# Do Pearl White & "The Perils of Pauline" Ring a Bell? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [May 22, 2003, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-pearl-white-the-perils-of-pauline-ring-a-bell/176869 "2003-05-22T19:30:55Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2003, 2:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-pearl-white-the-perils-of-pauline-ring-a-bell/176869/21 "2003-05-23T02:19:15Z")
> [@](#): > > . . . At least I thought so. I was afraid to mention Mary Pickford, Rudolph Valentino and Charlie Chaplin to my coworkers . . You may be giving them too much credit. Half of them may not have heard of Humphrey Bogart or Clark Gable. I’m sure there are young people who think of James Dean and Marilyn Monroe as being figures from the dawn of filmmaking. ---
**Author:** ![Zap\_Rowsdower](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/3da27b/32.png) [@Zap\_Rowsdower](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zap_Rowsdower)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2003, 2:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-pearl-white-the-perils-of-pauline-ring-a-bell/176869/22 "2003-05-23T02:36:52Z")
Yes, I am familiar with her and her perils. I heard about her and “The Perils of Pauline” on “Cinema Europe” I believe. I have been waiting for the series to be released on DVD and check periodically. I can’t wait to add it to my silent movie collection. Though to be honest if you just said Pearl White to me it may take a bit for me to realize you mean that" Pearl White. ---
**Author:** ![Otto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Otto)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2003, 2:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-pearl-white-the-perils-of-pauline-ring-a-bell/176869/23 "2003-05-23T02:44:16Z")
I’ve heard of her. You may rest easy. ---
**Author:** ![samclem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a9a28c/32.png) [@samclem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samclem)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2003, 4:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-pearl-white-the-perils-of-pauline-ring-a-bell/176869/24 "2003-05-23T04:53:49Z")
I consider myself an average/above average movie knowledge person. I have heard of and seen the _Perils of Pauline_ but I wouldn’t recognize the name Pearl White. Guess it just wasn’t important for me to remember. Interesting that LaBadie died at age 23. ---
**Author:** ![tomndebb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b9e5f3/32.png) [@tomndebb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tomndebb)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2003, 7:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-pearl-white-the-perils-of-pauline-ring-a-bell/176869/25 "2003-05-23T07:16:04Z")
Of course, I’ve heard of Pearl White. I’ve even seen a few episodes of _The Perils of Pauline_. Now, regarding “defining” presentations: > [@](#): > > Who could forget the “great gray-green greasy Zambezi River?” Who in the world would accept a “defining” moment of _Perils_ based on a line stolen from Kipling’s _The Elephant’s Child_ (A _Just So Story_ describing the manner in which the Elephant got its trunk. The Elephant’s Child was sent to the “great grey-green, greasy Limpopo River, all set about with fever-trees,” to discover what the crocodile has for dinner–and there he got his trunk.) ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2003, 7:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-pearl-white-the-perils-of-pauline-ring-a-bell/176869/26 "2003-05-23T07:43:32Z")
Pearl Bailey… Minnie Pearl… The Perils of Penelope Pitstop… Hmm, no, my library of information is incomplete. ---
**Author:** ![Iteki](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/eada6e/32.png) [@Iteki](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Iteki)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2003, 7:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-pearl-white-the-perils-of-pauline-ring-a-bell/176869/27 "2003-05-23T07:49:31Z")
27 y.o. non film-nut checking in. Yep I have heard of all the people you mentioned above, except for poor Florence. I would say I am more film interested than average, but far below the average Cafe Society denzien. ---
**Author:** ![Michael\_Ellis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/977dab/32.png) [@Michael\_Ellis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Michael_Ellis)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2003, 11:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-pearl-white-the-perils-of-pauline-ring-a-bell/176869/28 "2003-05-23T11:38:47Z")
I’ve heard of _Perils of Pauline_. Never seen it though. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2003, 12:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-pearl-white-the-perils-of-pauline-ring-a-bell/176869/29 "2003-05-23T12:32:48Z")
I’ve heard of Pearl White, though I’m 50 and have an interest in film history. I may have seen clips from _The Perils of Pauline_, but not more than a few minutes. I would assume most people still know about Chaplin (or at least, his image), and I’d think that Pickford and Valentino are most likely part of the collective knowledge. ---
**Author:** ![Eve](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Eve](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eve)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2003, 1:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-pearl-white-the-perils-of-pauline-ring-a-bell/176869/30 "2003-05-23T13:10:18Z")
Ah, yes, Tina Brooks . . . The Florence LaBadie of jazz . . . ---
**Author:** ![Zebra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/c0e974/32.png) [@Zebra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zebra)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2003, 1:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-pearl-white-the-perils-of-pauline-ring-a-bell/176869/31 "2003-05-23T13:36:05Z")
Hummmm… Does she have a sister named ‘Off’? I think I’m recalling the Perils of Gwendolyn. ---
**Author:** ![Miss\_Mapp](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miss_mapp/32/369_2.png) [@Miss\_Mapp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miss_Mapp)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2003, 1:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-pearl-white-the-perils-of-pauline-ring-a-bell/176869/32 "2003-05-23T13:58:17Z")
I know who Pearl White is. Aside from the later film bios/parodies, I distinctly recall seeing at least several clips from her films (alas, nothing in full). Tina Brooks? Sorry, no. Louise Brooks, yes. Also: The Talmadge sisters. Mabel Normand (although my brain persists in confusing her with Norma Desmond). Theda Bara. And I think Clara Bow is darling. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2003, 2:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-pearl-white-the-perils-of-pauline-ring-a-bell/176869/33 "2003-05-23T14:15:28Z")
I learned of Pearl White as a kid through the Films article in the World Book Encyclopedia. I’d heard of **The Perils of Pauline** somewhere, and was impressed by the picture. After that (and with my affection for old odd cinema, through **Famous Monsters of Filmland** ) I kept my eyes open for silent movie stars. Helen Twelvetrees. Snitz Edwards. Bull Montana. Folks who didn’t make the transition to talkies. ---
**Author:** ![Eve](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Eve](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eve)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2003, 2:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-pearl-white-the-perils-of-pauline-ring-a-bell/176869/34 "2003-05-23T14:20:20Z")
Actually, [Helen Twelvetrees](http://us.imdb.com/Name?Twelvetrees,+Helen) was a talkie star—she never made a silent. Now, Pearl White was a silent star: more than 200 films (many of them multi-chapter serials) between 1910 and 1924. ---
**Author:** ![Sylkyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/da6949/32.png) [@Sylkyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sylkyn)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2003, 3:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-pearl-white-the-perils-of-pauline-ring-a-bell/176869/35 "2003-05-23T15:23:45Z")
Yes, being a silent film buff, I have heard of Pearl White. My grandmother used to be nuts about “The Perils of Pauline” as a youngster. I’ve heard of Wally Reed and Olive Thomas, too! Do I get a gold star? 😃 ---
**Author:** ![SnugTheJoiner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e8c25b/32.png) [@SnugTheJoiner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SnugTheJoiner)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2003, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-pearl-white-the-perils-of-pauline-ring-a-bell/176869/36 "2003-05-23T15:30:10Z")
Heard of her, seen some of her films. Miss Mapp–Constance Talmadge is the woman of my dreams. ---
**Author:** ![Steve\_Wright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/848f3c/32.png) [@Steve\_Wright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steve_Wright)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2003, 3:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-pearl-white-the-perils-of-pauline-ring-a-bell/176869/37 "2003-05-23T15:33:29Z")
Pearl White rings a distant bell … several names here do, in fact. I’m almost certain I know who that James Dean is, for example (hmm … Pearl & Dean … that’s got something to do with the cinema, I’m sure of it … ) 40 years old, and not particularly a movie buff, here. ---
**Author:** ![Eve](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Eve](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eve)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2003, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-pearl-white-the-perils-of-pauline-ring-a-bell/176869/38 "2003-05-23T15:39:14Z")
Poor Wally and Ollie . . . I half-suspect Jack Pickford “done Olive in,” for the insurance money . . . Who would prosecute the brother of America’s Sweetheart? **SnugTheJoiner** , Connie Talmadge was the woman of a _lot_ of mens’ dreams—that gal knew how to have a good time! ---
**Author:** ![lissener](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lissener/32/6139_2.png) [@lissener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lissener)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2003, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-pearl-white-the-perils-of-pauline-ring-a-bell/176869/39 "2003-05-23T15:50:34Z")
I’ve heard of Pearl White and the Perils of Pauline, Eve, but mostly because I’m a HUGE Betty Hutton fan. ---
**Author:** ![Ukulele\_Ike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/df788c/32.png) [@Ukulele\_Ike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ukulele_Ike)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2003, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-pearl-white-the-perils-of-pauline-ring-a-bell/176869/40 "2003-05-23T15:51:23Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by CalMeacham \* > **Snitz Edwards.** Heh. I was just watching ol’ Snitz last night. He played the valet in Buster Keaton’s _Battling Butler_. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-pearl-white-the-perils-of-pauline-ring-a-bell/176869.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-pearl-white-the-perils-of-pauline-ring-a-bell/176869.md?page=3)