Even though he continued to work in talking pictures before ending his career as a television star, Charles Farrell is mainly remembered today for the three silent pictures he starred in with Janet Gaynor. Those three films, 7th Heaven, Street Angel and Lucky Star, not only made him widely popular, but also serve as evidence to the romance, quality and power that silent movies still have today.
Janet Gaynor may have gained more notice come awards season, but Charles Farrell was every bit her equal when the two of them shared the screen. While she may have been more showy in her dramatics, he was clearly the lovable one with his rugged good looks and charisma that could out charm the best of the great lovers of the silent era.
His efforts in sound pictures and television, while quite acceptable, seemed to lack the spark of his early works. And you can't blame Janet Gaynor for that as the two of them made quite a few talkies together as well. It's the same problem so many of the silent actors had. A new medium had come to town and the old stars and formats seemed...well, old and dated. It's only looking back at the silent era, that as much as we wanted our favorites to succeed, only a handful would actually be more, or at least, as successful in the new medium of sound.
The fact that Charles Farrell continued to work in the business until he was a much older man means that he was one of the lucky ones. However, when watching his early silent work, it's clear where his career peaked, making him forever linked with the wonderful romantic movies that the silent era produced so well.
Janet Gaynor may have gained more notice come awards season, but Charles Farrell was every bit her equal when the two of them shared the screen. While she may have been more showy in her dramatics, he was clearly the lovable one with his rugged good looks and charisma that could out charm the best of the great lovers of the silent era.
His efforts in sound pictures and television, while quite acceptable, seemed to lack the spark of his early works. And you can't blame Janet Gaynor for that as the two of them made quite a few talkies together as well. It's the same problem so many of the silent actors had. A new medium had come to town and the old stars and formats seemed...well, old and dated. It's only looking back at the silent era, that as much as we wanted our favorites to succeed, only a handful would actually be more, or at least, as successful in the new medium of sound.
The fact that Charles Farrell continued to work in the business until he was a much older man means that he was one of the lucky ones. However, when watching his early silent work, it's clear where his career peaked, making him forever linked with the wonderful romantic movies that the silent era produced so well.
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