Emerson Romero Had Blissful Married Life With Wife Emma Connie Corneliussen And Two Children- Rod And Dorene

Emerson Romero wife

In recognition of Hispanic Heritage Month, this Google Doodle pays tribute to Emerson Romero, a Cuban American silent film actor and activist. He was blessed to have a wife, Emma.

Emerson Irving Romero was a Cuban-American silent film actor who performed under the moniker Tommy Albert.

Highlights

  • Emerson Romero met his wife, Emma “Connie” Corneliussen, through their work in an amateur theater group.
  • Emma Connie worked as a teacher of handicrafts and gymnastics at the New York School for the Deaf.
  • Emerson and Emma Connie cherished family moments with their two children, Rod and Dorene, who have normal hearing.

He gained fame for his humorous roles in various short films during the silent movie era.

At the age of six, Romero lost his hearing due to a fever from whooping cough.

From 1926 to 1928, Romero appeared in over 24 two-reel short comedies, such as Beachnuts, The Cat’s Meow, Great Guns, and a remake of Tillie’s Punctured Romance.

When sound films, or “talkies,” came out in 1927, opportunities for deaf actors disappeared, and studios excluded deaf audiences from enjoying movies.

However, Romero continually sought to assist the deaf community, so he acquired various films and worked on adding captions to them.

By the fall of 1928, Romero had returned to New York to work at the Federal Reserve Bank.

Emma Connie Corneliussen, Wife Of Emerson Romero, Taught Handicrafts And Gymnastics

Emerson Romero met his wife, Emma “Connie” Corneliussen, through their work in an amateur theater group.

Connie graduated from the Minnesota School for the Deaf and Gallaudet College, class of 1934.

She worked as a teacher of handicrafts and gymnastics at the New York School for the Deaf.

Emerson Romero wife
The actor Emerson Romero developed the first technique to provide captions for sound films. (source:  Deaf History)

In 1936, they fell in love and eloped, with Edgar Bloom, who later became president of the New Jersey Association of the Deaf, as their best man.

Initially, they lived in the Woodside and Woodhaven neighborhoods of Queens.

Later, after Em got a job at Republic Aviation in Farmingdale, they purchased a bungalow at 29 Cedar Avenue, where they would stay for 31 years.

During this time, Em also developed a passion for writing, serving as editor of the Digest of the Deaf for two years and contributing gossip columns to the Republic in-plant newspaper and the Farmingdale Post.

Emerson Romero Kids Rod And Dorene Had Elite Academic Qualification

Amid their busy lives, Em and Connie cherished family moments with their two children, Rod and Dorene, who have normal hearing.

Rod earned a master’s in electrical engineering from MIT and worked in real estate in Boulder, Colorado.

 

Dorene studied at the Sorbonne in Paris and later worked as a secretary in Rod’s office after teaching in New York City.

As their children grew up, Em and Connie wanted to spend quality time together before college, but the marriage took Rod and Dorene away.

In the spring of 1972, they planned to move to a new ranch home in Boulder, Colorado, where they enjoyed the beautiful mountain views while playing bridge and spending time with their dog, Brown Nose.

Additional Information

  • Romero attended the Wright Oral School in New York City from 1907 to 1915.
  • The actor studied for a year at Columbia University but had to leave after two years due to his father’s financial problems.
  • Based on the context of silent film actors and his later business endeavors, Emerson Romero’s net worth was roughly around $200K.

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