Vintage original 8x10 in. US double-weight matte publicity photograph of silent film star MYRTLE STEDMAN c.1918. She is depicted in a close interior shot holding 5 playing cards as she looks pensively off-camera. Printed on double-weight stock with a beautiful matte finish, the image quality is especially sharp and you can see the details of how her make-up was applied for the camera. It is in very fine- condition with random signs of light wear in the borders. There are no pinholes, tears, stains, creases, writing, or other flaws. Myrtle Stedman (March 3, 1883 – January 8, 1938) was an American leading lady and later character actress in motion pictures who began in silent films in 1910. Stedman was born in Chicago, Illinois, and educated at a private finishing school there, performing in light opera and musical comedies there. Her voice was cultivated in France and her tutor was Marchesi, who was known as one of the finest instructors of voice culture in his country. Myrtle did not enter the field of opera because of her preference for light opera. She starred for a number of seasons in Isle of Spice and The Chocolate Soldier. She performed for a year at the Whitney Theater in Chicago and was a prima donna of the Chicago Grand Opera Company. She married Marshall Stedman, a drama school conductor, in January 1900. They had one child together, Lincoln Stedman, before divorcing in 1920. In 1915, Stedman became the first woman elected to the Motion Picture Board of Trade of America. Her first appearances in movies were in Selig studio western and action short films. Among her feature films are Flaming Youth, The Valley of the Moon, The Dangerous Age, and The Famous Mrs. Fair. In 1936, she was signed by Warner Brothers to play bit and extra roles and her last release was Accidents Will Happen, (1938). On January 8, 1938, Stedman died of a heart attack at age 52. She was interred at Inglewood Park Cemetery, Inglewood, California.