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In Billy Wilder’s classic take on Hollywood, Sunset Boulevard (1950), silent movie star, Norma Desmond (Gloria Swanson), nails it when she proudly tells screenwriter, Joe Gillis (William Holden), about actors in the time of silent pictures , “We didn’t need dialogue. We had faces!” As if to prove her point further, here is a stunning collection of photographs of some of the famous stars from Hollywood’s silent era. Yes Ms Desmond, we solidly agree – you all did have faces then!
Photos courtesy commons.wikimedia.org