Lew Cody

Lew Cody (born Louis Joseph Côté; February 22, 1884 – May 31, 1934) was an American stage and film actor whose career spanned the silent film and early sound film age. He gained notoriety in the late 1910s for playing "male vamps" in films such as Don't Change Your Husband.[1]

Lew Cody
Cody, c. 1915
Born
Louis Joseph Côté

(1884-02-22)February 22, 1884
Waterville, Maine, U.S.
DiedMay 31, 1934(1934-05-31) (aged 50)
Beverly Hills, California, U.S.
Resting placeSt. Peter's Cemetery
NationalityAmerican
Alma materMcGill University
OccupationActor
Years active1914-1934
Spouse(s)
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(m. 1910; div. 1911)​

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(m. 1913; div. 1914)​

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(m. 1926; died 1930)​

Early life and career

Cody was born on February 22, 1884 (some sources say 1885)[2] to Louis Joseph Côté and Elizabeth Sarah Côté (née Herbert). His father was French Canadian, with his ancestral lineage dating back to France and Germany, and his mother was a native of Maine. Cody and his younger brothers and sisters were born in Waterville, Maine.[3][4][5][6] After Elizabeth's death, Louis remarried to Marie Lena Rose Toussaint, and they had a daughter named Cecile Côté.

The family moved to Berlin, New Hampshire, where Cody's father owned a drug store. In his youth, Cody worked at his father's drug store as a soda jerk. He later enrolled at McGill University in Montreal where he intended to study medicine but abandoned the idea of setting up in practice and joined a theatre stock company in North Carolina.[4]

He made his debut on the stage in New York in Pierre of the Plains.[5] Cody moved to Los Angeles and began a minor film career at The Balboa Film Studios with Thomas Ince. [4] Cody had at least 99 film credits from 1914 to 1934.

Personal life

Cody was married three times. His first two marriages were to actress Dorothy Dalton. They first married in 1910 and divorced in 1911. They remarried in 1913 and were divorced a second time in 1914.[7] Playing the debonnaire leading man, Cody enjoyed the later single life of "a man's man", which added to his acting persona. In what may have been started as a mutual lark, Cody married Mabel Normand in 1926.[8] Having pre-med schooling, Cody understood that Mabel had acute tuberculosis and they lived separately and attended all he possibly could to Mabel's comfort. They remained married until Normand's death from tuberculosis in February 1930.[8][9]

Death

After Mabel's passing, he successfully transitioned into talking pictures and to even better roles. On May 31, 1934, Cody died of a sudden heart attack in his sleep at his home in Beverly Hills, California.[3] He is buried in St. Peter's Cemetery, Lewiston, Maine in the family plot.[6][10]

Partial filmography
Year Title Role Notes
1914 Harp of Tara Short
1915 The Mating 'Bullet Dick' Ames Credited as Lewis J. Cody
1917 A Branded Soul John Rannie
1918 Mickey Reggie Drake Credited as Lewis Cody
1918 For Husbands Only Rolin Van D'Arcy
1918 Treasure of the Sea Jim Hardwick
1919 Don't Change Your Husband Schuyler Van Sutphen
1919 Are You Legally Married? John Stark
1919 Our Better Selves Willard Standish
1919 The Life Line Philip Royston
1919 The Beloved Cheater Bruce Sands
1919 As the Sun Went Down Faro Bill
1920 The Butterfly Man Sedgewick Blynn
1922 The Secrets of Paris King Rudolph
1922 Dangerous Pastime Barry Adams
1923 Rupert of Hentzau Rupert of Hentzau
1923 Jacqueline Raoul Radon
1923 Souls for Sale Owen Scudder
1924 Defying the Law Pietro Savori
1924 Nellie, the Beautiful Cloak Model Walter Peck
1924 Three Women Edmund Lamont
1925 Man and Maid Sir Nicholas Thormonde
1925 The Sporting Venus Prince Carlos
1925 A Slave of Fashion Nicholas Wentworth
1925 Exchange of Wives John Rathburn
1925 His Secretary David Colman
1926 Monte Carlo Tony Townsend
1926 The Gay Deceiver Toto/Antoine di Tillois
1927 The Demi-Bride Philippe Levaux
1929 A Single Man Robin Worthington
1930 What a Widow! Victor
1931 Three Girls Lost William (Jack) Marriott
1931 Beyond Victory Lew Cavanaugh
1931 Stout Hearts and Willing Hands The Villain Short
1931 A Woman of Experience Captain Otto von Lichstein
1931 The Common Law Dick Carmedon
1931 Meet the Wife Philip Lord
1931 Sporting Blood Tip Scanlon
1931 X Marks the Spot George Howe
1932 The Crusader Jimmie Dale
1932 The Unwritten Law Roger Morgan
1932 A Parisian Romance Baron
1933 By Appointment Only Dr. Michael Travers
1933 File 113 Gaston Le Coq
1933 Sitting Pretty Jules Clark
1934 Private Scandal Benjamin J. Somers
1934 Thank Your Stars Axel Hanratty

References
  1. St. Johns, Adela Rogers (March 1919). "The Confessions of a Male Vampire". Photoplay. New York: Photoplay Publishing Co. Retrieved November 27, 2015.
  2. (Chicago), Photoplay (1924). "Stars of the Photoplay".
  3. Vazzana, Eugene Michael (2001). Silent Film Necrology. McFarland & Company Incorporated Pub. p. 96. ISBN 0-7864-1059-0.
  4. Beale, George H. (June 1, 1934). "Lew Cody, Noted Star, Found Dead". San Jose News. p. 7. Retrieved April 21, 2014.
  5. "Lew Cody Dies In His Sleep After Many Years Of Work On Stage and In Pictures". The Evening Independent. June 1, 1934. p. 3-A. Retrieved April 21, 2014.
  6. Connor, Sam E. (July 16, 1934). "Lew Cody: Behind the Scenes With Late Hollywood Actor". Lewiston Evening Journal. p. A-12. Retrieved April 21, 2014. I love Maine, perhaps because I was born in Waterville, but I don't think that's it." (Quote by Lew Cody)
  7. Houseman, Victoria (1991). Made in Heaven: The Marriages and Children of Hollywood Stars. Bonus Books. p. 72. ISBN 0-929387-24-4.
  8. "Lew Cody Dead In Film Capital". Spokane Daily Chronicle. June 1, 1934. p. 1. Retrieved April 21, 2014.
  9. Warwick White, Wendy (2007). Ford Sterling: The Life and Films. McFarland. p. 20. ISBN 978-0-7864-8220-7.
  10. Wilson, Scott; Mank, Gregory W. (forward) (2016). "Cody, Lew #2486". Resting Places: The Burial Sites of More Than 14,000 Famous Persons (3rd ed.). McFarland & Company, Inc. ISBN 978-0786479924. OCLC 948561021.
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