Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks by Abbe

Moore, O’Brien, and Volinine

Matt Moore (1888-1960), onetime brother-in-law of Mary Pickford and Renée Adorée

Matinée idol Eugene O’Brien (1880-1966)

Alexandre Emelianovich Volinine (1882-1955), for ten years Anna Pavlova’s dance partner

Academy Founders 17

N.B. The member numbers follow The Internet Movie Database's list order announcing the Academy in January 1927. 

17. Michael C./M. C. Levee (1891-1972), Producers Branch, third president of the Academy, 1931-32, with his wife in New York in 1932.

He was both a longtime studio executive and a top agent; his clients included Mary Pickford, Joan Crawford, and Cecil B. DeMille.

Academy Founders 8c

N.B. The member numbers follow The Internet Movie Database's list order announcing the Academy in January 1927.

8. Cecil B. DeMille (Cecil Blount de Mille, 1881-1959) of the Directors Branch.

Like Mary Pickford or Jesse L. Lasky, DeMille was a model of his kind: in his case, the bravura "Hollywood director." His career lasted long enough that he remade some of his films: THE SQUAW MAN of 1914 was remade twice, in 1918 and 1931; a wide-screen remake of the silent TEN COMMANDMENTS (1923) was the final film in DeMille's (directorial) career, released in 1956. He moved back and forth between romantic comedies and time-spanning (often Biblical) epics: the scenery-chewing GOLDEN BED (1925) was followed by THE VOLGA BOATMAN (1926) and THE KING OF KINGS (1927). 

Perhaps he was not the first to say it, but the phrase "The public is always right" is credited to him. Oddly enough, considering his film pedigree, DeMille was nominated for an Academy Award just twice; only one of his films won Best Picture: THE GREATEST SHOW ON EARTH (1952). In honor of his service to the Academy, and the industry, he won an honorary Oscar in 1950 and the 1953 Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award. 

Academy Founders 7

N.B. The member numbers follow The Internet Movie Database's list order announcing the Academy in January 1927.

7. Milton Sills (1882-1930) of the Actors Branch. The photo is by Harold Dean Carsey (1886-1947).

Like Mary Pickford, Sills was an early film star; his career began in 1914. His 1928 film THE BARKER was a particular success, and he was making a steady transition to sound films when he died playing tennis in 1930.

The actress Doris Kenyon (1897-1979) was Sills's second wife. Her third husband was the advertising executive and philanthropist Albert Davis Lasker (1880-1952).

Academy Founders 6

N.B. The member numbers follow The Internet Movie Database's list order announcing the Academy in January 1927.

6. Mary Pickford (Gladys Marie Smith, 1892-1979) of the Actors Branch. The photo is by Edwin Bower Hesser. 

Mary Pickford was one of the earliest film stars: by 1927, she had already been internationally famous for almost two decades. A co-founder of United Artists, it could be said that many aspects of Hollywood's notion of stardom were pioneered by -- and reflected the taste of -- "Little Mary" Pickford. 

She won the 1930 Academy Award for her first sound film, COQUETTE (1929). She was married to three film stars: Owen Moore 1911-20, Douglas Fairbanks (Sr.) 1920-36, and Charles "Buddy" Rogers 1937-79.

Academy Founders 4

N.B. The member numbers follow The Internet Movie Database's list order announcing the Academy in January 1927.

4. Harold Lloyd (1893-1971) of the Actors Branch, in a photo attributed to Russell Ball (1891-1942).

A comedy star of the same wattage as Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton, Lloyd specialized in a comedy of dangerous pratfalls — he was the “normal” youth in every group, the one whose disasters were both funny and educational.

The long sunset of his career was marked by continuing relevance in industry and Hollywood society circles; the Lloyds’ “Greenacres” was, like the Fairbankses’ “Pickfair,” a local showplace. 

He married his co-star Mildred Davis (1901-1969) in 1923.

Academy Founders 2

 N.B. The member numbers follow The Internet Movie Database's list order announcing the Academy in January 1927. 

2. Douglas Fairbanks (Sr.) (Douglas Elton Thomas Ullman, 1883-1939) of the Actors Branch (and first president of the Academy, 1927-29), shown here with his son Douglas Fairbanks Jr. (1909-2000).

The star of THE MYSTERY OF THE LEAPING FISH (1916) as Coke Ennyday -- not to mention 1918's SWAT THE KAISER -- by the end of the decade he had become a top film star. A founder of United Artists with Mary Pickford, Charlie Chaplin, and D.W. Griffith, during the 1920s Fairbanks went from strength to strength as an action/comedy star (THE MARK OF ZORRO, THE THREE MUSKETEERS, ROBIN HOOD, and THE IRON MASK, among others). Like Richard Barthelmess, his star waned during the 1930s.

He was married to Mary Pickford 1920-36.