Lillian Gish
Known for Acting · 151 credits
- Born
- 1893-10-14
- Died
- 1993-02-27
- Place of birth
- Springfield, Ohio, USA
- Also known as
- Lillian Diana Gish · The First Lady of American Cinema · Dorothy Elizabeth Carter · 릴리안 기쉬 · 릴리안 기시 · 릴리언 기쉬
Biography
Lillian Diana Gish (October 14, 1893 – February 27, 1993) was an American stage, screen and television actress whose film acting career spanned 75 years, from 1912 to 1987.
She was a prominent film star of the 1910s and 1920s, particularly associated with the films of director D.W. Griffith, including her leading role in Griffith's seminal Birth of a Nation (1915). Her sound-era film appearances were sporadic, but included memorable roles in the controversial western Duel in the Sun (1946) and the offbeat thriller Night of the Hunter (1955). She did considerable television work from the early 1950s into the 1980s, and closed her career playing, for the first time, opposite Bette Davis in the 1987 film The Whales of August.
The American Film Institute (AFI) named Gish 17th among the greatest female stars of all time. She was awarded an Honorary Academy Award in 1971, and in 1984 she received an AFI Life Achievement Award.
Known For
TV Shows (16)
The Love Boat
1977
as Mrs. Williams
Robert Montgomery Presents
1950
The Alfred Hitchcock Hour
1962
as Bessie Carnby
The Philco Television Playhouse
1948
as Abby / Narrator / Carrie Watts
The Dick Cavett Show
1968
as Self - Guest
Tony Awards
1956
as Self - Award Accepter / Self - Presenter
The Ed Sullivan Show
1948
as Self
The Defenders
1961
as Louisa Clarendon / Mrs. Cooper
Film '72
1971
as Self
Mr. Novak
1963
as Maude Phipps
The Kennedy Center Honors
1978
as Self
The American Film Institute Salute to ...
1973
as Self
Playwrights '56
1955
The Alcoa Hour
1955
as Esther Crampton
Hollywood
1980
as Self
Schlitz Playhouse of Stars
1951
as Grandma Moses
Movies (135)
The Night of the Hunter
1955
as Rachel Cooper
The Unforgiven
1960
as Mattilda Zachary
Duel in the Sun
1946
as Laura Belle McCanles
Night of 100 Stars II
1985
as Self
The Birth of a Nation
1915
as Stoneman's Daughter Elsie
A Wedding
1978
as Nettie Sloan
Night of 100 Stars
1982
as Self
Intolerance: Love's Struggle Throughout the Ages
1916
as The Woman Who Rocks the Cradle
Happy 100th Birthday, Hollywood
1987
as Self
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
1986
as Mrs Loftus
Broken Blossoms or The Yellow Man and the Girl
1919
as Lucy Burrows
La Bohème
1926
as Mimi
My Baby
1912
Thin Ice
1981
as Grandmother
The Whales of August
1987
as Sarah Webber
Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ
1925
as Chariot Race Spectator (uncredited)
Portrait of Jennie
1948
as Mother Mary of Mercy
Warning Shot
1967
as Alice Willows
The Comedians
1967
as Mrs. Smith
Film Fun
1955
as (archive footage)
The Cobweb
1955
as Victoria Inch
Black Shadows on a Silver Screen
1975
as Self (archive footage)
Follow Me, Boys!
1966
as Hetty Seibert
The Legend of Rudolph Valentino
1961
as Self (archive footage)
Just Gold
1913
as The First Brother's Sweetheart
Sweet Liberty
1986
as Cecelia Burgess
Commandos Strike at Dawn
1942
as Mrs. Bergesen
Lionpower from MGM
1967
as Self - Mrs. Smith (archive footage) (uncredited)
Judith of Bethulia
1914
as The Young Mother
Way Down East
1920
as Anna Moore
The Wind
1928
as Letty
The Trip to Bountiful
1953
as Carrie Watts
Lord Chumley
1914
as Eleanor Butterworth
Orphans of the Storm
1921
as Henriette Girard
Twin Detectives
1976
as Billy Jo Haskins
The Scarlet Letter
1927
as Hester Prynne
The Musketeers of Pig Alley
1912
as The Little Lady
Annie Laurie
1927
as Annie Laurie
The Women Who Run Hollywood
2016
as Self (archive footage)
The Enemy
1927
as Pauli Arndt
The Sisters
1914
as May
Hobson's Choice
1983
as Miss Molly Winkle
Top Man
1943
as Beth Warren
The White Sister
1923
as Angela Chiaromonte
The Battle at Elderbush Gulch
1913
as Melissa Harlow
Letter to Jane: An Investigation About a Still
1974
as Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
Arsenic and Old Lace
1969
as Martha Brewster
Miss Susie Slagle's
1946
as Miss Susie Slagle
Langlois
1970
as Self
So Near, Yet So Far
1912
as A Friend
The Great Love
1918
as Susie Broadplains
Hambone and Hillie
1983
as Hillie Radcliffe
Hearts of the World
1918
as The Girl - Marie Stephenson
The Greatest Thing in Life
1918
as Jeannette Peret
The New York Hat
1912
as Customer in Shop / Outside Church
Romola
1924
as Romola
True Heart Susie
1919
as Susie May Trueheart
Lillian Gish
1984
as Self
The Battle of the Sexes
1914
as Jane Andrews, the daughter
Sigrid Holmquist
2010
as Sigrid Holmquist (archive footage)
The Informer
1912
as Walk on role
The Greatest Question
1919
as Nellie Jarvis
During the Round-Up
1913
as The Ranchero's Daughter
Orders to Kill
1958
as Mrs. Summers
The Spiral Staircase
1961
as Mrs. Warren
Star Power: The Creation Of United Artists
1998
as Lucy - The Girl (archive footage)
Home, Sweet Home
1914
as Payne's Sweetheart
The Great Chase
1962
D.W. Griffith - Years of Discovery 1909-1913
2002
Early Directors on Directing
2009
as Self
Mary Pickford: The Muse of the Movies
2008
as Self (archive footage)
I Am Not a Racist
2019
as Elsie (archive footage) (uncredited)
An Unseen Enemy
1912
as Eldest Sister
Enoch Arden
1915
as Annie Lee
Captain Macklin
1915
as Beatrice
The Burglar’s Dilemma
1912
as Birthday Wellwisher
The Lily and the Rose
1915
as Mary Randolph
The Children Pay
1916
as Millicent
The Blue or the Gray
1913
The Comedians in Africa
1967
as Self (uncredited)
Greta Garbo: The Temptress and the Clown
1986
as Self (archive footage)
An Innocent Magdalene
1916
as Dorothy Raleigh
Diane of the Follies
1916
as Diane
Daphne and the Pirate
1916
as Daphne La Tour
The Mothering Heart
1913
as The Wife
Two Daughters of Eve
1912
as In Theatre Crowd
The Painted Lady
1912
as Belle at Ice Cream Festival
Man's Enemy
1914
as Grace Lisle
The Hunchback
1914
as The Orphan - as an Adult
Sold for Marriage
1916
as Marfa
The Angel of Contention
1914
as Nettie - the Angel
A Woman in the Ultimate
1913
as Verda
From Farm to Fame
1922
as Lillian Gish
Screen Snapshots (Series 1, No. 20)
1921
as Herself
The Stolen Bride
1913
The Tear That Burned
1914
as Anita - the Truant
A Modest Hero
1913
as The Wife
A Romance of Happy Valley
1919
as Jennie Timberlake
One Romantic Night
1930
as Princess Alexandra
A Cry for Help
1912
as The Maid
His Double Life
1933
as Alice Chalice
The Lost House
1915
as Dosia Dale
The Quicksands
1914
A Duel for Love
1914
A Timely Interception
1913
as The Farmer's Daughter
The Unwelcome Guest
1913
as At Auction (uncredited)
The Green-Eyed Devil
1914
as Mary Miller
The House of Darkness
1913
as The Nurse
The Rebellion of Kitty Belle
1914
as Kitty Belle
Pathways of Life
1916
The Folly of Anne
1914
as Anne
Brutality
1912
as At Theatre
Madonna of the Storm
1913
as The Mother
The Conscience of Hassan Bey
1913
as The Rugmaker's Daughter
Lillian Gish: The Actor's Life for Me
1988
as Herself, Archive footage
In the Aisles of the Wild
1912
as The Younger Daughter
Moving Pictures: 'The Night of the Hunter'
1995
as Self
So Runs the Way
1913
as Fred's Wife
An Indian's Loyalty
1913
as The Ranchero's Daughter
The Lady and the Mouse
1913
as The First Sister
About Lillian Gish
Lillian Diana Gish (October 14, 1893 – February 27, 1993) was an American stage, screen and television actress whose film acting career spanned 75 years, from 1912 to 1987. She was a prominent film star of the 1910s and 1920s, particularly associated with the films of director D.W. Griffith, including her leading role in Griffith's seminal Birth of a Nation (1915). Her sound-era film appearances were sporadic, but included memorable roles in the controversial western Duel in the Sun (1946) and the offbeat thriller Night of the Hunter (1955). S… With 151 credits spanning from 1912 to 2021, Lillian Gish has appeared in 135 films and 16 TV shows.
Fans searching for Lillian Gish movies, Lillian Gish filmography, or the latest projects starring Lillian Gish can stream many of these titles on Bowood.TV, free and in HD, with no subscription required.
Most Popular Lillian Gish Movies
- The Night of the Hunter (1955) — as Rachel Cooper
- The Unforgiven (1960) — as Mattilda Zachary
- Duel in the Sun (1946) — as Laura Belle McCanles
- Night of 100 Stars II (1985) — as Self
- The Birth of a Nation (1915) — as Stoneman's Daughter Elsie
Where to Watch Lillian Gish Films
Most Lillian Gish movies and series are available to stream on Bowood.TV in full HD, completely free and without signup. Browse the complete filmography above to jump directly to any title. For more films and the latest web series featuring Lillian Gish, check our movies catalogue and browse page.