I can never go out of style

Happy 120th birthday today to Miss Lillian Gish - one of those rare beasts, a silent movie star who remained a successful film actress for the rest of her (long) life.

Facts about Miss Gish:

• She was born the same year the movie camera was invented.
• Both she and her sister Dorothy were drawn into acting at a very early age. "Baby Lillian" made her stage debut in 1902.
• Legend has it that at their movie audition, and without warning, DW Griffith shot a prop gun over their heads. The girls' horrified shrieks convinced him that they could emote onscreen, and he hired them both.
• Lillian's first film was An Unseen Enemy in 1912. Her last was The Whales of August (alongside Bette Davies) in 1987 - 75 years later.

"You know, when I first went into the movies Lionel Barrymore played my grandfather. Later he played my father and finally he played my husband. If he had lived, I'm sure I would have played his mother."

"Young man, if God had wanted you to see me that way, he would have put your eyes in your bellybutton."

"I've never been in style, so I can never go out of style."

"Never get caught acting."

Lillian Diana Gish (14th October 1893 – 27th February 1993)