My latest video - - which should enchant and enthrall you......and help you forget my previous post.
Theda Bara (1885 - 1955)
Hollywood's first official sex symbol. Vamp. Femme fatale. Seductress. Wanton woman.
The publicity department at Fox Studios went overboard to promote Theda's forbidden allure and devious intent. They claimed she was born in the Sahara - the daughter of an Arab Sheik and a French actress. She was raised in the shadow of a pyramid and her name was an anagram for Arab Death. She was known as the Serpent of the Nile.
There were unusual restrictions in her movie contract, intended to increase her aura of mystery: she could only go out after dark. Her face had to be veiled. She must perpetuate an interest in mysticism and the occult.
The truth was much less intoxicating than the myth. Theda Bara was in fact Theodosia Goodman, a Jewish girl from Cincinnati, Ohio. Her parents were of Polish and Swiss descent.
During her career, Theda Bara made over forty films. She became Fox Studio's biggest star and at the height of her popularity (between 1915 - 1919) earned over $4,000 a week.
Her first films, starting in 1914, were made on the east coast at Fox Studios in Ft. Lee, New Jersey. She moved to California in 1917, when Fox decided to feature her in the epic Hollywood film Cleopatra.
Unfortunately, Theda Bara's acting ability and on-screen allure can never be fully critiqued or appreciated, because almost all of her films are lost. They were destroyed in a 1937 fire at the Fox film archives in New Jersey. To date, only six of her films have survived (none of which were her most popular).
The titles of some of her best films are an indication of the delectably devious characters she portrayed:
Destruction (1915), Sin (1915), The Devil's Daughter (1915), The Serpent (1916), The Rose of Blood (1917), The She-Devil (1918).
Tired of being typecast as a vamp, and never really comfortable with her sexually-charged fabricated image, Theda left Fox in 1919. She only made a few more films before retiring in 1926.
Perhaps the biggest secret about Theda Bara is that, in her personal life, she was a virtuous woman - a genuine Miss Goody Two Shoes. There were never any scandals connected with her, and she was never a part of the seedy Hollywood scene.
She married film director Charles Brabin in 1921 and, after her retirement, they moved out of California and lived a quiet life. Theda Bara never had any children. She died of cancer at age 69 in 1955.
video best viewed full-screen
Note:
I wanted the music to be hauntingly bizarre, so I chose a composition by Erik Satie.
Lord, how far we've come from what's considered 'femme fatale.' (Rather, how far we've fallen.) Interesting -- and reassuring, too -- that her true personality was so different than what Hollywood would have the public believe. Thank goodness she got out of there.
ReplyDeleteNowadays Theda Bara's on-screen antics would not only be considered tame, but undoubtedly also laughable. You're right - we've fallen far....
DeleteIt seems that Bara never had a big ego nor a burning desire to be a star. Her rationality was intact and she abandoned Hollywood just in time.
Dear Jon, I'm so glad your beautiful video showed Theda's relaxed and kindly face as well as her "Vamp" one. I turned 6 the year she died and remember it was a big deal. There was a tv show shortly after that time called "Silents Please" which may have furthered my fondness for her face. Tonight, I poked around for quotes and found this from 1915: “The vampire that I play is the vengeance of my sex upon its exploiters. You see, I have the face of a vampire, perhaps, but the heart of a féministe." Her influence shows no sign of ending. She did good.
ReplyDeleteThanks for finding that quote, Geo. I had completely forgotten about it. I used that quote in an article that I wrote about Theda Bara long long ago. I was only nineteen and, if memory serves me, my article appeared in "Movie Collector's World".
DeleteWhile making the video, my initial intention was to feature Bara solely as the vamp character - but I found many lovely photos of her in "normal" attire, so I included some of those.
I heard that she designed some of the vamp outfits and wigs herself.
I have never heard of her, but her story indeed sounds very interesting. I learned something new!
ReplyDeleteIt's unfortunate that most of Bara's movies were destroyed. Had they survived, she would probably be more well-known today. As it is, she's mostly remembered as an antiquated legend.
DeleteOld Hollywood was really into packaging and media personas. They went out of their way to make her seem mysterious and exotic. Sounds like she had a good life despite Hollywood--LOL! ;)
ReplyDeleteThe movie studio publicity departments really went overboard with fictionalized biographies - almost nothing they said was true. Bara was fortunate to have left Hollywood unscathed (one of the few...).
DeleteFascinating information about Theda Bara Jon. Much information I didn’t previously know. Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteRon
Thanks, Ron. Even though few people know any details about her life, Theda Bara is still somewhat of a Hollywood icon with her vamp image.
DeleteMost of her films are lost but a lot of her photos remain - and they are fascinating and alluring.
Take care - you and Bill are always in my thoughts.
What a delightfully wonderful story. one i had never heard before. the music was indeed haunting and befitting for a Femme Fatale. LOVED this post.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you enjoyed it. I thought that weird music captured the mystic of the "vamp" image. There's something so intriguing about those silent film stars.
DeleteI too did not know much about Theda Bara, Jon, aside from having known she was a silent film star. And, of course, being a NJ native that connection was very interesting, especially hearing about the former Fox Studios there. It’s unfortunate that most of her best work is no longer available.
ReplyDeleteIt's interesting that many of the very earliest motion pictures were made at the Edison Studios and Fox studios in New Jersey. And it's a shame that nearly all of Theda Bara's work was destroyed in a fire. It serves to increase the mystic that surrounds her.
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