On this day in 1892, actress Mary Pickford was born. A pioneer of the American film industry, Pickford was one of the most popular actresses of the silent film era.
Image: Mary Pickford / Library of Congress
Pickford was born Gladys Louise Smith on April 8, 1892 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. After the death of her father, Pickford’s mother began taking in boarders to earn extra money to support her young family. One of the boarders was the manager of the Cummings Stock Company of Toronto, who suggested a 7-year-old Mary and her 6-year-old sister Lottie be cast in a play. A year later, she began touring and performing in plays and by 1907, she was on Broadway under the name “Mary Pickford.”
In 1909, Pickford performed in her first film, Her First Biscuits, directed by D.W. Griffith. As she continued to appear in more films, Pickford’s popularity continued to grow. Soon Pickford was one of the most successful and powerful actors of the era. In 1919, she co-founded the production company United Artists alongside her second husband Douglas Fairbanks, Charlie Chaplin, and D.W. Griffith. Pickford was also one of the first 36 founders of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
At the advent of sound, Pickford’s popularity began to wane. She retired from acting in 1933 after making her 194th film, Secrets. In her later years, Pickford became a recluse. When she received an honorary Oscar in 1976, she accepted the award from her Pickfair estate, the lavish mansion she once shared with Fairbanks.
Pickford died on May 29, 1979 at the age of 87.
View Mary Pickford’s Geni Profile
iframe{ border: 1px solid #999; }
The post Profile of the Day: Mary Pickford first appeared on About Geni.
Source: Geni.com