Douglas Fairbanks Biography

Fast Facts

• AMPAS opened the Fairbanks Center for Motion Picture Study in 2002, which was named in his memory
• Was the first president of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences
• Started performing in amateur theater when he was 12 years old
• Worked as a cattle freighter, in a hardware store and as a clerk on Wall Street before making acting his career
• An independent film producer, he created United Artists with Mary Pickford, Charlie Chaplin and D․W․ Griffith
• Known for playing swashbuckling heroes in such films as "The Mark of Zorro," "The Iron Mask" and "The Black Pirate․"
• A group of fans started the Douglas Fairbanks Museum in Austin, Texas, in 1998
• Helped develop the film curriculum at the University of Southern California
• Often requested that his name be listed last in the credits of his films
• Was pictured on a U․S․ commemorative postage stamp issued in 1984