The darling of the silver screen, Mary Pickford, who was dubbed “The Founding Mother of Hollywood,” is being honored during her centennial due to her role in helping to establish the film industry way back when before Hollywood became Hollywood. The Library of Congress is co-hosting a film series of her movie classics that will play through December in theaters across the country.
As well as being a template of our modern celebrity, Pickford was also a savvy businesswoman. She, along with husband and fellow thespian Douglas Fairbanks, as well as Charlies Chaplin and D.W. Griffith, established the United Artists studio in 1919.
From the release:
The first stop for the Pickford films will be the San Francisco Silent Film Festival on Sat., July 11, 2009 (today). A trio of Pickford classics from the Library’s collections will be among the Saturday screenings at the historic Castro Theater, 429 Castro Street in San Francisco: They Would Elope, Getting Even and The Trick That Failed, all released in 1909. They will be among nearly a dozen silent films to be seen at the 14th annual event. Films are individually ticketed.
Other stops in the series include Glendale, Calif., on July 12, where a trio of Pickford classics — They Would Elope, The Trick that Failed and Sparrows — will be screened at the Alex Theater, 216 N. Brand Boulevard, starting at 2 p.m. Cosponsors include the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, Glendale Arts and the Alex Film Society. General admission tickets are $15.
Also, there will be a screening in Encinitas, Calif., on Nov. 8. Eight Pickford films (They Would Elope, Getting Even, The Mountaineer’s Honor, The Trick that Failed, To Save Her Soul, The Dream, When the Cat’s Away and Sparrows) will be screened at the La Paloma Theater, 471 S. Coast Highway 101, plus a trailer and an outtake from Sparrows. General admission is $9. A screening is also scheduled in New York City, where They Would Elope and The Trick that Failed will be shown at the Walter Reade Theater at Lincoln Center on Nov. 20.
Preparations are not yet final for proposed screenings of Pickford films in Toronto in mid-September, and in Los Angeles in late November or early December.
You can call (202) 707-0246 to check on dates.