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Silent film actors. The following is a list of actors and actresses whose careers began in the silent film era of the 1910s and 1920s. This list includes international performers who were well known throughout the world, and those who may have only achieved a degree of success in their native countries. Some silent film actors and actresses had ...
By 1921 Dorothy was making movies, but she didn't become a star for three years until The Man Who Came Back (1924). Other successful films included Chickie (1925), Joanna (1925), and The Dancer of Paris (1926). Her career continued into the beginning the sound era, and her silent film The Barker (1928) was reshot as a part-talkie. The industry ...
A star of early German cinema, he became a sensation in 1920 with his role as the murderous somnambulist Cesare in Robert Wiene's masterpiece The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (1920). Other prominent roles in German silent films included Different from the Others (1919) and Waxworks (1924). His third wife, Ilona (nicknamed Lily), was Jewish, although ...
- 10 Greta Garbo
- 9 Theda Bara
- 8 Lon Chaney
- 7 Clara Bow
- 6 Rudolph Valentino
- 5 Lillian Gish
- 4 Douglas Fairbanks
- 3 Mary Pickford
- 2 Buster Keaton
- 1 Charlie Chaplin
Widely considered one of the greatest stars of the Golden Era, Greta Garbo began her career in Swedish film before moving to Hollywood. She earned critical acclaim and fame with 1926's Torrent, becoming one of the leading stars of the silent age thanks to films like A Woman of Affairs and The Single Standard. RELATED: 10 Greatest Classic Hollywood ...
An icon of the silver screen, Theda Bara was among the earliest examples of a sex symbol. The actress appeared in multiple silent films, crafting a femme fatale persona that led to her nickname, "The Vamp." Bara's most successful projects include 1917's Cleopatra and 1918's Salomé. Unfortunately, most of Bara's films were lost during the infamous 1...
Known as "The Man of a Thousand Faces," Lon Chaney is widely regarded among cinema's most versatile and chameleonic actors. The actor achieved international fame and acclaim thanks to his performances in several silent horror films, most notably Quasimodo in 1923's The Hunchback of Notre Dame and Erik, the Phantom in 1925's The Phantom of the Opera...
The original "It Girl," Clara Bow became an instant sensation thanks to her portrayal of Lou Spence in the 1927 silent film It. Bow became a seminal figure of the Roaring Twenties, personifying the flapper girl alongside others like Joan Crawford. Bow appeared in the first-ever Best Picture winner, Wings, reaching the apex of her popularity just as...
Rudolph Valentino was a major star in the early 1920s. Nicknamed "The Latin Lover," Valentino became one of the silver screen's earliest sex symbols. He rose to prominence with 1921's The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse and continued a highly successful film career, including hits like Blood and Sand, The Eagle, and his most recognizable role, The ...
Often called "the First Lady of American Cinema," Lillian Gish is a deeply influential performer who significantly contributed to the craft of acting. Gish starred in one of the most successful films of the silent era, D.W. Griffith's 1915 epic The Birth of a Nation, cementing herself as a major box-office draw. Gish continued working throughout th...
Douglas Fairbanks was the quintessential star of the 1920s. Starring in some of the best classic fantasy films, Fairbanks became known as a swashbuckler thanks to roles in films like the seminal The Thief of Bagdad, Robin Hood, and The Mask of Zorro. A founding member of United Artists and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, Fairbanks ...
"The Woman Who Built Hollywood;" that was the nickname given to the iconic Mary Pickford. Possibly the earliest example of "America's sweetheart," Pickford was the female star of the silent era, famous for playing croquettes and ingenues in hugely successful films like Tess of the Storm County and The Poor Little Rich Girl. Pickford won the second-...
One of the earliest proponents of slapstick and deadpan comedy, Buster Keaton is among the greatest comedians ever to grace the silver screen. Three of his most famous efforts, Sherlock Jr., The General, and The Cameraman, often rank among the all-time greatest cinematic comedies. His career waned in the 1930s, but he recovered and rose to stardom ...
No actor is more related to the Silent Era than Sir Charles Chaplin. Often called the best comedian in film history, Chaplin became an international icon thanks to his on-screen persona, "The Tramp," a character he introduced in the eponymous 1915 silent film. The Tramp returned in multiple future films, most notably 1921's The Kid; 1925's The Gold...
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Norma Marie Talmadge (May 2, 1894 – December 24, 1957) was an American actress and film producer of the silent era. A major box-office draw for more than a decade, her career reached a peak in the early 1920s, when she ranked among the most popular idols of the American screen.A specialist in melodrama, her most famous film was Smilin’ Through (1922), but she also scored artistic triumphs ...
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Little Old New York (1923) Marion Davies was one of the great comedic actresses of the silent era and into the 1930s. Marion Cecelia Douras was born in the borough of Brooklyn, New York on January 3, 1897, the daughter of Rose (Reilly) and Bernard J. Douras, a lawyer and judge. Her parents were both of Irish descent.
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Perhaps the most famous star of the early era—and one of the largest box offices draws in films history—was Mary Pickford. Pickford was among the first women to star on film, getting her start at Biograph studios with D.W. Griffith, the director who would make her famous. She developed a distinctive look, wide eyed with long, blond sausage ...
