Norma Talmadge

Silent film star Norma Talmadge as featured in the 1922 film SMILIN THROUGH. Born on May 2, 1894, in Jersey City, New Jersey, Norma was the eldest of the three daughters, (including Constance Talmadge who became a star in her own right). A major box-office draw for more than a decade, Norma's career reached a peak in the early 1920s, when she ranked among the most popular idols of the American screen. A specialist in melodrama, she was a huge success in "Smilin’ Through" (1922), and also scored artistic triumphs in "Secrets" (1924), "The Lady" (1925), “Camille” (1926) and “The Dove” (1926). In 1923, a poll of picture exhibitors named Norma Talmadge the number-one box office star. She was earning $10,000 a week, and receiving as many as 3,000 letters weekly from her fans. However, by the late 1920s Norma's popularity with audiences had begun to fade. Her film "The Woman Disputed" (1928) was a flop at the box-office as was her final film "Du Barry, Woman of Passion" (1930). In her later years, Norma, who had never been comfortable with the burdens of public celebrity, became reclusive. Increasingly crippled by painful arthritis, she was reported to be dependent on painkilling drugs. After suffering a series of strokes in 1957, she passed away of pneumonia on Christmas Eve of that year, aged 63. For her contribution to the motion picture industry, Norma Talmadge has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 1500 Vine Street.

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