“Mary Pickford,” says Melbourne Spurr, “always comes back to me, so I guess she thinks I’m not a bad photographer.”
Mary Pickford herself helped launch Melbourne Spurr's Hollywood photography career having been so impressed with his work shooting her for Fred Hartsook studio. It can be said that any photographer's career would get a boost if they shot Mary as that in itself was rather marketable at the time, but for Spurr, the quality of his Pickford portraits created a feverish interest -- so much so, that sittings would have to be booked months in advance. He would go on to photograph many stars in the 20s for his own studio, but branched out to other subjects by the decade's end.
Mary Pickford by Melbourne Spurr c. 1923. Photographer's studio stamp on verso and embossed at lower right. Personalized and hand-signed by Mary in purple ink. Gifted from the Pamela Short Collection.
Mary Pickford posing for Melbourne Spurr. Photographer's stamp on reverse. 1922. Part of NZ Photo Album.
Mary Pickford posing for Melbourne Spurr. Photographer's stamp on reverse. 1922. Part of NZ Photo Album.
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