"You’ll like Louis Mayer," Mary Pickford told Charles Foster in 1943. «He is from Canada, too.» As Foster was soon to discover, Mayer was not alone: a great many of those who helped shape Hollywood into the movie capital of the world were Canadian. Stardust and Shadows brings together the stories of 18 Canadians who were celebrities during Hollywood’s formative years. Most of those profiled were known to Foster, and stories they told him about Hollywood’s early days, enhanced by many...
When sound arrived in Hollywood in the late 1920s, Canadians were already holding some of the most important roles in the motion picture industry. Louis B. Mayer, from New Brunswick, was boss at MGM; Jack Warner, from Ontario, was head of Warner Bros. Studio; and Mack Sennett, from Quebec, was still King of Comedy. Canadians like Mary Pickford, Marie Dressler, and Norma Shearer moved easily from silents to talkies – this illustrious trio won the first three Academy Awards for Best Actress. ...
This special bundle contains seven books that detail Canada’s long and storied history in the performing arts. We learn about Canada’s early Hollywood celebrity movie stars; Canadians’ vast contributions to successful international stage musicals; the story of The Grand, a famous theatre in London, Ontario; reminiscences from the early days of radio; the history of the renowned Stratford Festival; and a lavish history of the famous National Ballet of Canada. Canada’s performing artists blossomed...
