Mary Pickford

Mary Pickford

1892-04-07 – 1979-05-29 (age 87) Toronto, Ontario, Canada
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Biography

Gladys Marie Smith (April 8, 1894 – May 29, 1979), known professionally as Mary Pickford, was a Canadian actress resident in the U.S., and also producer, screenwriter and film studio founder, who was a pioneer in the US film industry with a Hollywood career that spanned five decades.

Pickford alongside her future husband, actor-producer Douglas Fairbanks, founded Pickford–Fairbanks Studios and United Artists, and was one of the 36 founders of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Pickford is considered to be one of the most recognisable women in history. Known as "America's Sweetheart" during the silent film era, she is named on the list of the AFI's 100 Years...100 Stars as the 24th-top female star from the Classical Hollywood Cinema era and the "girl with the curls."

Pickford was one of the Canadian pioneers in early Hollywood and a significant figure in the development of film acting. She was one of the earliest stars to be billed under her own name, and was one of the most popular actresses of the 1910s and 1920s, earning the nickname "Queen of the Movies." She is credited with having defined the ingénue type in cinema.

She was awarded the second Academy Award for Best Actress for her first sound film role in Coquette (1929). By the late 1920s, Pickford's career went into decline. She received an Academy Honorary Award in 1976 in consideration of her contributions to American cinema.

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Known For

Mondo Hollywood
Sparrows
Sparrows

1926

as Molly

My Baby
My Baby

1912

as The Wife

The Newlyweds
The Newlyweds

1910

as Alice Vance

The Awakening
The Awakening

1909

as The Widow's Daughter

Ramona
Ramona

1910

as Ramona

Getting Even
Getting Even

1909

as Miss Lucy

Muggsy's First Sweetheart
Muggsy's First Sweetheart

1910

as Mabel Brown

The Gaucho
The Gaucho

1927

as The Virgin Mary

The Necklace
The Necklace

1909

as The Maid / In Pawnshop

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The Portrait

1911

as Little Vera - the Model

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Second Sight

1911

as Gertrude Edgar

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Tracked

1911

as Unknown Role

Cavalcade of the Academy Awards
Cavalcade of the Academy Awards

1940

as Self (archive footage)

M'Liss
M'Liss

1918

as Melissa 'M'liss' Smith

Sweet Memories
Sweet Memories

1911

as Polly Biblett

Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ
Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ

1925

as Chariot Race Spectator (uncredited)

The Dream
The Dream

1911

as Nell Herbert

Hollywood’s Children
Hollywood’s Children

1982

as Self (archive footage)

Rosita
Rosita

1923

as Rosita