News from the Library of Congress: Movie Icon Mary Pickford Subject of New Book, Book Talk and Film Tour
A century ago, in the early days of cinema, when actors were unbilled
and unmentioned in credits, audiences immediately noticed Mary
Pickford. Dubbed "America’s Sweetheart," Pickford charmed moviegoers
during the first three decades of the 20th century with magnetic talent,
as she rose to become cinema’s first great star.
Published by the Library of Congress in association with the
University of Kentucky Press,
Mary Pickford: Queen of the Movies,
edited by Christel Schmidt, sheds new light on this icon’s life and
legacy. Through essays by Schmidt and other eminent film historians ,
Pickford emerges from the pages in vivid detail. She is revealed as a
gifted actress, a philanthropist and a savvy industry leader who fought
for creative control of her films and ultimately became her own
producer. Her success paved the way for women in film and ushered in
Hollywood’s golden age.
This beautifully designed volume features more than 200 color and
black-and-white illustrations, including photographs and posters from
the Library’s collections and those of the Academy of Motion Picture
Arts and Sciences. Together with the text, they paint a fascinating
portrait of a key figure in American cinematic history.
The Library of Congress holds the world’s largest collection of Mary
Pickford films, including Pickford’s personal film collection, which she
donated in 1946. Currently, the Library holds 156 Pickford titles out
of the estimated 210 she made between 1909 and 1933. (Sadly, 36 films
are considered lost.) In addition to titles donated by Pickford, the
Library has also acquired a number of the actress’s films through
copyright deposits, movie collectors and repatriations from European
archives. Rare collection items featuring Pickford include movie stills
from
The Foundling (1915) and
Less Than the Dust (1916); photographs
featuring her World War I efforts for the U.S. government and her
involvement with the National Women’s Party; sheet music about her
between 1910 and 1930; movie posters and numerous magazine covers.
Schmidt is a film historian, writer and editor. She was awarded two
fellowships from the National Endowment for the Humanities for her work
on Mary Pickford and is co-editor of
Silent Movies: The Birth of Film
and the Triumph of Movie Culture.
Mary Pickford: Queen of the Movies, a 288-page hardcover book, is
available for $45 at bookstores nationwide and through the Library of
Congress Shop.
Mary Pickford will be the subject of a Books & Beyond discussion by Schmidt at the Library of Congress at
noon on Tuesday, Dec. 4
in the Mary Pickford Theater, located on the third floor of the James
Madison Building at 101 Independence Ave. S.E, Washington, D.C. The
event, which is sponsored jointly by the Center for the Book in the
Library of Congress and the Library’s Publishing Office, is free and
open to the public; tickets are not required.
From Dec. 6, 2012, through June 2013, Schmidt will discuss Pickford’s
career at film screening events held at more than 25 venues nationwide.
Her presentations will include screenings of film shorts and
full-length films starring Pickford, such as
Sparrows (1926),
beautifully restored by the Library’s Motion Picture, Broadcasting and
Recorded Sound Division. For a complete schedule, go to
www.loc.gov/publish/general/events.html.
The Library of Congress, the nation’s oldest federal cultural
institution and the largest library in the world, holds more than 151
million items in various languages, disciplines and formats. The Library
seeks to spark imagination and creativity and to further human
understanding and wisdom by providing access to knowledge through its
magnificent collections, programs, publications and exhibitions. Many of
the Library’s rich resources can be accessed through its website at
www.loc.gov.
The Library is home to more than 1.3 million film, television, and
video items. With a collection ranging from motion pictures made in the
1890s to today’s TV programs, the Library’s holdings are an unparalleled
record of American and international creativity in moving images.
The collection is stored, as well as restored, at the Library’s
Packard Campus for Audio Visual Conservation in Culpeper, Va. Pickford’s
1924 feature film,
Dorothy Vernon of Haddon and other film shorts
will be screened at the state-of-the-art Packard Campus Theater on Jan.
25 and 26. Featuring remarks by Schmidt, the screenings are free and
open to the public. For more information, go to
www.loc.gov/avconservation/theater/.
