NORMA TALMADGE : BEAUTIFUL ACTRESS : PICTUREGOER SERIES : RPPC

This vintage real photo postcard features American silent film actress, Norma Talmadge (1894-1957). She was noted for her dramatic and emotionally intense performances. She was one of the most popular and highly paid actresses of her era. She starred in over 200 films during her career. Raised in a show business family, Norma and her sisters Constance and Natalie Talmadge all became successful actresses. Norma began her acting career on the stage, performing in vaudeville and musical comedies. Initially, Talmadge worked for Vitagraph Studios before signing with D.W. Griffith’s Triangle Film Corporation, where she gained recognition for her talent. In the 1910s and 1920s, Talmadge became a major star, known for her ability to portray a wide range of characters. She excelled in dramatic roles, often playing heroines with complex emotions. Some of her notable films include “The Probation Wife” (1919), Smilin Through (1922), Camille (1926), and “New York Nights” (1929). Norma Talmadge was one of the few silent film stars who successfully made the transition to talkies. However, as the era of sound films emerged, her popularity waned. After her last film in 1930, Talmadge retired from acting and focused on her personal life. She married the film producer Joseph M. Schenck in 1916, and together they founded the Norma Talmadge Film Corporation. The company produced several successful films, contributing to Talmadge’s financial success and status as one of the highest-paid actresses of her time. However, her marriage to Schenck eventually ended in divorce in 1934. After her retirement from acting, Talmadge lived a private life, seldom making public appearances. She remarried in 1946 to Carvel James, a wealthy oil broker, and they remained together until her death. This vintage postcard is part of the “Picturegoer” series (No. 145B).  SOLD

Published in: on December 4, 2025 at 12:05 pm  Comments (1)  
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CAROL DEMPSTER : AMERICAN SILENT FILM ACTRESS : D W GRIFFITH : RPPC

This vintage real photo postcard features American silent film actress, Carol Dempster (1901-1991). She was born in Minnesota. Her father was a captain on a ship that travelled on the Great Lakes. The family moved to California when her father switched careers. She was spotted dancing in a school program by noted dancer Ruth St. Denis. St. Denis recruited her for her own dance school. Griffith discovered her at the St. Denis school. Dempster began her film career as a protege of film director extraordinaire. She was one of a number of actresses he collected for his “stable”. Others included Lillian and Dorothy Gish, Miriam Cooper, and Mae Marsh. These other actresses were said to detest Dempster because she mimicked their acting styles. Dempster was given her first role in the 1916 film, “Intolerance”. She played a harem girl along with teenage newcomer, Mildred Harris. Dempster was just 15 years old. She became one of Griffith’s favorites and appeared in nearly every one the films he directed through the 1920’s. Their relationship became a romantic relationship during the arly 1920’s. Dempsters last film appearance was in 1926. She retired that year to marry a wealthy banker. Dempster was not seen as a great actress by critics. She was overshadowed by Lillian Gish. In addition her animated acting style and physical appearnce were considered relatively ordinary. The IMDb reports that Dempster appeared in 19 films between 1916 and 1926. This vintage postcard offers a closeup view of Miss Dempster She looks pretty and glamorous. The card was published by Cinemagazine (Paris Edition). The postcard dates back to the 1920’s and is in very good condition (see scans).

carol dempster

Buy this Vintage Real Photo Postcard (includes shipping within the US) #5295

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carol dempster

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Published in: on November 11, 2024 at 12:00 pm  Leave a Comment  
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COLLEEN MOORE : AMERICAN SILENT FILM ACTRESS : DUTCH BOY BOBBED HAIRCUT : RPPC

This postcard features a portrait of American film actress, Colleen Moore (1899-1988).  She began her career in the silent film era. She was a fashionista and one of the highest paid stars of her time. She is also noted for popularizing the “dutchboy bobbed haircut”. Like many silent film stars, she was unable to adapt to “talkies” and decided to retire after just making a few  sound films. Upon retirement, Moore focused on investing, and was quite talented in that realm. She became a partner at Merrill Lynch and wrote a book about how to invest in the stock market. One of her hobbies involved dollhouses. In the early 1950’s, she helped design and curate “The Colleen Moore Dollhouse” which is still exhibited at the Museum of Science and Industry, in Chicago, Illinois. The dollhouse is 9 square feet and worth millions of dollars and has been seen by millions of museum goers. Moore was born in Michigan and her family relocated to Atlanta around 1908.They then moved on to Pennsylvania and finally, Tampa, Florida. At fifteen years of age, Moore had a screen test with director D. W. Griffith. Griffith owed a debt to Moore’s uncle, a successful newspaper man in Chicago. Moore must have done well on the screen test since she soon found herself playing heroines in Westerns. She signed a contract with Triangle-Fine Arts and for the first few years she appeared in minor supporting roles. When the Triangle Company folded she signed with Selig Polyscope. She appeared in “A Hoosier Romance” and “Little Orphant Annie”. They were popular films and Moore achieved some celebrity. When Selig closed their doors, Moore went to work on films from various companies. Her star kept rising. In 1922, Moore was named a WAMPAS Baby Star (honor for actresses on the threshold of fame). The IMDb credits Moore with 65 film appearances between 1918 and 1934. At the height of her career, she was earning over twelve thousand dollars a week. This vintage portrait postcard features Colleen Moore with her trademark dutch boy bobbed haircut. The card was published by Ross Verlag. Note the logo for First National Pictures in the lower right hand corner of the image. The card has a 1926 postmark. Moore was about 27 years old when the photograph was taken.  SOLD

Published in: on April 15, 2023 at 12:00 pm  Leave a Comment  
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BLANCHE SWEET : SILENT FILM ACTRESS : 161 FILM CREDITS : BY FRED HARTSOOK : 1917

Blanche Sweet (1896-1986) was an American silent film actress. Her mother was a dancer and her father was a wine merchant. Blanche began show business at an early age. At age four she was performing with a touring company with stars, Marie Burroughs and Maurice Barrymore. At age thirteen, she was working at Biograph Studios under contract with D. W. Griffith. She became known as “The Biograph Blonde”. In 1914, Sweet moved to Paramount (Famous Players – Lasky). Paramount had offered her more money than Biograph could pay. During the 1910’s, Sweet appeared in several prominet film roles and kept her place as a popular leading lady. She played in a number of Cecil B. DeMille films. She and Marshall Neilan (actor, director, producer, screen writer) had an affair which led to Neilan obtaining a divorce and marrying young Blanche. She was about 16 years old. The marriage ended in 1929 because Neilan was an alleged philanderer. When “talkies” began, Sweets career suffered causing her to retire in 1930. The IMDb lists 161 film credits in Blanche’s filmography. Her post film career included radio work and non major Broadway roles. When job offers dissipated, she began working in a Los Angeles department store. She later worked with historians and gave lectures about the early days of Hollywood. This photo portrait of Miss Sweet was taken by American photographer, Fred Hartsook (1876-1930). He owned a chain of California studios described as “the largest photographic business in the world” at that time. The photo was taken circa 1917. Hartsook photographed many silent film stars as well as Woodrow Wilson during his Presidency. This vintage postcard’s AZO stamp box indicates that the postcard was published sometime between 1910 and 1930. This postcard is in very good condition (see scans).

blanche-sweet-1-1

Buy this Vintage Real Photo Postcard (includes shipping within the US) #3895

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Buy this Vintage Real Photo Postcard (includes International shipping outside the US) 3895

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Published in: on June 12, 2022 at 1:24 pm  Leave a Comment  
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