People active in the silent era and people who keep the silent era alive. Copyright © 1999-2024 by Carl Bennett and the Silent Era Company. All Rights Reserved.

Tom Wilson
(same as Thomas Wilson)

Born 27 August 1880 in Helena, Montana, USA, as Thomas H. Wilson.
Died 19 February 1965 in Los Angeles, California, USA.

Tom Wilson began a prolific film acting career in 1915 in D.W. Griffith’s The Birth of a Nation (1915). A side specialty of Wilson’s was blackface roles, where his character would have a telling name such as “Creosote” or “Chocolate.” He also often appeared in supporting roles as policemen, as he did in Charles Chaplin’s The Kid (1921). Wilson appeared in more than 80 films during the silent era, and went on to work in more than 175 films from 1930 until his death.

References: Website-IMDb.