Left: poster from Through the Back Door, 1921; Right: movie cover of Coquette, 1929

Compare these images of Mary Pickford films.

Questions to consider:
How is she portrayed in each image?
Does her image change in the eight years between these movies? Why or why not? Please keep in mind that Pickford
produced both films.
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2010 National Womens History Museum

www.nwhm.org

Left: DVD cover of Dance, Girl, Dance, 1940; Right: poster for Flying Down to Rio, 1933
In the first image, Dorothy Arzner, who directed Dance, Girl, Dance, is not named on the DVD coveralthough Maureen
OHara and Lucille Ball of I Love Lucy are featured.
In the second poster, Flying Down to Rio, Dolores del Rios name is included but she is not shown, even though she was
the main character. Instead, it is dancer Ginger Rogers who is shown.
Questions to consider:
What do you think motivated the choices of those who designed the poster and the DVD cover? (Please note that the
DVD cover is not recent.)
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2010 National Womens History Museum

www.nwhm.org

Left: poster for the sixth episode of The Perils of Pauline, 1914; Right: poster for the twentieth episode of The Perils of
Pauline, 1914
Compare the two posters for The Perils of Pauline.
Questions to consider:
How is the character of Pauline shown in both posters?
Does it seem as though her character has changed between these episodes?
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2010 National Womens History Museum

www.nwhm.org

Left: poster for Shanghai Express, 1932; Right: magazine cover of Lupe Velez from 1929
Compare the poster and magazine cover.
Questions to consider:
The poster for Shanghai Express features Anna May Wong on the left, with German-born Marlene Dietrich on the right.
Do you think that the women have been excessively made up to appear exotic? How do they compare to the men?
The image on the right is a magazine cover that depicts a scantily clad Lupe Velezbut its headlines on the left do not
mention her name. Please discuss.
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2010 National Womens History Museum

www.nwhm.org

Left: DVD cover for Dinner at Eight; Right: poster for Dinner at Eight, 1933
Compare the DVD cover and poster for Dinner at Eight.
Questions to consider:
Has the portrayal of women changed from the poster to the DVD? (Keep in mind that many years have passed between
the two and the DVD cover is more recent.)
Why do you think Frances Marion, the writer, was mentioned on the DVD, but not on the poster? Note also that the
original author, Edna Ferber, is on the DVD cover. Ferber wrote many novels that were made into epic movies, including
Cimarron (1931) and Giant (1956), but here she appears only as a collaborator. Please discuss.
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2010 National Womens History Museum

www.nwhm.org

Additional questions:
Based on the posters and movie covers, can you tell what each movie was about? Why or why not? Could the posters
and movie covers be more effective in any way? You can read a synopsis of each film at www.IMDB.com.
Based on what you read in the exhibit, what type of role do you think Dolores del Rio played in Flying Down to Rio?
What type of role do you think Anna May Wong played in Shanghai Express?
How have roles of minority actresses changed today?
How have roles for women changed today? Consider the roles of actresses, as well as writers and directors.

2010 National Womens History Museum

www.nwhm.org