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Star-Making As Manufactured Myth
- Theodosia Goodman reinvented herself as Theda Bara through studio-crafted mythology that turned her into a global sensation.
- Fox used fabricated exotic origins and striking publicity photos to create a marketable screen persona.
The Chicago Press Stunt
- At a staged Chicago press conference Fox unveiled Bara with a fabricated life as an Egyptian-born actress reclining on a tiger print chaise.
- Afterwards Luella Parsons reported Bara dropped the act, gasped for air, and spoke without an accent.
Birth Of The Screen 'Vamp'
- Theda Bara's first hit, A Fool There Was, defined a new archetype: the screen 'vamp' who weaponizes sexuality.
- Publicity amplified that archetype until Bara's persona became synonymous with the term vamp.