This treasure-trove of stills and portraits brings to life the pictures and the people who transformed the cinema from a curiosity into a beloved institution. From the earliest Edison kinetoscopes of 1889 to Charlie Chaplin"s "City Lights" and "Modern Times", the rambunctious, ground-breaking days of the silent era are captured in these pages. All the great stars are here - Greta Garbo, Rudolph Valentino, Mary Pickford, Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle, Buster Keaton, and Lillian Gish, among others. Also included are such brilliant director as Mack Sennett & D.W. Griffith. This year-by-year chronology provides a delightful visual guide to the fondly remembered decades that comprised the silent era. There is a short essay on the films and filmmakers of each year, as well as dozens of photos that constitute a wonderful introduction to, or a nostalgic look back at, the marvelous moving picture of these pioneering times.