A Silent Death
On the morning of February 2, 1922, the body of silent film director William Desmond Taylor was discovered at his home. The director had been killed by a shot in the back. In his pockets was his wallet with 78 dollars, a silver cigarette case and an ivory toothpick. A 2 caret diamond ring was [...]
Hardy Before Laurel
It was towards the end of the Silent Film Era that Oliver Hardy joined Stan Laurel to form the comedy team of Laurel and Hardy. Hardy was in his mid-thirties when the pair joined and had already had a long career in Silent Films. Oliver Hardy was born on January 18, 1892 in Harlem, Georgia [...]
The Silent Cowboy
Tom Mix became film’s first Western Movie star. He wasn’t born in the west, but in the east. He was born on January 6, 1880 in Mix Run, Pennsylvania. His birth name was Thomas Hezekiah Mix, but when he enlisted in the army during the Spanish-American War he entered as Thomas E. Mix. The E [...]
Santa Claus in The Movies
Silent Santa’: SANTA CLAUS AND THE CHILDREN (1898) SANTA CLAUS (1899) SANTA CLAUS FILLING STOCKINGS (1897) SANTA CLAUS’ VISIT (1900) WAITING FOR SANTA CLAUS (1901) AN UNEXPECTED SANTA CLAUS (1908) A TRAP FOR SANTA CLAUS (1909) THE ADVENTURE OF THE WRONG SANTA CLAUS (1914) SANTA CLAUS VS. CUPID (1915) THE DETECTIVE’S SANTA CLAUS (1924) SANTA [...]
The Great Stone Face
During the 1920′s Buster Keaton was one of the greatest, if not the greatest, comic actor-directors of the end of the Silent Film Era. Roger Ebert has even called him the “greatest actor-director in the history of the movies”. Keaton’s films during this decade, such as The General or The Navigator, Steamboat Bill, Jr. or [...]
Died Before Their Time
Rudolph Valentino was one of the most popular stars of Silent Films in the 1920′s. When he died at the age of 31 in 1926, it is estimated that 100,000 people attended his funeral in New York. His image as the Latin Lover has lasted for decades. When Amelia Earhart disappeared over the Pacific Ocean [...]
Her Death Lead to the Downfall of a Clown
If it wasn’t for the people that were around her when she died on September 9, 1921 in San Francisco, the name and the person Virginia Rappe would just be a small fact in the course of history. However, Rappe died after attending a Labor Day party held by Hollywood Silent Film Comic Roscoe ‘Fatty’ [...]
The Good Witch
When the Glinda, the Good Witch of the North, first appeared in the movie The Wizard of Oz you could see and feel the glamour of the lady who played the part. What many may not have realized about Billie Burke was that at the time she was 53 years old. Billie Burke was born [...]
The Barrymore Family
Georgiana Drew (July 11, 1856 – July 2, 1893) She was the daughter of actors John Drew and Louisa Lane Drew. She made her theatrical debut in 1872, in the play The Ladies’ Rattle. She acted in many Broadway’s hits, like As You Like It and Pique. In 1876 she married Herbert Arthur Chamberlayne Blyth, [...]
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Awards
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences were established in 1927. It was decided that they would create a ceremony to publicize and reward fourteen individuals and movies that were the best artistic examples of film making. The first award ceremony was in 1929 for the period August 1, 1927 to July 31, 1928. [...]
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