Kiss of Mary Pickford: biography and photos

Perhaps, no actress of subsonic cinema was as popular as Pickford Mary. The actress of theater and cinema, the first business lady of Hollywood, the founder of a number of actor's nominations and so on, and so on. It's hard to say what was her amazing popularity. Beauty, talent and wealth are not uncommon in her homeland. But the unique combination of these qualities made Mary Pickford the banner of silent cinema and a symbol of an era.

Biography

The future star of cinema was born in 1892 in a family of Irish settlers. Her real name was Gladys Mary Louise Smith, the pseudonym "Mary Pickford" appeared much later. The girl was not the only child - after her was born her sister Lottie, and after the birth of Brother Jack. The father of the future actress never stayed long at one job, and children from an early age used to move from place to place in search of a cheaper city to live. Father could not support his family and soon left his wife with young children in her arms. Charlotte moved to Toronto and declared herself a widow - so respectable a woman with three children it was easier to find a job.

To make ends meet, the mother had to give their girls to the theater, where they played small roles in various children's performances. When Jack grew up, the friendly family declared themselves to be a stage company, but the main breadwinner of the family was still Mary.

Relationship with mother

Constant tour and hard life did not give Gladys Smith the opportunity to get an education. In schools, she studied only a couple of months a year, in the main reading and writing she was taught by her mother. With her, Mary had a special, trusting relationship, which the future actress valued very highly.

Beginner's Actress

In those days family melodramas and small children's fairy tales enjoyed a special success among the spectators of provincial theaters. The play "The Silver King" was a typical performance, not the first year that appeared on the stage. But the seven-year-old actress, who played the main role in her, caused a storm of enthusiasm among the audience. It was then that the stage talent was clearly manifested in it. Later there were roles in "Uncle Tom's Cabin" and in "East Lynn". Mary was noticed and invited on a regular basis to a professional troupe.

Touring in America

The first professional theatrical experience, the actress received in the van company Valantine Company. Harsh life in cold, unsettled wagons, an eternal lack of money, constant travel would break life and an adult actor. But Mary Pickford was a stance. She taught new roles, sought the right reaction from the audience and studied, studied, studied.

Desperate step

Mary worked in several troupes and traveled around the country in search of a small earnings and a lot of luck. In the autumn of 1907, she received a permanent engagement from the producer David Belasco with a salary of $ 25 per week. At the insistence of the producer, she changed her name and became known as Mary Pickford. December 3 was her debut on Broadway.

Again without work

Family play "Warren from Virginia" was shown 308 times. But after the performance Belasco did not renew the contract with Mary. The need to support a beloved family pushed the actress to a desperate act - she went with her mother to New York to try their luck in the cinema. With all the truths and crooks, she made her way through a series of secretaries, advisers and theatrical agents and achieved the fact that the famous David Griffith appointed her samples. To demonstrate her acting skills, Mary chose the monologue of a little boy who begs the policeman not to arrest him. The role of the policeman in this monologue was performed by a chair.

Debut in the cinema

Griffith was so impressed with the play of the actress that she made a contract with her for a week's salary of 10 dollars a week, although usually he paid much less to beginning actors. As the film director later admitted, he could not deny the actress "because of her outrageously beautiful eyes."

In those days, small movie clips were shot for several hours, and lasted about 12 minutes. Her first film - "Lonely Villa" was only 8 minutes. There were no special scenarios, there were not even titles with the names of the actors. But the public remembered the actress - for the audience she became a little girl with golden curls, which played her role not with expressive gestures, but with her inexpressible eyes.

Serious roles

After a short period during which she returned to the scene, Mary Pickford densely engaged in film. Director A. Tsukor invited her to play a major role in the film adaptation of the play. The success of the production of "Tess from the country of storms" was stunning - the newspapers asked viewers to take up seats in theaters early to avoid jostling.

So Mary Pickford took place in the cinema. Working with this producer was very successful: in four years of filming a small woman turned into an idol, which was worshiped all of America. One of the first sensational tapes of that time was "The Poor Little Rich Girl". Mary Pickford played the main role in it. The actress perfectly took advantage of her role, presenting the audience with all the feelings of the daughter of wealthy parents. The final tape has forced many to rethink their attitude towards children.

The success of the paintings with her participation was so great that the actress decided to create her own rental studio for the fees received. Her co-founders were Douglas Fairbanks and Charlie Chaplin. Newspapers nicknamed her "Pioneer Mary Pickford", because she became the world's first actress with her own studio. Mary also assigned a large role to public work - during the First World War she made proposals to buy military bonds, visited the wounded, donated large sums to charity. It's amazing that at the same time she found the strength and acting in films. Films with her participation went around the world and made Mary the first-magnitude star in silent cinema. And active social activity only lit a few additional rays in her aura of glory.

So actress Mary Pickford turned into one of the most influential women in the film industry. Her popularity was promoted by the circumstance that she married one of America's most attractive men.

Marvelous marriage

Douglas Fairbanks and Mary Pickford met at one Hollywood party. Mary was married to Owen Moore, an actor, and Fairbanks had been married to his wife Gladys for more than 10 years. But this did not stop them from falling in love with each other. Both Mary and Douglas carefully concealed their feelings, but in the end they broke off previous ties and married.

The heyday of glory

Early 20 years found Douglas and Mary Pickford on top of glory. They were worshiped, they were deified. The appearance of the two could stall the movement of cars in any city. Their glory spread far beyond the borders of the country - after all, the silent cinema knew no language barriers. In 1927, she came with her husband to the Soviet Union, where she plays a major role in the film "The Kiss of Mary Pickford". 1927 - the time of recognition in the world arena of a young Land of Soviets. In the tape, an American movie star was shot together by Soviet actors Igor Ilyinsky and Vera Malinovskaya. "Mary Pickford's Kiss" is a comedy that tells how a world star has kissed a simple Soviet guy Vasya Palkin. Many shots were shot in Ukraine, and after that they were skillfully assembled. "Kiss Mary Pickford" launched in the rental in 1927, a copy of it was solemnly handed to the actress.

Talkies

The era of sound cinema began in America in the late 20's. Approaching the sunset silent film Mary Pickford. The roles in the movie were still easy for her, but the reason for the decline in popularity was the age of the actress. After all, she was no longer a girl, but the audience did not want to see her in more adult images. One of the first roles in the sound cinema was Norma in the movie "Coquette". For this tape, Mary Pickford received an Oscar, but still the film was not received by the audience with the same enthusiasm that past tapes with the participation of the first business lady of Hollywood. Suddenly, the problems were piled up - the mother of the actress who had been her best friend for many years died, the brilliant Fairbanks began to walk, trying to behave as in her youth. The marriage of Mary Pickford fell apart, and the forces to continue the stage career were gone.

Third marriage

After the divorce Mary was not long alone. She married one of her filmmate partners. Chosen Pikford - jazz musician Buddy Rozhdzhers - was younger than the actress for 15 years. Buddy and Mary were an exemplary American couple. Since they had no children of their own, they adopted the boy Ronald and the girl Roxanne. This marriage lasted more than forty years and ended only with the death of Buddy from a heart attack.

Last years

Mary spent her old age alone. His brother and sister passed away before her, the foster children began to live their own lives. But society did not forget the contribution of the little woman to the cinema - on the slope of her days, in 1976 she received an honorary "Oscar" for her invaluable role in the film industry. At the end of her life she asked Canada - her home country - to restore her citizenship. Her request was granted.

In 1979, at the age of 89, Mary Pickford, the owner of two Oscars, an honorary citizen of the two countries, a small woman who fell in love with the whole world, died.