Marie Dressler

Marie Dressler addressing AEA members in front of headquarters at Broadway and 45th Street, August 20, 1919.

Photography credit: Bettman/Corbis/AP Images

Marie Dressler was a famous Canadian actress and union organizer. She was born in Cobourg, Ontario on November 9, 1868.

She spent many years learning her profession acting in touring theatre companies all across Canada and the United States eventually working in Broadway plays and musicals.

Marie was cast alongside Charlie Chaplin in the 1914 silent film, Tillie’s Punctured Romance.

In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the theatre industry was revolutionized by powerful management groups that monopolized and centralized the industry. These groups created harsh working conditions for the actors. On May 26, 1913, actors decided to unionize, and they formed the Actors' Equity Association (AEA or "Equity"). 

In 1919, Equity called the first strike in the history of the American theatre, demanding recognition as the performers' representative and bargaining agent. 

The strike lasted 30 days from August 7 to September 6, 1919 when they won the strike gaining a standard contract. The strike spread to eight cities, closed 37 plays, prevented the opening of 16 others.

During the strike the Chorus Equity Association was formed organizing those performers who sang and danced in the chorus of musicals. Dressler, who began her career in the chorus at $8 per week, was instrumental in forming the chorus union, and was elected its first president.

The strike was important because it expanded the definition of labour and altered perceptions about what types of careers could organize. The strike also encouraged other groups within the theatre industry to organize.

Dressler was blacklisted by Broadway producers for her pro-union stance and activities. Getting cut off from acting work left her destitute. 

The famous film producer Louis B. Mayer who grew up in St. John’s New Brunswick gave her the opportunity to return to acting in motion pictures. He called her “…the most adored person ever to set foot in the studio…”

By the age of 60, Marie was not only the highest earning film star, but also the top box office draw in the industry. In 1931, Marie won the academy award for Best Actress for her role as Min in the hit comedy film Min and Bill.  Two years later, she became the first Canadian featured on the cover of TIME magazine.

There is a Marie Dressler Museum in Cobourg.