In the early days of cinema, actors in movies weren't credited at all, mainly because film studios were afraid they would demand higher salaries if they became well known. That was the way it was for Florence Lawrence, who acted in dozens of silent films for Vitagraph and then Biograph, where she became so recognizable that she was known as "the Biograph girl." Still, Lawrence's name didn't get screen credit until 1910 when she joined Carl Laemmle's movie company, the Independent Moving Pictures Company. Laemmle thought crediting his best actress would be a boon to his studio, and he was right. Lawrence's name alone could draw crowds to see a movie.
But Florence Lawrence was more than a movie star. She did her own stunts. She produced and directed movies. She invented devices that were the precursor to the turn signal and the brake light, for which she also got no credit. Read about the amazing career of Florence Lawrence, the first American movie star, at Messy Nessy Chic.
