Ivo Blom found this series of French postcards of the Les Vedettes de Cinéma series. The series, published by A.N. (Armand Noyer) in Paris, gives a good impression of the most popular silent stars of Hollywood and the European cinema in the mid 1920s. The portraits on the sepia postcards are all exquisite. So, I chose 16 of Ivo's new finds for this post. If you want to know more about this series, check out this earlier post.
![Jack Holt]()
French postcard in the Les Vedettes de Cinéma Series, by A.N., Paris, no. 4. Photo: Film Paramount.
Jack Holt, originally Charles John Holt Jr. (1888–1951), was an American motion picture actor in both silent and sound films, particularly Westerns.
![Herbert Rawlinson]()
French postcard in the Les Vedettes de Cinéma Series, by A.N., Paris, no. 8. Photo: Roman Freulich / Universal Film.
Herbert Rawlinson (1885-1953) was a British actor who knew a rich career in American silent cinema, and less so in sound film, playing all in all in some 400 films.
![Frank Mayo]()
French postcard in the Les Vedettes de Cinéma Series, by A.N., Paris, no. 11. Photo: Universal Film Company. Perhaps this card is for The Shark Master (Fred Leroy Granville, 1921) which evolves in the South Seas.
Frank Mayo (1889–1963) was an American actor, who appeared in 310 films between 1911 and 1949.
![Douglas Fairbanks]()
French postcard in the Les Vedettes de Cinéma Series, by A.N., Paris, no. 54. Photo: G.L. Manuel Frères.
American actor Douglas Fairbanks (1883-1939) was best known for his swashbuckling roles in silent films such as The Mark of Zorro (1920), Robin Hood (1922), and The Thief of Bagdad (1924), but spent the early part of his career making comedies. Fairbanks was a founding member of United Artists and of The Motion Picture Academy. He hosted the first Oscars Ceremony in 1929. With his marriage to Mary Pickford in 1920, the couple became Hollywood royalty and Fairbanks was referred to as The King of Hollywood'', but his career rapidly declined with the advent of the 'talkies'. His final film was made in Great Britain, The Private Life of Don Juan (1934).
![Sandra Milowanoff]()
French postcard in the Les Vedettes de Cinéma Series, by A.N., Paris, no. 75. Photo: G.L. Manuel Frères.
Sandra Milowanoff (1892–1957), also written as Milovanoff, was a Russian actress who became French citizen. She was a star of the French silent cinema in the 1920s, acting with directors like Feuillade, De Baroncelli, Fescourt and Vanel.
![Wallace Beery]()
French postcard in the Les Vedettes de Cinéma Series, by A.N., Paris, no. 79. Photo: Universal Film. Beery's name is misspelled as Berry.
American actor Wallace Beery (1885-1949) is best known for his portrayal of Bill in Min and Bill opposite Marie Dressler, as Long John Silver in Treasure Island, as Pancho Villa in Viva Villa!, and for his titular role in The Champ, for which he won the Academy Award for Best Actor. Beery appeared in some 250 films in a 36-year career. He was the brother of actor Noah Beery, Sr. and uncle of actor Noah Beery, Jr.
![Jackie Coogan]()
French postcard in the Les Vedettes de Cinéma Series, by A.N., Paris, no. 90. Photo: Henri Manuel.
American actor John Leslie 'Jackie' Coogan (1914-1984) began as a child actor in silent films. He was Charlie Chaplin's irascible sidekick in The Kid (Charles Chaplin, 1921) and played the title role in Oliver Twist (Frank Lloyd, 1922). Many years later, he became known as Uncle Fester in the TV series The Addams Family (1964-1966). In the interim, he sued his mother and stepfather over his squandered film earnings ($48 million to $65 million adjusted for 2012 dollars) and provoked California to enact the first known legal protection for the earnings of child performers, widely known as 'the Coogan Act'.
![Gabriel de Gravone]()
French postcard in the Les Vedettes de Cinéma Series, by A.N., Paris, no. 160. Photo: G.L. Manuel Frères. Gravone is misspelled as Gravonne on this card.
Gabriel de Gravone (1887-1972) was an actor of the French silent cinema. He is best known as Élie in Abel Gance’s classic film La Roue (1920-1923).
![Suzanne Bianchetti]()
French postcard in the Les Vedettes de Cinéma Series, by A.N., Paris, no. 174. Photo: Suzanne Bianchetti in Les Aventures de Robert Macaire (Jean Epstein, 1925).
French film actress Suzanne Bianchetti (1889-1936) was one of France's most loved and respected actresses of her time. She played Marie Antoinette in Abel Gance's epic Napoléon (1927) and worked with many other great names of the silent cinema. After her death the Prix Suzanne Bianchetti was created in her memory, an annual French award to be given to the most promising young actress.
![Claude France]()
French postcard in the Les Vedettes de Cinéma Series, by A.N., Paris, no. 179. Photo: G.L. Manuel Frères.
Claude France (1893-1928) was a French actress of the 1920s.
![Walter McGrail]()
French postcard in the Les Vedettes de Cinéma Series, by A.N., Paris, no. 202. Photo: Fox.
Tall, mustachioed silent screen actor Walter McGrail (1888-1970) acted in film from 1916. By the 1920s he was established as a dapper leading man with all the major studios, peaking as star opposite May McAvoy in The Top of New York (William Desmond Taylor, 1922). During the 1920s his name remained high among the credits, whether as the 'other man', or as the scheming villain. McGrail continued after the coming of sound as supporting player, mainly in second feature Westerns. Between 1950 and 1958 McGrail worked for television series such as The Cisco Kid
![Alma Rubens]()
French postcard in the Les Vedettes de Cinéma Series, by A.N., Paris, no. 206. Photo: Fox Film.
Alma Rubens (1897–1931) was an American film actress and stage performer. She first acted at Triangle and Cosmopolitan, where she starred in the hit Humoresque (1920), based on a Fanny Hurst story and scripted by Frances Marion. The film won a precursor of the Oscars. While at Fox, Rubens peaked in the hit melodrama East Lynne (1925) opposite Edmund Lowe and Lou Tellegen. Yet, her drug abuse ended her career. She died young of a combination of pneumonia and bronchitis.
![John Gilbert]()
French postcard in the Les Vedettes de Cinéma Series, by A.N., Paris, no. 219. Photo: Metro-Goldwyn.
American actor, screenwriter and director John Gilbert (1899-1936) rose to fame during the silent film era and became a popular leading man known as 'The Great Lover'.
![Malcolm McGregor]()
French postcard in the Les Vedettes de Cinéma Series, by A.N., Paris, no. 228. Photo: Metro-Goldwyn.
Handsome Malcolm McGregor (1892-1945) had a rich career in 1920s Hollywood as the male partner to such female stars as Pauline Frederick, Norma Shearer, and Corinne Griffith. He debuted in The Prisoner of Zenda (Rex Ingram, 1922) as the dashing lieutenant who helps to defend his king, and had his breakthrough as the male lead in Broken Chains (Allen Holubar, 1922) and All the Brothers Were Valiant (Irving Willat, 1923). Until the late 1920s, McGregor had a prosperous career, but when sound set in his career waned, and in the mid-1930s he stopped acting.
![Francis X. Bushman (junior)]()
French postcard in the Les Vedettes de Cinéma Series, by A.N., Paris, no. 232. Photo: Metro-Goldwyn. This postcard does not show the famous actor from the silent 1925 epic Ben-Hur, but his lesser-known son Ralph, often indicated as Francis X. Bushman junior.
Ralph Everly Bushman (1903-1978), was an American actor. The son of notable silent film star Francis X. Bushman and Josephine Fladung Duval, he was born in Baltimore, Maryland. He followed his father into the acting business and was never quite as well known as Bushman senior, but nevertheless appeared in close to 60 films in a period of over 20 years, between 1920 and 1943.
![Mae Murray and John Gilbert in The Merry Widow]()
French postcard in the Les Vedettes de Cinéma Series, by A.N., Paris, no. 369. Mae Murray (the trema is a mistake) and John Gilbertas the romantic couple Sally O'Hara and Prince Danilo in The Merry Widow (Erich von Stroheim, 1925). The film was a huge success.
French postcard in the Les Vedettes de Cinéma Series, by A.N., Paris, no. 4. Photo: Film Paramount.
Jack Holt, originally Charles John Holt Jr. (1888–1951), was an American motion picture actor in both silent and sound films, particularly Westerns.
French postcard in the Les Vedettes de Cinéma Series, by A.N., Paris, no. 8. Photo: Roman Freulich / Universal Film.
Herbert Rawlinson (1885-1953) was a British actor who knew a rich career in American silent cinema, and less so in sound film, playing all in all in some 400 films.
French postcard in the Les Vedettes de Cinéma Series, by A.N., Paris, no. 11. Photo: Universal Film Company. Perhaps this card is for The Shark Master (Fred Leroy Granville, 1921) which evolves in the South Seas.
Frank Mayo (1889–1963) was an American actor, who appeared in 310 films between 1911 and 1949.
French postcard in the Les Vedettes de Cinéma Series, by A.N., Paris, no. 54. Photo: G.L. Manuel Frères.
American actor Douglas Fairbanks (1883-1939) was best known for his swashbuckling roles in silent films such as The Mark of Zorro (1920), Robin Hood (1922), and The Thief of Bagdad (1924), but spent the early part of his career making comedies. Fairbanks was a founding member of United Artists and of The Motion Picture Academy. He hosted the first Oscars Ceremony in 1929. With his marriage to Mary Pickford in 1920, the couple became Hollywood royalty and Fairbanks was referred to as The King of Hollywood'', but his career rapidly declined with the advent of the 'talkies'. His final film was made in Great Britain, The Private Life of Don Juan (1934).
French postcard in the Les Vedettes de Cinéma Series, by A.N., Paris, no. 75. Photo: G.L. Manuel Frères.
Sandra Milowanoff (1892–1957), also written as Milovanoff, was a Russian actress who became French citizen. She was a star of the French silent cinema in the 1920s, acting with directors like Feuillade, De Baroncelli, Fescourt and Vanel.
French postcard in the Les Vedettes de Cinéma Series, by A.N., Paris, no. 79. Photo: Universal Film. Beery's name is misspelled as Berry.
American actor Wallace Beery (1885-1949) is best known for his portrayal of Bill in Min and Bill opposite Marie Dressler, as Long John Silver in Treasure Island, as Pancho Villa in Viva Villa!, and for his titular role in The Champ, for which he won the Academy Award for Best Actor. Beery appeared in some 250 films in a 36-year career. He was the brother of actor Noah Beery, Sr. and uncle of actor Noah Beery, Jr.
French postcard in the Les Vedettes de Cinéma Series, by A.N., Paris, no. 90. Photo: Henri Manuel.
American actor John Leslie 'Jackie' Coogan (1914-1984) began as a child actor in silent films. He was Charlie Chaplin's irascible sidekick in The Kid (Charles Chaplin, 1921) and played the title role in Oliver Twist (Frank Lloyd, 1922). Many years later, he became known as Uncle Fester in the TV series The Addams Family (1964-1966). In the interim, he sued his mother and stepfather over his squandered film earnings ($48 million to $65 million adjusted for 2012 dollars) and provoked California to enact the first known legal protection for the earnings of child performers, widely known as 'the Coogan Act'.
French postcard in the Les Vedettes de Cinéma Series, by A.N., Paris, no. 160. Photo: G.L. Manuel Frères. Gravone is misspelled as Gravonne on this card.
Gabriel de Gravone (1887-1972) was an actor of the French silent cinema. He is best known as Élie in Abel Gance’s classic film La Roue (1920-1923).
French postcard in the Les Vedettes de Cinéma Series, by A.N., Paris, no. 174. Photo: Suzanne Bianchetti in Les Aventures de Robert Macaire (Jean Epstein, 1925).
French film actress Suzanne Bianchetti (1889-1936) was one of France's most loved and respected actresses of her time. She played Marie Antoinette in Abel Gance's epic Napoléon (1927) and worked with many other great names of the silent cinema. After her death the Prix Suzanne Bianchetti was created in her memory, an annual French award to be given to the most promising young actress.
French postcard in the Les Vedettes de Cinéma Series, by A.N., Paris, no. 179. Photo: G.L. Manuel Frères.
Claude France (1893-1928) was a French actress of the 1920s.
French postcard in the Les Vedettes de Cinéma Series, by A.N., Paris, no. 202. Photo: Fox.
Tall, mustachioed silent screen actor Walter McGrail (1888-1970) acted in film from 1916. By the 1920s he was established as a dapper leading man with all the major studios, peaking as star opposite May McAvoy in The Top of New York (William Desmond Taylor, 1922). During the 1920s his name remained high among the credits, whether as the 'other man', or as the scheming villain. McGrail continued after the coming of sound as supporting player, mainly in second feature Westerns. Between 1950 and 1958 McGrail worked for television series such as The Cisco Kid
French postcard in the Les Vedettes de Cinéma Series, by A.N., Paris, no. 206. Photo: Fox Film.
Alma Rubens (1897–1931) was an American film actress and stage performer. She first acted at Triangle and Cosmopolitan, where she starred in the hit Humoresque (1920), based on a Fanny Hurst story and scripted by Frances Marion. The film won a precursor of the Oscars. While at Fox, Rubens peaked in the hit melodrama East Lynne (1925) opposite Edmund Lowe and Lou Tellegen. Yet, her drug abuse ended her career. She died young of a combination of pneumonia and bronchitis.
French postcard in the Les Vedettes de Cinéma Series, by A.N., Paris, no. 219. Photo: Metro-Goldwyn.
American actor, screenwriter and director John Gilbert (1899-1936) rose to fame during the silent film era and became a popular leading man known as 'The Great Lover'.
French postcard in the Les Vedettes de Cinéma Series, by A.N., Paris, no. 228. Photo: Metro-Goldwyn.
Handsome Malcolm McGregor (1892-1945) had a rich career in 1920s Hollywood as the male partner to such female stars as Pauline Frederick, Norma Shearer, and Corinne Griffith. He debuted in The Prisoner of Zenda (Rex Ingram, 1922) as the dashing lieutenant who helps to defend his king, and had his breakthrough as the male lead in Broken Chains (Allen Holubar, 1922) and All the Brothers Were Valiant (Irving Willat, 1923). Until the late 1920s, McGregor had a prosperous career, but when sound set in his career waned, and in the mid-1930s he stopped acting.
French postcard in the Les Vedettes de Cinéma Series, by A.N., Paris, no. 232. Photo: Metro-Goldwyn. This postcard does not show the famous actor from the silent 1925 epic Ben-Hur, but his lesser-known son Ralph, often indicated as Francis X. Bushman junior.
Ralph Everly Bushman (1903-1978), was an American actor. The son of notable silent film star Francis X. Bushman and Josephine Fladung Duval, he was born in Baltimore, Maryland. He followed his father into the acting business and was never quite as well known as Bushman senior, but nevertheless appeared in close to 60 films in a period of over 20 years, between 1920 and 1943.
French postcard in the Les Vedettes de Cinéma Series, by A.N., Paris, no. 369. Mae Murray (the trema is a mistake) and John Gilbertas the romantic couple Sally O'Hara and Prince Danilo in The Merry Widow (Erich von Stroheim, 1925). The film was a huge success.