Sarah Bernhardt

Biography

Sarah Bernhardt, the legendary figure of the French stage, engaged in a tumultuous, on-again, off-again relationship with the nascent art of cinema. Her cinematic debut in Hamlet, Duel Scene with Laertes (1900) prompted her to vocally condemn the medium, yet she reluctantly agreed to grace the screen again for La Tosca (1909). Upon witnessing the result, she allegedly reacted with visceral revulsion, insisting on the obliteration of the film's master copy. However, her perception began to shift with her next appearance in the Film d'Art production of La dame aux camélias (1912). This venture proved a triumph with audiences and critics alike, significantly elevating the burgeoning medium to a realm of artistic credibility. The following year, she ventured to Britain for Les amours de la reine Élisabeth (1912), a film whose distribution receipts in the US famously provided Adolph Zukor with the foundational capital to establish Paramount Pictures. Even at 69, the "Divine Sarah" commanded immense value; despite lucrative offers from rival studios, she remained steadfastly loyal to Film d'Art, appearing in Adrienne Lecouvreur (1913). Undeterred by the loss of a leg in 1915, she continued to act, gracing the screen in two more features: Jeanne Doré (1915) and Mothers of France (1917), both crafted as potent morale boosters during the throes of WWI. Her indomitable spirit shone even in her final years. In 1923, at the age of 79, her hotel suite was transformed into an impromptu film set so she could appear in La voyante (1924). Tragically, her declining health brought production to a standstill, and she passed away before the film could be completed. Decades later, her extraordinary life was vividly brought to the screen by Glenda Jackson in The Incredible Sarah (1976).