Mary Pickford - The Muse of The Movies

Last week some time I streamed this documentary movie featuring Mary Pickford.  If you don't know, Mary Pickford was an actress during the silent film period and one of America's first movie stars.  I think it is a very well done documentary.  I found it very informative and enjoyable.  Mary Pickford's story is just as much a history cinema in America.   

Mary Pickford was such a tiny little thing.  At barely 5'1" she was so short that into her thirties she was still convincingly playing the part of a child in movies.   

 

Besides Mary Pickford's short stature, her long thick and very curly hair was her trademark. 

 

Mary's very girlish look lead her to become known as "America's Sweetheart" and she was a photographers dream for portraiture photos.

Mary Pickford was also know as "the girl with the curls" and "little Mary".  
 

Many people may not know this, but the moving picture industry in America began in New York; not Hollywood, California.  In April of 1909, Director D. W. Griffith screen tested Mary Pickford at the Biograph Company in New York City.  D. W. Griffith is best known for directing the silent film Birth of a Nation.  In 1910 the Biograph Company headed for Los Angeles because winter weather on the east coast made year round film-making impossible.  In California the longer daylight hours were also better for shooting films.
      

The way that Mary Pickford negotiated her silent film contracts set the stage for the enormous salaries that actors receive today.  Mary was making as much as $10,000.00 per week.  The average salary in those days was $10.00 per week.  Mary also demand percentages of the profits and creative control.  She is the first actress to earn a million dollars.  

 Douglas Fairbanks, Mary Pickford, Charlie Chaplin and D. W. Griffith.

With Douglas Fairbanks, D.W. Griffith and Charlie Chaplin, Mary Pickford funded and started United Artists film studios.   Mary Pickford was also one of 36 people who founded the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
 

Mary Pickford's second husband was Douglas Fairbanks.  Both were married to other people when they met and fell in love.

 

 Charles "Buddy" Rogers

Actor Charles "Buddy" Rogers fell hopelessly in love with Mary Pickford while she was married to Douglas Fairbanks.  Many actresses were smitten with the very handsome Buddy Rogers, but he only had eyes for Mary.

 

  Buddy Rogers and Mary Pickford acting together.

Mary and Douglas Fairbanks began to have marital problems and after 16 years of marriage they divorced in 1936.  The following year in 1937, Buddy Rogers married Mary Pickford, the woman of his dreams.

Buddy Rogers and Mary Pickford on their wedding day in 1937.  The coupled remained happily married until Mary passed away in 1979. 

Buddy Rogers and his beloved wife Mary Pickford

In the wake of her mother's death Mary decided to cut her hair.   The public did not receive this well, and her acting career never recovered from this one single action..
 

America did not want to let go of "Little Mary", but she could no longer play children's roles or that of a teenager.  

In 1933 Mary retired from acting, but continued to produce movies and pursue philanthropic endeavors.

In 1976 Mary Pickford received an honorary award from the Academy.

Mary Pickford - America's Sweetheart

This documentary goes into a lot more detail and I highly recommend it.

Sadie Thompson

I actually already met my period drama goal, but I am having so much fun watching the old movie classics that I am continuing the fun.  Sadie Thompson is an old silent film starring Gloira Swanson as Sadie Thompson, Lionel Barrymore as Mr. Davidson and Raoul Walsh as Sargeant Timothy O'Hara.  Sadie Thompson was released on January 7, 1928 and was produced by Gloria Swanson.  I streamed this movie on Netflix.   

 Gloria Swanson

Lionel Barrymore

This silent movie is about a former prostitute who arrive on the island of Pago, Pago to await a ship that is leaving for Apia (wherever Apia is).  Sadie says that she is looking for a better life and has a job waiting for her in Apia.  The boat to Apia is quarantined though for 10 days because of a smallpox outbreak.  Sadie ends up spending the time in a hotel with an extreme religious reformer named Mr. Davidson.

 

Gloria Swanson as Sadie Thompson in the film.  Gloria Swanson is gorgeous in this movie and her acting is quite good given the fact that this is a silent film.  In silence movies the actors need to over act in order to get the messages across to the audience.  Miss Swanson's has big penetrating eyes that lures you into her character.  

Sadie Thompson also meets a military sergeant named Tim O'Hara.  Sadie refers to Sargeant O'Hara as "handsome" throughout the film.

Mr. "Handsome" is bowled over by Sadie. 

 

Mr. "Handsome" falls in love with Sadie and asks her to go to Sydney instead of Apia.  In Syndey Mr. "Handsome" and Sadie will get married and start a life together.  

To Mr. Davidson and his wife, Sadie is a sinner and must repent and be "saved".  At first Sadie stands up for herself but then she is so afraid of being sent back to San Francisco and going to jail that Mr. Davidson finally succeeds in breaking her down.

Sadie repents and agrees to be sent back to "Frisco" because according to Mr. Davidson it is the only way that Sadie can be redeemed.  Mr. "Handsome" does not take this well and tries to talk some sense into Sadie who has been brainwashed by Mr. Davidson. 

 

We learn later on the Mr. Davidson has dreams about Sadie Thompson that are not morally clean.  It turns out that Mr. Davidson is a hypocrite because he is actually sexually attracted to Sadie and has been wanting her.     

 

Mr. Davidson takes his own life and Sadie agrees to go to Sydney and marry Mr. "Handsome" after all.

 

This is a very good silent film that kept my interest from beginning to end.  The music is nice, but It does not seem to me to be original to the movie.  This film had to be restored and is missing the ending, so it was pieced together using still photos of the film that were in Gloria Swanson's possessions.  The storyline also flows along at a good pace.    

Miss Swanson was a very independent woman and in 1928 it was hardly common for a woman to produce her own movies.  Miss Swanson wanted creative control and really fought it produce a couple of films.  In order to get Sadie Thompson made Miss Swanson there were a few loops that she had to jump.  The movie ended up going way over budget because of constant delays in completing filming. 

Joseph P. Kennedy was in love with Gloria Swanson.  He convinced Swanson to sell her rights to Sadie Thompson.  Kennedy did not like the character that Swanson played and was convinced the movie would fail.  Sadie Thompson went on to earn 1 million dollars in the USA which was plenty of money back then for a movie to earn.  Joseph Kennedy did finance other film projects for Swanson.  

One of the things I have noticed about all the classic movies I have been watching is the incredible amount of cigarette smoking throughout the films.