Mary Astor's screen acting career stretched from the silent era (landing her first film role at age 16, in 1921) through the advent of sound, the rise of television, and the coming of hippies in the 1960s (when she retired from acting in 1964, after playing a supporting role in the start-studded thriller "Hush Sweet Scarlet"). Her stoic, regal aura, coupled with a powerful screen presence and ability to convey a wide range of shifting emotions with only body language and facial expresssions, carried her through changing technologies, public tastes, and cultural fads until she had appeared 123 movies. Although she stated that her heart was never fully in acting (she was following her father's dream for his beautiful daughter), she was a stand-out part of every film she appeared, whether she was playing a bit part or the starring role.
Today, we offer a small gallery of publicity stills and portraits of Astor from the first two decades of her career.
To see Mary Astor's skill in front of a camera,
check out "Behind Office Doors" via the Shades of Gray Screening Room over at YouTube!
_NRFPT_01.jpg "Mary Astor")
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