Douglas Fairbanks, Mary Pickford, Charlie Chaplin and D.W. Griffith. The four powerhouses that founded United Artists in 1919 were indeed the royalty of early American film.
Director D.W. Griffith had pulled off the enormously influential (and controversial) smash hit Birth of a Nation in 1915, and was widely regarded as the father of movie technique. By 1920 his career had started a slow decline, as he struggled to remain ‘modern’ and current.
Charlie Chaplin was already famous around the world though he had yet to make the feature-length masterpieces he is most known for today.
Mary Pickford was the most beloved actress of the era, though her adoring public wanted to see her eternally reprising the little girl roles that had made her famous.
I will look at Griffith and Pickford a little more in upcoming posts (Chaplin made no new films in 1920). Today’s post is all about Doug.
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