Agnes Ayres — Advice to Would-Be Stars (1921) 🇺🇸

Here I am asked to give advice to would-be motion picture stars — and why? Surely, it is not because of my experience as a star, for I am the newest of them all. Perhaps it is because I had to work so hard in climbing up from the very bottom of the ladder — I have been in pictures for six years — that I am supposed to be well qualified to advise. But anyhow, here are a few “don’ts.”

by Agnes Ayres

Don’t overeat. You may smile at this, but it’s important. Nobody loves a fat girl — in pictures. So if you are fat, forget about becoming a star. Or reduce.

Don’t overdress. Flashy clothes never got any girl into the movies. Producers and directors aren’t fools. Intelligence is as important as good looks, and the girl who is overdressed never fails to register “nobody home.”

Don’t overhear. Close your ears to flattery as well as knocks, keep your temper and go along about your business.

Don’t overlook an opportunity. Never refuse a part, however small, if it has any possibilities. Many a picture has been saved, even made, by a “bit” well done. It means a better and bigger part next time.

And don’t overestimate your own importance. You’ll be a star when the public says you deserve to be one, and no sooner. What you think about it will cut no figure, and what you say about it may make you sorry the rest of your life.

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Collection: Pantomime Magazine, September 1921