Mildred Manning

Mildred Manning was an American actress whose career spanned Broadway, silent film, and early sound-era cinema. She performed on Broadway between 1908 and 1914, appearing in musical productions that included Little Nemo, Oh! Oh! Delphine, The Prince of Bohemia, Over the River, and Dancing Around. Her stage work, which involved singing and dancing roles, brought her to the attention of director D. W. Griffith, who cast her in productions for Biograph.

Manning's film career began with Biograph and later continued through Vitagraph. Among her earliest screen appearances was A Chance Deception in 1913, in which she was cast as Raffles' Woman. She subsequently appeared in A Mother's Atonement in 1915, playing Dorothy Hilton, and An Enemy to the King in 1916, in the role of Jeanotte. Manning also participated in the O. Henry short film series produced by Broadway Star Features Co., a Vitagraph affiliate, contributing to multiple entries in 1917, among them Vanity and Some Sables, The Last Leaf, Love Philtre of Ikey Schoenstein, Gold that Glittered, The Green Door, The Marionettes, Past One at Roomey's, The Third Ingredient, The Thing's the Play, and A Service of Love.

That same year, Manning took on starring roles in several features. She played Margot in The Princess of Park Row, a role described as the film's heroine, and portrayed Clara Wilson in The Marriage Speculation. She also starred as Mary Jane in the 1917 film adaptation of Edith Ellis' play Mary Jane's Pa. Additional starring work came with Next Door to Nancy. In 1918, Manning appeared as Emily Madden in The Unchastened Woman, and the following year she played dual roles — Prue Welch and Molly Lafond — in The Westerners, as well as Lola in Kitty Kelly, M.D. Her later credits included The Foolish Matrons in 1921, While Paris Sleeps in 1923, in which she played the model Bebe Larvache, and The Acquittal in 1923, where she appeared as Mrs. Crown. Outside of her professional work, Manning was an outdoors enthusiast who rode horses and shot rifles.