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{{Short description|American businessman, philanthropist, hunter, and photographer}}
[[File:Rainey 5642866279 59e6632bd4 o.jpg|thumb|Rainey in 1914]]
{{Use mdy dates|date=September 2019}}
[[File:Rainey 2809104638 5e48326aac o.jpg|thumb]]
[[File:Photograph and signature of Paul J Rainey.jpg|thumb|Photograph and signature of Paul J Rainey]]
[[Image:Pjrainey.jpg|thumb|right|150px||Paul J. Rainey in the Arctic, ca. 1910.]]
'''Paul James Rainey''' (September 18, 1877 - September 18, 1923) was an [[United States|American]] [[businessman]], [[philanthropist]], [[hunter]], and [[photographer]]
'''Paul James Rainey''' (September 18, 1877 – September 18, 1923) was an American businessman, philanthropist, [[hunter]], and photographer.


==Biography==
==Biography==
[[File:Paul J. Rainey between 1910 and 1915 - LCCN2014696407 (cropped).tif|left|thumb|Rainey between 1910 and 1915]]
He was born on September 18, 1877 to Eleanor and William J. Rainey.<ref>Danny Murry, "The Amazing Paul Rainey," http://prb.datalane.net/prbamaz.htm, accessed 20 October 2009.</ref>
Paul James Rainey was born September 18, 1877, in Cleveland, Ohio, the fifth of Eleanor Beatty (née Mitchell) and William J. Rainey's five children.<ref>Danny Murry, "The Amazing Paul Rainey," http://prb.datalane.net/prbamaz.htm. Retrieved October 20, 2009.</ref>


[[kinship|Scion]] of a wealthy family whose fortune came from [[coal]] and [[Coke (fuel)|coke]] production, Rainey developed a reputation as a [[playboy]]. He invested in numerous personal projects, including luxurious homes, a hotel, prize horses, and private railroad cars.
Scion of a wealthy family whose fortune came from coal and [[Coke (fuel)|coke]] production, Rainey earned a reputation as a [[playboy (lifestyle)|playboy]]. He invested in numerous personal projects, including his Tippah Lodge in Mississippi, a hotel, prize horses, and private railroad cars.


Although he owned many residences, he favored Tippah Lodge, his sprawling estate in rural [[Mississippi]].<ref>"Paul J. Rainey Estate — Tippah Lodge," http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~mstippah/Raineyestate.html, accessed 20 October 2009.</ref><ref>"Big Game Hunter in Faulkner Country," http://www.mississippihills.org/travel_planner/itineraries/community/oxford/big_game.aspx, accessed 20 October 2009.</ref>
Although he owned other residences, he favored Tippah Lodge, his sprawling estate in rural [[Mississippi]].<ref name="rootsweb.ancestry.com">"Paul J. Rainey Estate – Tippah Lodge," http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~mstippah/Raineyestate.html. Retrieved October 20, 2009.</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.mississippihills.org/travel_planner/itineraries/community/oxford/big_game.aspx|date=September 7, 2012|title=Big Game Hunter in Faulkner Country|accessdate=October 20, 2009}}</ref>


Rainey was active with the [[American Geographical Society]], [[American Museum of Natural History]], the [[New York Zoological Society]], and the [[Smithsonian Institution]], among other organizations.
Rainey was active with the [[American Geographical Society]], [[American Museum of Natural History]], the [[New York Zoological Society]], and the [[Smithsonian Institution]], among other organizations.


Rejected by the military for health reasons, Rainey purchased an [[ambulance]] and drove it on the [[Western Front (World War I)|Western Front]] during [[World War I]].
Rejected by the military for health reasons, Rainey purchased an ambulance and drove it on the [[Western Front (World War I)|Western Front]] during [[World War I]].


==African expedition films==
After the war, Rainey hunted [[Big game hunting|big game]] in [[Africa]] and shot some of the earliest [[film]] footage of [[African animals]] in the wild.
===''Paul J. Rainey's African Hunt''===
[[File:Lion slaughter detail - from, Mornings' work - killed in 15 minutes - Paul Rainey's African hunt. LCCN2014692027 (cropped).tif|left|thumb|Lion slaughter, all killed in 15 minutes, on Paul Rainey's African hunt between 1910 and 1915]]
After the war, Rainey hunted [[Big game hunting|big game]] in Africa. He and his team filmed some of the earliest film footage of [[African animals]] in the wild. In 1912, they released the six-reel documentary film ''Paul J. Rainey's African Hunt''.<ref name="AfricanHunt">{{cite web|url=http://www.boweryboyshistory.com/2012/09/raineys-african-hunt-bloody-1912-movie.html|date=September 7, 2012|title=Rainey's African Hunt: A bloody 1912 movie blockbuster|accessdate=March 2, 2019}}</ref>


Rainey's silent film grossed over a half-million dollars ({{Inflation|US|500000|1912|fmt=eq}}), an extraordinary sum for an early motion picture. It was one of the most successful non-fiction films of the decade.<ref name="AfricanHunt"/> Rainey's safari team included a photographer and a taxidermist from the [[Smithsonian Institution]].<ref name="DocumentaryFilm">{{cite book |last=Goldman |first=Tonya |date=2016 |title=The Documentary Film Reader: History, Theory, Criticism |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=9780190459321 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=YJFPCwAAQBAJ&q=Besley&pg=PT51 |access-date=March 6, 2019}}</ref> The success of Rainey's films led to a boom in expedition and nature films.<ref>{{cite magazine|title=New "Civilization" Press Agent| url=https://rerecord.library.columbia.edu/pdf_files/ldpd_7031148_054_24.pdf |magazine=Pacific Coast Musical Review, Volume 26 |location=San Francisco, California |publisher=New Moving Picture Review |date=December 12, 1914 |access-date=February 28, 2019 }}</ref> These were silent films, so many of these films were at first presented by a lecturer in a lyceum-like context.<ref name="DocumentaryFilm"/>
⚫
He died in 1923 of a [[cerebral hemorrhage]] on his forty-sixth birthday. The death occurred while Rainey was en route from [[England]] to [[South Africa]], where he had planned to hunt. He was [[burial at sea|buried at sea]].

The [[Library of Congress]] has a copy of the film in its paper print collection. Producer [[Joseph P. Bickerton, Jr.]] organized the Jungle Film Corporation to buy and commercialize Rainey's African hunt footage. These films were the first motion pictures to be produced at regular theater prices and were successful in the US and abroad.<ref>Meet JP Bickerton, Jr. ''The New York Times''. September 11, 1932</ref>
===''Heart of the Jungle''===
Rainey's five-reel African expedition film ''Heart of the Jungle'' was playing in US theaters during 1919.<ref name="record1919">{{cite news | title=Jungle Secrets Portrayed in Rainey Film at Kalurah | newspaper=The Record | date=4 October 1919 | location=Johnson City, New York | url=https://nyshistoricnewspapers.org/?a=d&d=rec19191004-01.1.2}}</ref><ref name="bernays1965">{{cite book | first=Edward | last=Bernays | author-link=Edward Bernays | title=biography of an idea: memoirs of public relations counsel Edward L. Bernays | year=1965 | publisher=Simon & Schuster | location=New York | url=https://archive.org/details/biographyofideam00bern}}</ref> [[Edward Bernays]]'s pioneering public relations firm publicized it.<ref name="bernays1965" /> A promotional newspaper article said that ''Heart of the Jungle'' included footage of lions, buffalo, and rhinoceroses.<ref name="record1919" /> The article also described an introduction with footage of the [[Arctic]], the [[Forbidden City]], and "Czecho-Slovaks crossing Siberia" (Rainey served as the official photographer for the Czech army in Sibera).<ref>{{cite web | publisher=The Frick Collection | website=Archives Directory for the History of Collecting in America | title=Archives related to: Roosevelt, Theodore, 1858-1919 | at=Edmund Heller Papers, circa 1898-1918 | access-date=15 December 2023 | url=https://research.frick.org/directory/viewItem/1479}}</ref>

==Death and burial==
⚫
He died on his forty-sixth birthday in 1923 of a [[cerebral hemorrhage]]. The death occurred while Rainey was en route from England to South Africa, where he had planned to hunt. He was [[burial at sea|buried at sea]].


==Legacy==
==Legacy==
After his death, Rainey's family set aside 26,000 acres (110 kms2) of his marshland as a [[wildlife refuge|wildfowl refuge]]. Located in coastal [[south Louisiana]], the refuge, known as the [[Paul J. Rainey Wildlife Sanctuary]], is owned by the [[National Audubon Society]].<ref>"Paul J. Rainey Estate — Tippah Lodge," http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~mstippah/Raineyestate.html, accessed 20 October 2009.</ref> His sister commissioned the [[Rainey Memorial Gates]] at the [[Bronx Zoo|New York Zoological Park]] as a memorial.<ref name="nrhpinv_ny">{{cite web|url=http://www.oprhp.state.ny.us/hpimaging/hp_view.asp?GroupView=634|title=National Register of Historic Places Registration: Rainey Memorial Gates|date=May 1971|accessdate=2011-01-12 |author=Stephen S. Lash|publisher=[[New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation]]}}</ref>
After his death, Rainey's family set aside 26,000 acres (110&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>) of his marshland as a [[wildlife refuge|wildfowl refuge]]. Located in coastal [[south Louisiana]], the refuge, known as the [[Paul J. Rainey Wildlife Sanctuary]], is owned by the [[National Audubon Society]].<ref name="rootsweb.ancestry.com"/> His sister commissioned the [[Rainey Memorial Gates]] at the [[Bronx Zoo]] in [[Bronx Park]], New York City, as a memorial.<ref name="nrhpinv_ny">{{cite web|url=http://www.oprhp.state.ny.us/hpimaging/hp_view.asp?GroupView=634|title=National Register of Historic Places Registration: Rainey Memorial Gates|date=May 1971|accessdate=12 January 2011|author=Stephen S. Lash|publisher=[[New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation]]|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110929120642/http://www.oprhp.state.ny.us/hpimaging/hp_view.asp?GroupView=634|archivedate=September 29, 2011}}</ref>


==See also==
* [[List of famous big game hunters]]
==Further reading==
*Holliday, Peyton Elizabeth, (3 October 2022) Paul J. Rainey: Northeast Mississippi's Hidden Legend https://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/masters/922/
==References==
==References==
{{reflist}}
{{reflist}}


{{Authority control}}
{{Persondata <!-- Metadata: see [[Wikipedia:Persondata]]. -->

| NAME = Rainey, Paul J.
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES =
| SHORT DESCRIPTION =
| DATE OF BIRTH = September 18, 1877
| PLACE OF BIRTH =
| DATE OF DEATH = September 18, 1923
| PLACE OF DEATH =
}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rainey, Paul J.}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rainey, Paul J.}}
[[Category:1877 births]]
[[Category:1877 births]]
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[[Category:American philanthropists]]
[[Category:American philanthropists]]
[[Category:Burials at sea]]
[[Category:Burials at sea]]


{{1870s-US-business-bio-stub}}
{{hunting-stub}}

Latest revision as of 07:47, 15 December 2023

Photograph and signature of Paul J Rainey

Paul James Rainey (September 18, 1877 – September 18, 1923) was an American businessman, philanthropist, hunter, and photographer.

Biography[edit]

Rainey between 1910 and 1915

Paul James Rainey was born September 18, 1877, in Cleveland, Ohio, the fifth of Eleanor Beatty (née Mitchell) and William J. Rainey's five children.[1]

Scion of a wealthy family whose fortune came from coal and coke production, Rainey earned a reputation as a playboy. He invested in numerous personal projects, including his Tippah Lodge in Mississippi, a hotel, prize horses, and private railroad cars.

Although he owned other residences, he favored Tippah Lodge, his sprawling estate in rural Mississippi.[2][3]

Rainey was active with the American Geographical Society, American Museum of Natural History, the New York Zoological Society, and the Smithsonian Institution, among other organizations.

Rejected by the military for health reasons, Rainey purchased an ambulance and drove it on the Western Front during World War I.

African expedition films[edit]

Paul J. Rainey's African Hunt[edit]

Lion slaughter, all killed in 15 minutes, on Paul Rainey's African hunt between 1910 and 1915

After the war, Rainey hunted big game in Africa. He and his team filmed some of the earliest film footage of African animals in the wild. In 1912, they released the six-reel documentary film Paul J. Rainey's African Hunt.[4]

Rainey's silent film grossed over a half-million dollars (equivalent to $15,786,207 in 2023), an extraordinary sum for an early motion picture. It was one of the most successful non-fiction films of the decade.[4] Rainey's safari team included a photographer and a taxidermist from the Smithsonian Institution.[5] The success of Rainey's films led to a boom in expedition and nature films.[6] These were silent films, so many of these films were at first presented by a lecturer in a lyceum-like context.[5]

The Library of Congress has a copy of the film in its paper print collection. Producer Joseph P. Bickerton, Jr. organized the Jungle Film Corporation to buy and commercialize Rainey's African hunt footage. These films were the first motion pictures to be produced at regular theater prices and were successful in the US and abroad.[7]

Heart of the Jungle[edit]

Rainey's five-reel African expedition film Heart of the Jungle was playing in US theaters during 1919.[8][9] Edward Bernays's pioneering public relations firm publicized it.[9] A promotional newspaper article said that Heart of the Jungle included footage of lions, buffalo, and rhinoceroses.[8] The article also described an introduction with footage of the Arctic, the Forbidden City, and "Czecho-Slovaks crossing Siberia" (Rainey served as the official photographer for the Czech army in Sibera).[10]

Death and burial[edit]

He died on his forty-sixth birthday in 1923 of a cerebral hemorrhage. The death occurred while Rainey was en route from England to South Africa, where he had planned to hunt. He was buried at sea.

Legacy[edit]

After his death, Rainey's family set aside 26,000 acres (110 km2) of his marshland as a wildfowl refuge. Located in coastal south Louisiana, the refuge, known as the Paul J. Rainey Wildlife Sanctuary, is owned by the National Audubon Society.[2] His sister commissioned the Rainey Memorial Gates at the Bronx Zoo in Bronx Park, New York City, as a memorial.[11]

See also[edit]

Further reading[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Danny Murry, "The Amazing Paul Rainey," http://prb.datalane.net/prbamaz.htm. Retrieved October 20, 2009.
  2. ^ a b "Paul J. Rainey Estate – Tippah Lodge," http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~mstippah/Raineyestate.html. Retrieved October 20, 2009.
  3. ^ "Big Game Hunter in Faulkner Country". September 7, 2012. Retrieved October 20, 2009.
  4. ^ a b "Rainey's African Hunt: A bloody 1912 movie blockbuster". September 7, 2012. Retrieved March 2, 2019.
  5. ^ a b Goldman, Tonya (2016). The Documentary Film Reader: History, Theory, Criticism. Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780190459321. Retrieved March 6, 2019.
  6. ^ "New "Civilization" Press Agent" (PDF). Pacific Coast Musical Review, Volume 26. San Francisco, California: New Moving Picture Review. December 12, 1914. Retrieved February 28, 2019.
  7. ^ Meet JP Bickerton, Jr. The New York Times. September 11, 1932
  8. ^ a b "Jungle Secrets Portrayed in Rainey Film at Kalurah". The Record. Johnson City, New York. October 4, 1919.
  9. ^ a b Bernays, Edward (1965). biography of an idea: memoirs of public relations counsel Edward L. Bernays. New York: Simon & Schuster.
  10. ^ "Archives related to: Roosevelt, Theodore, 1858-1919". Archives Directory for the History of Collecting in America. The Frick Collection. Edmund Heller Papers, circa 1898-1918. Retrieved December 15, 2023.
  11. ^ Stephen S. Lash (May 1971). "National Register of Historic Places Registration: Rainey Memorial Gates". New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation. Archived from the original on September 29, 2011. Retrieved January 12, 2011.
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