Charlotte Merriam: Leading Lady to Lyons and Moran

Army brat Charlotte Merriam (1906-1972) was only 13 years old when she was cast in the Universal picture A Flip of the Coin (1919). This led to her appearing in a series of comedies with Eddie Lyons and Lee Moran from 1919 through 1920. She appeared in dozens of comedy shorts throughout the first years of her career, with Lyons and Moran and also Neely Edwards,Neal Burns,Jimmie Adams, and other minor comedians of the day.

In 1923 she transitioned to features in such films as The Nth Commandment with Colleen Moore, and The Brass Bottle, in which she starred. This was followed by such stuff as Edna Ferber’s So Big (1924, also with Moore) and the silent version of Captain Blood (1924). From 1925 through 1929 she married to western actor Rex Lease.

By the sound era Merriam was a supporting player, sometimes in bit roles. You can see her in Queen of the Night Clubs (1929) with Texas Guinan; Night Nurse (1931) with Barbara Stanwyck and Joan Blondell; and The Tenderfoot (1932) with Joe E. Brown. Her last credit was in Dancing Man (1934) with Reginald Denny. After this she married Scottish radio and film actor Don Douglas, who passed away in 1946.

For more on silent film and comedy, please read Chain of Fools: Silent Comedy and Its Legacies from Nickelodeons to Youtube