I love this clip of Lillian Russell, an early silent film star, and staunch advocate of women’s rights, from the lost film “How To Live in 100 Years” (1913).
There’s a lot of theory written about how film captures a specific moment in time, and freezes it. But something about this clip makes Russell seem thawed out, living. As if you could reach on the screen, pick off her turquoise rings, and feel the paper-thin, impossibly soft, aged grip of her hand on your skin.
