The New York Hat
R: David W. Griffith. B: Anita Loos, Frances Marion. K: G.W. Bitzer. D: Mary Pickford, Lionel Barrymore, Charles Hill Mailes, Kate Bruce, Mae Marsh. P: Biograph. USA 1912
“(…) Mary Pickford, one of the screen’s first and biggest stars, was one of Griffith’s earliest and greatest discoveries. The New York Hat marks her final Biograph picture, but Pickford’s friendship and partnership with Griffith would endure, leading to the formation, with Douglas Fairbanks and Charlie Chaplin, of the production company United Artists.
Also appearing in The New York Hat is Lionel Barrymore, who had joined Biograph in 1911. Although they do not appear in named or prominent roles in this film, we are also given a glimpse at some future Biograph stars, namely Lillian Gish and Mae Marsh. Another individual worth mentioning is the film’s screenwriter, a then relatively unknown Anita Loos. If you don’t know Loos by name, you certainly know her by her work. Among other screenplays and works of fiction, Loos penned Gentlemen Prefer Blondes. (…) Loos’ talents would also be utilized by Griffith in 1916 to pen the titles for his epic follow-up to The Birth of the Nation, Intolerance. The New York Hat was one of Loos’ first screenplays and doesn’t bear much resemblance to her later works, but it certainly brought Loos her first big break and set the ball rolling for her as a screenwriter.”
CURTAINS
Anita Loos
About Anita Loos:
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