From Silents to Sound

Garbo talked, Gilbert self-destructed and Chaplin refused - that's about all many people know about silent film actors who faced the transition into talking pictures. Yes, Greta Garbo's talkie debut was successful, John Gilbert's was disastrous, and Charlie Chaplin did not deign to make one for over a decade. But there were many others - both stars and lesser lights - who also made the leap for at least one talking film.From Renee Adoree to Loretta Young, over 500 actors and actresses who made at least three silent films and had some starring or supporting roles in sound films are included in this reference work. For each performer, the place of birth, vital dates, nicknames if any, real name if different from stage name, and a source for filmographic data are included. This information is followed by capsule accounts of the performer's silent and sound careers, along with contemporary reviews of selected talkies in which they appeared.

"most interesting...even the most casual browser will be impressed...thought provoking...recommended"--Booklist; "[a] well-written, educational, and eminently readable look at the turbulent history of an industry that affects us all"--ARBA; "wonderful"--Public Library Quarterly; "fill[s] [a] niche in film biography...useful"--Choice; "very readable...informative...the author writes engagingly and his descriptions of the performers and their screen personas are right on target"--The Silents Majority.

Roy Liebman, formerly a librarian and film bibliographer at California State University, currently works at the Los Angeles Public Library. Living in Woodland Hills, California, he is also the author of The Wampas Baby Stars (2000) and Silent Film Performers (1996).