Gladys Lindeman was born in Brooklyn, New York, on September 26, 1894. Her father was H. R. Lindeman. Her mother, Lillian Lindeman (nee Voltaire), a chorus girl turned actress, put her daughter on stage at an early age. By the time Gladys was 14, she played leading roles, and when she was 17 she had her own company. She took on the stage name Gladys Brockwell , and made her film debut in 1913 for Lubin Studios. Within a short time she was starring in a number of films. Developing her craft, she moved to Hollywood where she garnered a role in the acclaimed 1922 version of "Oliver Twist" and in "The Hunchback of Notre Dame" the following year.