Mary Pickford - Moody Photos - 1914

Photographer Rufus Porter Moody, perhaps best-known simply as R. P. Moody, was born in Kentucky in 1873. For some time, he ran a photography studio in Nashville, TN, but in 1913,  found his way to New York where he opened a studio on 42nd Street to cater to the theatrical crowd. There, he took some of my personal favorite Mary Pickford portraits which were well-used around 1915-1916 in magazines, on ads, on postcards, and beyond. Undoubtedly, Moody is best know for his amazing use of light and shadow which often times created an ethereal atmosphere well suited for Pickford. In 1916, the studio was moved to Broadway, but by then, his business was already in decline. He died in 1922.

Mary Pickford in an inventive double portrait by Rufus P. Moody. Stamped in gold ink "Mary Pickford, appearing exclusively in productions of the Famous Players Film Co., Adolph Zukor, Pres." Stamped Moody on verso 1914.

Mary Pickford in a portrait by Rufus P. Moody. Stamped in gold ink "Mary Pickford, appearing exclusively in productions of the Famous Players Film Co., Adolph Zukor, Pres." Stamped Moody on verso 1914. 

Mary Pickford in a portrait by Rufus P. Moody. Stamped in gold ink "Mary Pickford, appearing exclusively in productions of the Famous Players Film Co., Adolph Zukor, Pres." Stamped Moody on verso 1914. 

Mary Pickford in a portrait by Rufus P. Moody. Stamped in gold ink "Mary Pickford, appearing exclusively in productions of the Famous Players Film Co., Adolph Zukor, Pres." Stamped Moody on verso 1914. 

Mary Pickford in a portrait by Rufus P. Moody. Stamped in gold ink "Mary Pickford, appearing exclusively in productions of the Famous Players Film Co., Adolph Zukor, Pres." Stamped Moody on verso 1914. 

Mary Pickford in a portrait by Rufus P. Moody. 1914.

Mary Pickford in an exceptional portrait by Rufus P. Moody. Stamped signature. 1914. 

Mary Pickford in Rufus P. Moody photo. Stamped in silver ink "Mary Pickford, appearing exclusively in productions of the Famous Players Film Co., Adolph Zukor, Pres." 1914. Part of NZ Photo Album.

Mary Pickford in Rufus P. Moody 8x10 photo. 1914. Part of NZ Photo Album.

Mary Pickford in a portrait by Rufus P. Moody with quite a bit of mirroring. Signature in negative. 1914.

Mary Pickford in a portrait by Rufus P. Moody. 1914.

Mary Pickford Rufus P. Moody 8x10 photo. I suspect this photo is most recognizable from the cover of the April 1915 issue of The Ladies' World magazine. 1914. Part of NZ Photo Album.

Mary Pickford Rufus P. Moody 8x10 photo. I suspect this photo is most recognizable from the cover of the April 1915 issue of The Ladies' World magazine. 1914. Part of NZ Photo Album.

Mary Pickford and a cat in a portrait by Rufus P. Moody. 1914. Part of NZ Photo Album.

Mary Pickford - Campbell Studios Photos

Campbell Studios was founded in the 1800s by photography pioneer and inventor Alfred S. Campbell in Elizabethtown, NJ, but it was essentially a whole different entity by the time of its stint on 5th Avenue in New York City. Under the management of Rudolf Eickemeyer in the early 1900s, the studio moved towards theatrical portraiture and photography which continued under Arthur Rice’s direction through the late 1920s. Many of the Mary Pickford’s Campbell Studio portraits are somewhat well-recognized, though the name doesn’t seem to be as easily recognized as some of the other studios like Hartsook.

Mary Pickford poses with a parrot in a Campbell Studios photo. Embossed photographer stamp at lower left. 1917.

Mary Pickford portrait by Campbell Studios. 1917.

Mary Pickford in a Campbell Studios photo. Stamped signature. 1917. Part of NZ Photo Album.

Mary Pickford poses in a Campbell Studios photo. Embossed photographer stamp at lower left. Personalized and handsigned in ink for actor Niles Welch. ca. 1919.

Mary Pickford poses in a Campbell Studios photo. Embossed photographer stamp at lower left. ca. 1919.

Mary Pickford poses in a Campbell Studios photo. Stamped signature. Embossed photographer stamp at lower left. ca. 1919.

Mary Pickford poses in a Campbell Studios photo. Embossed photographer stamp at lower left. ca. 1919. Part of NZ Photo Album.

Mary Pickford poses in a Campbell Studios photo. Embossed photographer stamp at lower left. c. 1920. Part of NZ Photo Album.

Mary Pickford poses in  Campbell Studios photo. Embossed photographer stamp at lower left. ca. 1920. Part of NZ Photo Album.

Mary Pickford poses in a Campbell Studios photo. Embossed photographer stamp at lower left. ca. 1920.

Mary Pickford poses in a Campbell Studios photo. Embossed photographer stamp at lower left. ca. 1919. Part of NZ Photo Album.

Mary Pickford poses in a Campbell Studios photo. Embossed photographer stamp at lower left. ca. 1919.

Mary Pickford poses in a creased Campbell Studios photo. Embossed photographer stamp at lower left. ca. 1919. Part of NZ Photo Album.

Mary Pickford in a Campbell Studios portrait (Walturdaw Pictures photo.) 1917 (print c. 1919.) Part of NZ Photo Album.

Mary Pickford in a Campbell Studios portrait (Walturdaw Pictures photo.) 1917 (print c. 1919.) Part of NZ Photo Album.

Mary Pickford portrait by Campbell Studio. Photographers studio mark in negative. 1917.

Mary Pickford Campbell Studios portrait (Walturdaw Pictures photo.) 1917 (print c. 1919.) Part of NZ Photo Album.

Mary Pickford in a photo by Campbell Studios but printed and marked as Apeda Studios on thin glossy stock. This photo shows a somewhat shady practice (whether intentionally seedy or not, I don't know) by Apeda where, besides shooting their own photos, the studio would also obtain copies of non-copyrighted photos and print their own, but not before removing the original studio's trademark and adding their own. In fact, White Studio even sued them... and lost! With that said, portions of Campbell Studio remain visible at the lower right. "Mary Pickford appearing exclusively in Artcraft Pictures." "Mary Pickford in Artcraft Pictures" on back. 1917. There is also a glass magic lantern slide in the collection with the same shot. Part of NZ Photo Album.

Mary Pickford in a photo by Campbell Studios but printed and marked as Apeda Studios on thin glossy stock. This photo shows a somewhat shady practice (whether intentionally seedy or not, I don't know) by Apeda where, besides shooting their own photos, the studio would also obtain copies of non-copyrighted photos and print their own, but not before removing the original studio's trademark and adding their own. In fact, White Studio even sued them... and lost! With that said, portions of Campbell Studio remain visible at the lower right. "Mary Pickford appearing exclusively in Artcraft Pictures." "Mary Pickford in Artcraft Pictures" on back. 1917. There is also a glass magic lantern slide in the collection with the same shot.

Mary Pickford poses in a Campbell Studios Photo. Embossed photographer stamp at lower right. 1917.

Mary Pickford Campbell Studios portrait (Walturdaw Pictures photo.) 1917 (print c. 1919.) Part of NZ Photo Album.

Mary Pickford portrait by Campbell Studios. Often erroneously attributed to Witzel due to his copyprint.  1917.

Mary Pickford poses, in a dress by Jean Lanvin, in a Campbell Studios photo. Embossed photographer stamp at lower left. Stamped "From United Artists Corporation" on verso. ca. 1922.

Mary Pickford poses, in a dress by Jean Lanvin, in a Campbell Studios photo. Embossed photographer stamp at lower left. ca. 1922.

Mary Pickford poses, in a dress by Jean Lanvin, in a Campbell Studios photo. Embossed photographer stamp at lower right. Stamped "From United Artists Corporation" on verso. ca. 1922.

Mary Pickford poses, in a dress by Jean Lanvin, in a Campbell Studios photo. Embossed photographer stamp at lower right. Personalized and handsigned in ink for actress Virginia Fox (future wife of producer Darryl F. Zanuck / co-founder of 20th Century Fox.) ca. 1922.

Cutout Mary Pickford portrait by Campbell Studios ca. 1919.

Mary Pickford - Ira L. Hill Photos

Ira L. Hill opened his 5th Avenue studio in 1907 — specializing in society and fashion photography and quickly building a name for himself. In 1914, going with the idea that Broadway is associated with NY society, he broke into theatrical portraiture. For much of the teens and up to the mid-20s, Hill was a leading photographer of the subject. In the late 20s, he essentially abandoned theatrical photography to once again focus primarily on high society. Hill died in 1947, but the studio name continued until the late 60s.

Mary Pickford photo by Ira L. Hill. Photographer's studio on negative and photographer's stamp on verso. 1916.

Mary Pickford photo by Ira L. Hill. Photographer's studio on negative and photographer's stamp on verso. 1916.

Mary Pickford photo by Ira L. Hill. Signature in negative. 1916. Part of NZ Photo Album. That was notably used as the basis for a painted portrait of Mary that hung at Pickfair.

Mary Pickford photo by Ira L. Hill. Photographer's studio on negative. Signature on negative. 1916. Part of NZ Photo Album.

Mary Pickford photo by Ira L. Hill. Photographer's studio on negative. Signature on negative. 1916. Part of NZ Photo Album.

Mary Pickford photo by Ira L. Hill. Photographer's studio on negative. 1916. Part of NZ Photo Album. One of my personal favorites by Hill as it seems to exude an almost ghostly-atmosphere of the time period, in my mind at least.

Mary Pickford photo by Ira L. Hill. Photographer's studio on negative. Signature on negative. 1916. Part of NZ Photo Album.

Mary Pickford photo by Ira L. Hill. Photographer's studio on negative. Signature on negative. 1916. Part of NZ Photo Album.

Mary Pickford photo by Ira L. Hill. Photographer's studio on negative and photographer's stamp on verso. 1916.

 

Mary Pickford photo by Ira L. Hill. Photographer's studio on negative. While the photo seems to be hand-signed in ink at the lower right, it is likely not signed by Mary herself. The signature seems to match those "signed in the negative" on other Ira L. Hill photos, but that signature does not appear to be simply traced in ink here (though it very well could be.) 1916. Part of NZ Photo Album.

Mary Pickford photo by Ira L. Hill. Photographer's studio on negative and stamped on verso. While the photo is hand-signed in ink at lower right, it is very clearly not signed by Mary herself. 1916. Part of NZ Photo Album.

Mary Pickford photo by Ira L. Hill. Photographer's studio on negative and photographer's stamp on verso. 1916.

Mary Pickford photo by Ira L. Hill. Photographer's studio on negative and photographer's stamp on verso. 1916.

No, this isn't a scene from an early Mary Pickford Biograph... it is a Mary Pickford photo by Ira L. Hill. Photographer's studio on negative and photographer's stamp on verso. 1916.

Mary Pickford on a ladder photo by Ira L. Hill. Photographer's studio on negative and photographer's stamp on verso. 1916.

Mary Pickford with wood shavings photo by Ira L. Hill. Photographer's studio on negative and photographer's stamp on verso. 1916.