The actress debuted in the silent film era. In addition, she was an Oscar winner in her first sound role of hers.
In the early years of cinema, actors were not known by their names, but by their nicknames, as Florence Lawrence, the most popular actress in America, was known simply as "the girl from the Biograph", notes the chain Ser.
For this reason, the close-up technique was, little by little, popularizing the face of the performers and the producers began to feed that mythology from their advertising departments.
Early years of Mary Pickford
The first actress who enjoyed this new technique was the Canadian Gladys Mary Smith, better known by her stage name Mary Pickford. The artist was born in 1892 and before launching into the cinema, she was already doing various plays.
The artist debuts in the play 'The Burrows of Virginia' by William Mille at the Belasco Theater on Broadways. It was at that time that her producer David Belasco assigned her stage name to her at the age of 15. Two years later, the actress traveled to Los Angeles to venture into the world of cinema where she quickly achieved success.
Mary Pickford had a sweet, girlish face, blue eyes, and blond locks. Thanks to her innocent appearance, she gave life to many heroines battered by life, roles that the audience loved and demanded more and more. Such was her popularity that in seven years, from 1909 to 1916, she went from earning $40 to $10,000 a week. Because of her entrepreneurial vision, she was the first woman in the United States to earn a million dollars.
Awards and works of Mary Pickford
At the age of 34, Pickford says goodbye to her childish roles with 'Sparrows', her first thriller performance in 1926. After it, she decides to cut her hair to get a more mature look. The New York Times includes the news on the front page.
Four years later, in 1930, the Academy awards her an Oscar for her first performance in the talkies, in 'Coquette'. Years later, in 1976, she was awarded a second Oscar, but this time honorary "for her contribution to the film industry."
However, the actress refused to pick it up personally. For this reason, the Academy sends a camera to her home to record a thank you message. Pickford decided to stay away from the cameras after her third marriage to Buddy Rogers in 1936, an actor 12 years her junior, with whom she adopted two children.
Legacy of Mary Pickford
Three years after the award, on May 29, 1979, Mary Pickford died at her home in Santa Monica, California. She was 87 years old. According to La Vanguardia, the artist withdrew because she wanted to avoid being compared to the young actresses in the industry and keep her memory intact.
