Origins & Early Life

Colleen Moore (born Kathleen Morrison; August 19, 1899 – January 25, 1988) was an American film actress who began her career during the silent film era and continued into the early sound film era. Moore became one of the most fashionable (and highly-paid) stars of the era and helped popularize the bobbed haircut. Moore was a huge star in her day. She made 64 films in total; 30 are extant in their entirety, 7 are partially lost and 27 are completely lost.

Pivotal Works & Achievements

Moore donated prints of 15 of her films to the Museum of Modern Art for preservation. Unfortunately, the films were preserved so poorly that they disintegrated beyond restoration over the years, which deeply distressed her. Ten of those films survive in full, and another 3 were damaged but some parts remain; only 2 of the films were completely destroyed. Her first two talking pictures, Smiling Irish Eyes and Footlights and Fools, both from 1929, are lost, apart from the Vitaphone soundtrack disks. What was perhaps her most celebrated film, Flaming Youth (1923), is now mostly lost as well, with only one 11-minute reel surviving.

Enduring Legacy & Impact

Moore took a hiatus from acting between 1929 and 1933, just as sound was being added to motion pictures. After...

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