Starts Thursday

This week we wish a glorious HAPPY BIRTHDAY to our good friend Diana Serra Cary!  Diana was born this week in 1918, a mere 92 years ago.  She came to fame (very) early in life as one of the first childhood mega-stars in her character "Baby Peggy."  During the course of her career (beginning at age 19 months!) she appeared in almost 150 comedy shorts for for Century Studios, before moving to Universal Studios 1923 to star in full-length feature films.

In recent years Diana has published a number of books recalling not only studio years, but also fascinating inquiries into the phenomenon of the child star.  Her books are not cheesy "as told to" Hollywood tales, but rather they are exceptionally well written and researched, and deserve a place on every film lover's book shelf.  I have personally read them all and you simply can't go wrong.

• Whatever Happened to Baby Peggy:  The Autobiography of Hollywood's Pioneer Child Star (1996)
• The Hollywood Posse: The Story of a Gallant Band of Horsemen Who Made Movie History (1996)
• Jackie Coogan: The World's Boy King: A Biography of Hollywood's Legendary Child Star (2007)
• Hollywood's Children: An Inside Account of the Child Star Era (1997)

Diana currently lives is central California and is a wonderful personality and still very vibrant and active.  She is a great friend of the Niles Essanay Silent Film Museum as well as the San Francisco Silent Film Festival, and is treasured by everybody that has had the good fortune to meet her.

 Happy Birthday Diana!