Nostalgia for old favorites was also a thing during the silent era. Take, for example, this 1925 Motion Picture Magazine article showcasing favorite stars who had left the motion picture industry at the height of their fame.
Of course, we have the benefit of hindsight and know that some of these stars returned but it is interesting to see who the audiences of 1925 missed. Film fans of the time were downright nostalgic for the “old days” which were not so very old after all.
I won’t be diving heavily into the careers of these stars, just letting you know if the comebacks happened or not.
Poor Mary Fuller was one of the early victims of the film industry. A comeback never happened.
Ann Little specialized in westerns but, like Fuller, her hoped-for return did not occur.
Marguerite Clark was second only to Mary Pickford in the 1910s but opted to retire. Alas, most of her pictures are missing and presumed lost.
E.K. Lincoln is another star with a horrendously short list of surviving films. This is a very depressing article indeed.
Better known as Broncho Billy, Anderson didn’t return to pictures as a star but he did enjoy reminiscing about the old days and even had a cameo in the talkies.
Some good news at last! Wilbur jumped to writing and directing and continued to work into the 1960s.
Another successful comeback here. Warwick may not have been a leading man but enjoyed supporting roles for the rest of his career.
Florence Turner was working in England but finally returned to America and worked in supporting and bit parts.
Carlyle Blackwell did have a bit of a resurgence as an actor, writer and director but, alas, it did not last. His 1929 performance in Der Hund von Baskerville was recently released on DVD and Bluray.
Movies Silently 