Silence screen star Mary Pickford was well-known as America’s sweetheart but behind the golden girls and girlish demeanor was a stilly business woman and pioneering film maker.
Pickford was born Gladys Louise Smith in Toronto, Canada at the end of the 19th century. Her alcoholic father deserted the family when she was only a few years old and tiny Gladys went on the stage who’d attend at the age of seven to help support the family. At 15, she landed to her first Broadway role and changed her name to Mary Pickford. Two years later she impressed director of D.W.Griffith while auditioning for screen role despite missing out on her part she demonstrated an instinctive understanding of the more intimate style of acting required for the big screen.
Griffith put her on contract with the Biograph company and Pickford cut her teeth on a wide range of roles supplementing her acting paid by writing movie scenarios of $25.00 a piece. A brief return to Broadway convinced her that the future was in the movies and in 1914 she had a smashed hit with Tess of the Storm Country playing a feisty goddess snipe.
Soon Pickford was one of the world’s biggest stars rivaling Charlie Chaplin in popularity and earning a $150,000.00 a year at the time when the average income was less than $2,000.00. She was beloved by audiences who responded to her combination of delicate beauty and gritty determination. She usually played the humbly born girl next door who overcame great adversity to marry her true love. The films were deceptively simple but the success was result of Pickford’s genius for understanding what audiences respond to and taking an interest in every aspect of film making.
Film model Adolph Zukor who ended the partnership with Pickford in 1916 was undeceived by her childlike appearance observing that if she’d gone into manufacturing she would have ended up his president of the United States.
On screen Pickford was America’s innocent sweetheart but her private life was a bit little estranged from her first husband who she secretly married in 18. Pickford fell in love with one of the biggest stars in business dashing lovely Fairbanks who specialized in Swatch banking. While the couple waited out there respective divorces they joined with Charlie Chaplin and D.W. Griffith they formed the United Artists, an independent production and distribution company that bypassed the studio and good financial control and enhances the religions. The lunatics have taken charge of the asylum said one studio buzz.
In 1920, Pickford and Fairbanks wed and became the screens building couple reigning over Hollywood from their lavish state big fair, but while Pickford considered Fairbanks to the love of her life, the marriage faulted and after few years weakened by Fairbanks womanizing and depressive episodes and Pickford’s heavy drinking.
Two other events took Pickford in the late 1920s, her mother’s death and the birth of the talking picture although her early films were silent, Pickford had always memorized dialogues for the characters and spoke it during filming eventhough it wasn’t being recorded.
Pickford tried up in her first trophy was sophisticated company for big catch when she shrugged up occurs and dimples play a hot edge of the society woman and took home an academy award for her efforts. Taught within a couple of years the 3:42 away, Mary were tried to make image in 41 but stayed involved in the industry as an influential producer who gave some of Hollywood’s most legendary great artist.
In 1937, she married actor Charles “Buddy” Rogers, and the couple remained together until her death in 1979 at the age 87. Truly, one of Hollywood’s greatest talents, Mary Pickford set the standard for generations to come and left the legacy of memorable performances—
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