So who was Alla Nazimova? Though largely forgotten today, she was one of the biggest stars of stage and screen in the early twentieth century. She achieved overnight fame in 1906 with a groundbreaking performance of Henrik Ibsen’s Hedda Gabler. A former student at Konstantin Stanislavsky’s Moscow Arts Theatre, she had mastered an early version of Method acting – later popularized by Brando and DeNiro.
She introduced a bold new approach to American audiences in plays by Ibsen, Chekhov, Strindberg, and other European Realists. From 1906 to 1918, she starred in 16 Broadway shows and toured the country in dramatic one-acts. War Brides, her antiwar piece, struck a chord with Americans wary of entering World War I.
The success of War Brides caught the attention of producer Lewis Selznick, father of David O. Selznick. He offered Nazimova a lucrative deal to adapt the play for film. She agreed, and the movie was released in November 1916. It was a hit, introducing Nazimova to moviegoers nationwide. The timing was perfect: within months, the Wilson administration reversed its isolationism and prepared for war, and antiwar sentiment abated.
That spring, Nazimova signed a five-year deal with Metro Pictures, precursor to MGM. She received her own production unit, creative control, and $13,000 a week -$3,000 more than Mary Pickford and the equivalent of $328,000 today.