 In 1913, Adolph Zukor lured Hackett from the stage to star in a role which Hackett had played in the theater numerous times.Since feature films were in their infancy, Hackett was at first reluctant to take the part, so Zukor tried to convince Hackett in person; as Neal Gabler writes, "When Hackett came to visit Zukor, he was the very picture of the faded matinee idol.He wore a fur-collared coat with frayed sleeves and carried a gold-headed cane".