Lillian Gish

Charles Affron is Professor of French at New York University. He is the author of Sets in Motion, Cinema and Sentiment, Divine Garbo, and Star Acting: Gish, Garbo, Davis. He lives in New York City.

"To the very end, she did her part in raising awareness about the endangered legacy of silent film. But her insistence on going to any means to guard and sugarcoat Griffith's legacy distorts the reality of the silent film era. The truth, plain and simple, would serve a greater purpose today in bolstering awareness of the great work done by silent film artists. With this book, Affron takes a step in that direction by demystifying the actress and the world in which she worked."-Mary Houlihan, Chicago Sun-Times; "Gish, born in 1893, lived for 99 years. She spent the first quarter of a century becoming a legend and the last three-quarters of it acting as shaper and custodian of that legend.... Though most of Gish's story is known, we've never had it told with such balance and completeness. Affron completes the picture by restoring details Gish resolutely omitted."-Jay Carr, Boston Globe; "Well written, ambitious and intelligent, this biography is an essential addition to the work on Gish and on American film and theater."-Publishers Weekly; "Affron unearths the less edifying facts airbrushed out of his subject's memories yet retains his respect for her pioneering artistry. Gish emerges here as a stronger, savvier woman than we have met in previous accounts."-Wendy Smith, Variety; "[Affron] politely, consistently refutes Gish's line, remaining unfailingly generous to his subject's art and indomitability, all the while fastidiously and expertly devastating the fairy tale in which she wrapped herself. If we are ever to rescue silent film from its status as a dwindling cult's enthusiasm and restore it as a vital part of our cultural heritage, we need more work of this balanced and balancing kind."-Richard Schickel, New York Times Book Review; "[A] deeply honest book.... Granted unprecedented access to Gish's private letters and journals, [Affron] has used his privilege well. Stripping away Gish's own layers of selective memory and self-invention, and eclipsing earlier 'authorized' biographies, he challenges many assumptions.... A balanced and detailed portrait."-Jeanine Basinger, Washington Post

• Author's NoteIntroduction: Just to Make a Movie1 An American Family2 The Wicked Stage3 "I Don't Know Why I Ever Left Massillon"4 The "Flickers" and D. W. Griffith5 Becoming a Movie Actress6 The Mothering Heart7 Dorothy Gish' s Sister8 A Role for Movie History9 "Griffith's Girls"10 Becoming a Movie Star11 The Movies and the Great War12 "You Can Photograph Her Upside Down,Because It's All Even"13 From Melodrama to Tragedy14 In the Director's Chair15 "The Most Superlatively Exquisite and PoignantlyEnchaining Thing I Have Ever Seen in My Life"16 Good-bye Mr. Griffith17 "A Wistful April Moon"18 Inspiration Pictures19 Charles Holland Duell Jr.20 George Jean Nathan21 Kisses for Mimi22 The Perils of The Wind23 The Master of Schloss Leopoldskron24 Interlude25 GishSpeaks26 "The Most Interesting Actress on Our Stage"27 "Dreadful Man"28 Sinners, Saints, and Shakespeare29 America First30 "Oldtime Cinemactress"31 "Asking Nothing of the Role for Herself"32 The Small Screen33 Acting American34 "Will Come Running at Any Time"35 "My Blessed Sister"36 Oscar37 Final Close-Ups38 The Girl and the RoseNotesSelected BibliographyChronological Record of Lillian Gish'sDramatic PerformancesAcknowledgmentsIndex