Saturday, December 05, 2015
The Radical Courage of Silent Movie Stuntwomen
New Republic: Helen Gibson’s strong, handsome face and dark hair gave her the look of someone who would try anything. In 1915, while in her early twenties, she was doubling for the star of the hit serial The Hazards of Helen. In one stunt she was supposed to leap from the roof of the station to the top of a moving train. Years later, she called it her most dangerous stunt.
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Reading articles about early Hollywood/ Broadway make me really glad that we have organizations like OSHA, IATSE, and Equity to back us up and keep us safe. Radical Courage is a completely correct and accurate article. Considering the incredible risks that stunt men and women took in this period, it's hard to believe that only 3 people died. Why was "Put the girl in danger" a good idea? When did old-timey chivalry and the whole "women can't walk on the inside part of street " turn into "let's put the girl in a mermaid costume on some rocks and not listen to her when her life's in danger?" Some of these scenarios also make me appreciate the safety of editing/ CGI. No one's at risk when you animate a woman jumping onto a foam pad that will later be transformed into a train, except yours when you forget to turn it in on time.
The most interesting part of this is that at first, the actresses never really considered how dangerous their activities were. That really goes to show that you never really know how dangerous something was until you look at it in retrospect and analyze the situation analytical with some perspective; in the moment, what you are trying to accomplish is new and exciting and interesting, while safety is not even a consideration. That being said, I also find it interesting how few fatal injuries there were over the time span. With only three fatalities in the given year, it does not seem horrible; however, when you consider the number of people who actually perform the job and the number of people who were also permanently injured, the statistics change somewhat. If stuntwomen were a rarity because few people and even fewer women were willing to take the risks, then three fatalities out of the small group is actually a large number.
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