Gloria Swanson in Don’t Change Your Husband

Don’t Change Your Husband is a 1919 American silent comedy film directed by Cecil B. DeMille and starring Gloria Swanson. The film was the third of six “marriage films” directed by DeMille and the first DeMille film starring Gloria Swanson.

Based upon a description in a film magazine, Leila Porter (Swanson) has grown tired of her husband James Denby Porter (Elliott Dexter), the glue king, as she is romantic but he is prosaic.

Moreover, he is careless of his personal appearance, gets cigar ash in the carpet, and eats green onions before he tries to kiss her.

She obtains a divorce and then marries James’ friend Schuyler Van Sutphen (Lew Cody), but discovers that Van Sutphen is a real beast.

When she later discovers that her ex-husband has changed as a result of the divorce, still loves her, and would be happy to have her back, Leila divorces once again in order to remarry James.

Don’t Change Your Husband was a watershed film for Gloria. It opened in January and was held over for two weeks in New York, which was unheard of at the time.

Gloria Swanson in a production still from Don’t Change Your Husband, 1919 via

Gloria Swanson in Don’t Change Your Husband, 1919 via

Gloria Swanson & Lew Cody in Don’t Change Your Husband, 1919 via

Gloria Swanson & Elliott Dexter in Don’t Change Your Husband, 1919 via

Gloria Swanson in Don’t Change Your Husband, 1919 via

Zelda Boden – Circus Performer

Zelda Boden, circus performer  via

Zelda Boden, circus performer  via

Theda Bara in The She-Devil (1918)

The She-Devil is a 1918 American silent romantic drama film directed by J. Gordon Edwards and starring Theda Bara as Lolette. This film is now considered to be a lost film.

This was the last film in which Alan Roscoe starred with Theda Bara; they appeared in six films together starting with Camille in 1917.

Theda Bara defends in a scene still for “The She-Devil”, 1918 via

Theda Bara defends herself in a scene still for “The She-Devil”, 1918 via

Theda Bara photographed for “The She-Devil”, 1918 via

A Collection of Vintage Photos feat. Valda Valkyrien

Valda Valkyrien (1895 – 1956) was a Danish prima ballerina and a silent film actress.

Born Adele Eleonore Freed in Reykjavík, Iceland, under the stage name Valda Valkyrien she was prima ballerina of the Royal Danish Ballet. She married Danish nobleman and author, Baron Hrolf von Dewitz and in 1912 began appearing in motion pictures for Nordisk Film productions of Copenhagen.

With World War I raging in Europe, in 1915 a New York City publisher released her husband’s book titled War’s New Weapons which received considerable publicity. That same year, Thanhouser Studios capitalized on her husband’s success and her aristocratic title, billing her as Baroness von Dewitz in a film about Norse mythology titled The Valkyrie. The resulting success brought Valda Valkyrien an offer from the Fox Film Corporationand in 1916 she signed on to make feature-length productions.

Her career only lasted a few years. Most of Valkyrien’s films exist only in fragmentary form or survive only via movie still photographs.

Valda Valkyrien in The Valkyrie, 1915 via

Valda Valkyrien in or as The Valkyrie, 1915 via

Valda Valkyrien via

Valda Valkyrien via

Theda Bara in Madame Du Barry (1917)

Madame Du Barry is a 1917 American silent historical drama film directed by J. Gordon Edwards and starring Theda Bara as Jeanne Vaubernier. The film is based on the French novel Memoirs d’un médecin by Alexandre Dumas.

The film is now considered a lost film. Many of Theda Bara’s films were destroyed in a 1937 Fox Studios vault fire.

Theda Bara as Jeanne Vaubernier, 1917 via

Theda Bara as Jeanne Vaubernier, 1917 via

Theda Bara as Jeanne Vaubernier, 1917 via

Theda Bara as Jeanne Vaubernier, 1917 via