Even as late as 1951, those eccentric little movie theaters that ran only thirty year-old flicks filled their seats with middle-aged women who still nursed a flame for Rudolph Valentino (1895 – 1926); their beau ideal from the mad Twenties who so many imagined to have been "the perfect lover.
"The longest, loudest laugh in movie history exploded in theaters all over the world in 1920. That colossal, eruptive, cumulative bellow of laughter closed a two reel silent comedy called HARD LUCK, starring that master of slapstick and deadpan pantomime, Buster Keaton." By 1921 the city of Los Angeles began to seriously grow, and the expansion was not simply due to the arrival of performers and extras and all manner of craftsmen that are required to launch a film production - but the city was also bringing in the sorts necessary to support a wealthy urban environment. Every thriving city needs a support system, and Hollywood imported tailors, milliners, chefs, architects and various other tastemakers who in turn attracted realtors, contractors, merchants and entrepreneurs.
The attached article is about Sessue Hayakawa (1889 – 1973), the first Asian actor to achieve star status in Hollywood:
"No, Sessue Hayakawa, the world's most noted Japanese photoplay actor, does not dwell in a papier-mache house amid tea-cup scenery. He is working in pictures in Los Angeles, and he lives in a 'regular' bungalow, furnished in mission oak, and dresses very modishly according to American standards."
In our era it doesn't seem terribly odd that a fresh, exciting and highly popular industry would begin generating new words to fill our dictionaries, and 1914 was no different. The attached article introduced the readers of The New York Times to a new verb contributed by the early film industry:
"The verb 'to film' having gained currency, it must be graciously admitted to the language. It will soon be in the 'advanced' dictionaries, and it must be recognized. The old idea of protecting the English language from invasion is extinct. To 'film' means to make a picture for a 'movie' show'".
During the past twenty years, Hollywood provided us with a whole slew of terms, such as "dramedy" (a combination between a comedy and a drama) and “romcom” (romantic comedy), "sitcom" (situation comedy) to name only a few.
Click here to read another article about the impact of film on the English language.
A notice from the pages of a 1939 Hollywood trade publication announced an organization for the silver-haired alumni of Hollywood's silent film business: "Early this summer there came into existence a new organization known as Picture Pioneers, consisting of veterans who have been in the industry 25 years."
Click here to read about the movie moguls of 1919.
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