In the early days of film, the major studios never put an actor's name in the credits. They didn't want to give attention to them to keep their salaries low. Despite this, one face stood out to moviegoers- a young lady known only as The Girl With The Curls.
Despite not knowing her name, audiences loved her and began demanding to know who she was. Sensing an opening, the young lady demanded that she receive credit on her films. Rather than her real name of Gladys Louise Smith, she used a name that would endear her to millions- Mary Pickford.
The floodgates opened, soon every actor began getting credit on screen. This did result in the thing the studios feared most- salaries skyrocketed. This was a minor problem, however, since movie grosses also skyrocketed. Audiences would pay to see their favorites on the silver screen.
Despite the desire of audiences to really know their favorites, most actors adopted stage names, often to de-emphasize their ethnicity or to create a mystique. Ms. Pickford's stepdaughter by marriage would actually use a stage name that was less fanciful than her real one. Joan Crawford was born Lucille LeSeuer. Instead of seeing it as a name made for the screen, Louis B. Mayer thought it sounded like a fake name, created by a desperate starlet eager for attention. Ms. LeSeuer, therefore, became Joan Crawford.
