Volume 4: 1926-Present 11.01.25 - Flipbook - Page 244
William Surrey Hart (1864-1946) was an early 20th century silent film actor,
screenwriter, director, and producer. A unique personage in the film industry –
Hart’s boyhood years, besides affording tutoring in frontier values and the life of
cowboys, also allowed him intimate contact with the life and culture of Sioux
Indians – Hart went on to become one of the first Western motion picture stars.
A successful Shakespearian actor on Broadway, he appeared in Sidney Olcott’s
1907 production of Ben Hur, and, in 1914, he starred in his first feature, “The
Bargain.” Hart was the leading western silent film actor from 1914 to 1926.
Hart enjoyed making realistic Westerns and was noted for the authenticity of
costumes and props in his films. Fascinated by the Old West, he acquired Billy
the Kid’s six-shooter and was a friend of both Wyatt Earp and Bat Masterson.
Hart was also a close, personal friend of both Charles and Nancy Russell, and he
remained close to Nancy after Charles’ death in 1926.
