Picture this: it's late March 1920, just after 10:30 p.m., and Hollywood's biggest stars are tying the knot in a secret ceremony. Mary Pickford, known affectionately as "America’s Sweetheart," exchanges vows with the dashing Douglas Fairbanks. The two were surrounded by only a handful of trusted friends, making their union an intimate affair. This wasn't just any Hollywood wedding; this was the coupling of two legends whose star power lit up the silent film era.
Mary wasn’t without her worries, though. She feared her fans might not approve of their union since both were married to other people when their romance began. But as it turns out, her concerns were unfounded. When the newlyweds embarked on their European honeymoon, they were greeted by throngs of well-wishers at every stop. The world embraced their love story with open arms.
“Their union was a sensation,” says Tracey Goessel, author of The First King of Hollywood: The Life of Douglas Fairbanks. “Douglas and Mary were the most beloved and recognized figures on the planet. The fact that these two adored individuals were in love with each other brought joy to people everywhere.”
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Back in the early days of cinema, no two stars shone brighter than Mary and Douglas. Mary, with her signature curls, became the first actress to have her name in marquee lights. She was known for playing sweet, innocent heroines, while Douglas thrilled audiences as the swashbuckling hero in films like Zorro and Robin Hood. Together, they were a dynamic duo that captured the imagination of a nation.
The Golden Era of Hollywood's Sweethearts
“They were the embodiment of the spirit of their times,” Goessel continues. “Their youthful energy, optimism, and vitality resonated with the public. The marriage only fueled their already skyrocketing fame, turning them into an unstoppable force.”
Douglas welcomed Mary into his hunting lodge in the then relatively quiet neighborhood of Beverly Hills. They named it "Pickfair" and transformed it into a 25-room mansion, complete with a home theater and Los Angeles’ first in-ground swimming pool. For the first seven years of their marriage, the couple was inseparable. “They spent every single night together,” Goessel notes.
At Pickfair, the couple hosted extravagant dinner parties, inviting luminaries such as Charlie Chaplin, Amelia Earhart, Albert Einstein, and F. Scott Fitzgerald. “They’d gather films from other studios and everyone would watch them together,” Goessel recalls. These gatherings were not just social events but a celebration of the arts, bringing the brightest minds and talents under one roof.
The Decline of a Dream
As the late 1920s rolled in, the golden aura surrounding this iconic couple began to fade. In 1928, Mary suffered a devastating loss with the death of her mother from cancer. This tragic event sent her spiraling into alcoholism. Both Mary and Douglas struggled to adapt to the new era of "talking" pictures, and seeds of distrust began to sow cracks in their once unbreakable bond.
