Category Archives: motion picture history

Remembering Barbara Stanwyck – A Life in Film and Scrapbooks

Posted on July 17, 2017 by

“She wanted to be a dancer or a missionary, but eventually she decided to become an actress… She has intelligence, sincerity, and much charm. She is devoted to her husband and her home interests, and loves little children. Only recently … Continue reading →

Posted in Actors, Biography and profiles, Hollywood history, Interns' projects, motion picture history | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Living the Reel Life: The Journey of Child Actor Dick Moore

Posted on October 5, 2015 by mmarcusse

Born John Richard Moore, Jr., “Dickie” made his silver screen debut at eleven months old when he portrayed the infant Francois Villon (fifteenth-century poet and scoundrel) in the silent film The Beloved Rogue (1927). Cast for his resemblance to the … Continue reading →

Posted in Current events, Journalism, motion picture history, Obituaries, popular culture, World War II | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Jacques Kapralik and the Art of Film Promotion

Posted on April 25, 2014 by stowam

The American Heritage Center is fortunate to hold the papers and artwork of Jacques Kapralik. Kapralik was a commercial artist and caricaturist whose art was used in the promotion of motion pictures throughout Hollywood’s Golden Era of the 1930s-1950s. Born … Continue reading →

Posted in commercial art, Digital collections, Hollywood history, motion picture history, popular culture | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

From Spurs to Screen: Wyoming Boy Makes It Big In Hollywood

Posted on January 24, 2014 by ahcadmin

Sometimes those “film cowboys” featured in Westerns in the 1920s-1950s were actually real cowboys. One such authentic cowboy-turned-Hollywood star is Wally Wales (also known as Hal Taliaferro). Wally Wales was born Floyd Taliaferro Alderson in 1895 in Sheridan, Wyoming.  His … Continue reading →

Posted in Hollywood history, motion picture history, newly processed collections, popular culture, Western Films | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

Hopalong Cassidy: Cowboy Hero and Franchise Empire

Posted on April 8, 2013 by ahcadmin

One the most popular collections at the American Heritage Center is the papers of William Boyd, who played cowboy Hopalong Cassidy for many years on radio, television, and film. Hopalong Cassidy was originally created by author Clarence E. Mulford in … Continue reading →

Posted in Comic book history, motion picture history, newly processed collections, popular culture, television history | Tagged , , , , , , , | 13 Comments

Sky High in Wyoming

Posted on April 13, 2012 by ahcadmin

In a press release written to accompany the release of her film, Sky High in Wyoming, the documentary filmmaker Mildred Capron (whose papers reside at the American Heritage Center) states: An easterner by birth and background, 14 years in China … Continue reading →

Posted in Archival Film, Digital collections, motion picture history, newly digitized collections, Wyoming history | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

The Art of Silent Film: Al Christie’s Contribution to Early Hollywood

Posted on December 8, 2011 by ahcadmin

Long before modern blockbusters filled theater screens with explosive sound and color, silent films captivated audiences through pure visual storytelling. This lost art form, which flourished from 1894-1929, experienced a revival when The Artist won major awards in 2011 for … Continue reading →

Posted in Hollywood history, motion picture history, popular culture, resources | Tagged , , , , | 6 Comments

Delving into Animation History: The Legacy of Michael Maltese

Posted on October 19, 2011 by ahcadmin

Michael Maltese was born on February 6, 1908, in New York City to Italian immigrant parents, Paul and Concetta. He was married to Florence Sass in 1936 and had a daughter, Brenda, in 1938.  He started his career in the … Continue reading →

Posted in Animation, Animation history, cartoons, Entertainment history, motion picture history, popular culture, resources, television history | Tagged , , , , , | 3 Comments