Muriel Ostrich was born in New York City in May 1896. She planned on being a school teacher but her life was changed while still a high school student as she was walking along a New York street. A film director, Christie Cabanne of Biograph Pictures, saw the beautiful young lady and insisted she take a screen test. She was immediately hired by Biograph but was only used as an extra. After only two credited films, she left Biograph, worked a short while at Pathe and was quickly lured to Eclair American across the Hudson River in Ft. Lee, New Jersey by Etienne Arnaud, an early film pioneer. She made 26 films at Eclair during the rest of 1912 and then passed through Reliance for a few months before finding a more permanent home at Thanhouser Co. of New Rochelle, New York where her first picture was Miss Mischief in 1913. She became so popular at Thanhouser, rivaling Mary Pickford, that a special division was set up for her pictures called Princess Films.
Muriel enjoyed the life of a movie star while remaining accessible to her fans. She loved to dance and did so in New York's upscale restaurants and cafes. She was praised by entertainment reporters for her beautiful dance. At Rector's Cafe, waiters were employed to also dance with patrons if requested. One such waiter who danced with Muriel, asked for her help in breaking into the movie industry. She was able to help Mr. Rudolph Valentino.
Muriel left Thanhouser in 1915 after the deaths of its' studio head and main actress spelled doom for that company. She worked at Universal, Vitagraph and World before retiring in 1921, at age 25, after 142 pictures. She would never have the lasting fame of silent actresses such as Mary Pickford as she retired at an age when many actresses were just getting started. Muriel moved to Florida where she married, had four children and lived until 1989, being the last survivor of the Thanhouser actors.
Ostrich Walk was recorded by the Original Dixieland Jazz Band in March 1918 with members Henry Ragas, piano; Nick La Rocca, cornet; Larry Shields, clarinet; Eddie Edwards, trombone; and Tony Sbarbaro, drums. Ostrich Walk (Victor 18457B) and Livery Stable Blues were the first ever jazz recorded by Victor Talking Machine Co. Silent movie scenes used in this vid were from The Farmers Daughters, a 1913 Thanhouser Film starring Muriel and Jean Darnell as her sister and can be seen on the Preservationhall01 channel in its' entirety. All scenes of Muriel Ostriche used in this video were created before December 31, 1922 and are in the public domain.
