Once Upon a Time in Paradise: Canadians in the Golden Age of Hollywood

by Charles Foster

When sound arrived in Hollywood in the late 1920s, Canadians were already holding some of the most important roles in the motion picture industry. Louis B. Mayer, from New Brunswick, was boss at MGM; Jack Warner, from Ontario, was head of Warner Bros. Studio; and Mack Sennett, from Quebec, was still King of Comedy. Canadians like Mary Pickford, Marie Dressler, and Norma Shearer moved easily from silents to talkies - this illustrious trio won the first three Academy Awards for Best Actress. Canadians arriving in sunny California in the 1930s and 1940s were principally actors, including Yvonne de Carlo, Walter Pidgeon, Ruby Keeler, and many others. You will be amazed at the Canadian influence on Hollywood’s Golden Age.

336 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2003

About the author

Charles Foster is a Fellow of Green Templeton College at the University of Oxford. He is a qualified veterinarian, teaches medical law and ethics, and is a practicing barrister. Much of his life has been spent on expeditions: he has run a 150-mile race in the Sahara, skied to the North Pole, and suffered injuries in many desolate and beautiful landscapes. He has written on travel, evolutionary biology, natural history, anthropology, and philosophy.

Reviews

[Barry Hammond · Rating 4 out of 5]

Charles Foster has selected 14 Canadians who were prominent in Hollywood history to showcase in this collection of well-researched thumbnail biographies. Everyone from prominent mainstream actors like Raymond Massey, Jack Carson, Walter Huston, David Manners, Yvonne De Carlo and Walter Pidgeon, to character actors like Ned Sparks and John Qualen, to dancing star Ruby Keeler and studio head Jack Warner. Although he won't win any awards for stylish prose, his workman-like biographies are full of interesting and previously unheard facts and stories. Any reader with an interest in Canadian history will be pleased with this volume. - BH.