Joseph Henabery facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Joseph Henabery
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Henabery in Exhibitors Herald, 1919
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| Born | January 15, 1888 |
| Died | February 18, 1976 (aged 88) Los Angeles, California, U.S.
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| Known for | Playing Abraham Lincoln in The Birth of a Nation |
Joseph Henabery (born January 15, 1888 – died February 18, 1976) was an American film actor, writer, and director. He was born in Omaha, Nebraska, and became well-known for playing Abraham Lincoln in the 1915 silent movie The Birth of a Nation, directed by D. W. Griffith. This film was a very important historical movie, but it also caused a lot of discussion.
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Early life
Joseph Henabery was born in Omaha, Nebraska. He grew up in Los Angeles, California. When he was young, he started acting in plays as a hobby.
Before he began working in movies, Joseph worked for a railroad company. He was 25 years old when he got his first job in films. He started as an extra for Universal Pictures, which means he was one of the background actors.
Career in film
Joseph Henabery's acting career began in a movie called The Joke on Yellentown in 1914. Between 1914 and 1917, he acted in seventeen films. His most famous acting role was playing Abraham Lincoln in The Birth of a Nation.
Besides acting, Joseph also worked behind the scenes. He was a "second-unit director" for D.W. Griffith's film Intolerance (1916). This means he helped film certain parts of the movie, like big scenes or action sequences. He also acted in Intolerance, playing a character named Admiral de Coligny in the part of the film about old France.
After these early films, Joseph Henabery mostly worked as a director. He directed many movies. In the mid-1920s, he had some disagreements with big movie studio bosses like Louis B. Mayer and Adolph Zukor. Because of this, he started directing films for smaller Hollywood studios.
In 1931, he joined a studio called Vitaphone in New York City. For the next 10 years, he directed many short films there. Most of these were musicals and comedies. They often featured popular singers in short sketches that lasted about 20 minutes. Joseph stayed with Vitaphone until the New York studio closed in 1940.
Later in his career, Joseph Henabery also made documentaries and training films. He did this as a member of the Army Signal Corps, which is a part of the United States Army.
Playing Abraham Lincoln
Joseph Henabery did an amazing job making his face look like Abraham Lincoln's using makeup. Lincoln was 6 feet 4 inches (193 cm) tall. Joseph Henabery was 6 feet 1 inch (185 cm) tall, so he was a bit shorter than Lincoln.
To make him look taller in the movie, they used a clever trick. When he was sitting down, they put planks of wood under his feet. This made his knees look higher, which made his legs seem longer on camera. The planks were kept out of sight of the camera.
Personal life and later years
Joseph Henabery was married to Lilian. They had a daughter and a son together.
He passed away on February 18, 1976, when he was 88 years old. He died at the Motion Picture Country House in Los Angeles, California. This is a special place for people who worked in the film and television industry.
Images for kids
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Joseph Henabery as Lincoln.jpg
Joseph Henabery in makeup and costume as Abraham Lincoln.
See also
In Spanish: Joseph Henabery para niños
