Fiske, Minnie Maddern (1865-1932)
BIOGRAPHICAL NOTE
Minnie Maddern Fiske was born Marie Augusta Davey on 19 December 1865 in New Orleans, Louisiana, and died 15 February 1932 in Queens, New York City. Known as the leading stage actress of her time and an early screen actress, Fiske was a highly influential advocate for animal welfare. She was closely associated with Emerel Freshel and the Millenium Guild as well as the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals through her promotion of veg*nism and her opposition to vivisection, her campaigns against the cruel conditions suffered by cattle raised as meat, and her criticisms of the exploitation of animals for furs, feathers, and other materials used in fashion. A brief notice in The Vegetarian Magazine (September 1907), entitled “Famous Actress Pleads for Dumb Animals” and probably written by M. R. L. Freshel, testifies to the interviews she would do during her extensive theatrical tours as well as the publication of articles on animal cruelty.
PUBLICATIONS
The Darkest Stain on American Civilization. N.p.: n.pub., 1910.
“Losses on the Cattle Ranges.” New York Times 5 July 1920.
“Suffering Animals in Cattle Cars.” New York Times 9 November, 1904.
“What a Deformed Thief this Fashion Is.” The Ladies' Home Journal September 1921. 21-22, 113.