placed and I am waiting for their response.

Posted By kjolseth : November 29, 2007 2:07 pm

Speaking of “secrets” – Medusa: Thank you for some great detective work. I just printed out the article and, sure enough, Eugene O’Brien is listed as somebody who followed “in a long line of gay leading men in silent films.” So color me red: I am in error to rush to romanticize O’Brien’s life as that of a straight man at peace with himself as a single man. What fascinates me here is that when I looked his name up on the index available at the Green Mountain Cemetery’s website, the O’Brien cluster clearly lists his name – but when I went to the cemetery I could not find his grave marker. All the other O’Brien’s had grave markers: J.H., Susan, Joseph, George, Kate, but not a single mention for Eugene. And yet, he was buried there. Family discord? Looking in the Boulder phone book I can find almost 40 people listed under O’Brien and I am not sure how I would proceed with the query. But I have other ideas that I might pursue.

Posted By james : December 1, 2007 2:55 pm

thats because he was gay.

Posted By Ed Lorusso : December 5, 2007 10:48 pm

FINE MANNERS, starring Gloria Swanson and Eugene O'Brien is restored and in a vault at Eastman House in Rochester, NY. I saw this print (and several others) in October 2006 when I visited. It's an excellent film and, along with several other Swanson silents) should be released on DVD. What a shame so many films sit gathering dust at Eastman House, UCLA, Library of Congress, and even AMPAS.

Posted By Muzza : October 2, 2008 8:19 am

Fine Manners was screened by MoMA in New York in October 2008. A comedy-drama about a Park Ave man about town who falls for a dance hall ‘artiste’ (Swanson) and his mother’s attempts to remould her for NY society.

Posted By TCM's Classic Movie Blog : February 7, 2010 1:41 pm

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