Dell Henderson's career spanned almost a half-century, from 1908 to 1950. During the early silent era, from 1908 to 1916, he was with the Biograph Company, as an actor, director and writer of dozens of short films. He acted under the direction of D. W. Griffith and Mack Sennett starting in 1908 with Griffith's Monday Morning in a Coney Island Police Court (1908). After 1916, he directed features for a variety of companies. His final directorial credit is for a Jack Hoxie western in 1927.
As his directing career declined, he resumed acting. His roles in the late 1920s included substantial parts in three of King Vidor's best films: The Patsy (1928), Show People (1928), and The Crowd (1928). Although his acting career continued until 1950, most of his appearances were in uncredited bit parts. In all, he appeared in about 300 films, directed about 200, and was a storywriter for 35.
Dell Henderson's unlovely face and figure precluded starring parts, and he was always a supporting player. His parts in The Patsy and Show People demonstrate his considerable comic abilities. He appeared in his last movie, Louisa, in 1950.
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