Goldwyn Picture Corporation
| Goldwyn Picture Corporation | |
|---|---|
| legal form | Corporation |
| founding | 1916 |
| resolution | 1924 |
| Seat | |
| management |
|
| Branch | entertainment |
Goldwyn Picture Corporation ( Goldwyn Pictures for short ) was an American film production company founded in 1916 by Samuel Goldwyn , Edgar Selwyn and Archibald Selwyn . The company went on in 1924 in the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer .
history
The Goldwyn Pictures were its partners Edgar and Archibald Selwyn, two on November 19, 1916 from producer Samuel Goldfish and Broadway -Produzenten founded. The authors Margaret Mayo and Arthur Hopkins were also involved in the establishment . The name "Goldwyn" was created as an amalgamation of the names "Goldfish" (Goldwyn's actual name, namely Americanized and idealized, because it was actually called "Gelbfisz") and "Selwyn". Goldfish liked the name so much that he adopted the name "Samuel Goldwyn" himself.
The first studio was rented by the producers from Solax Studios , which had their facilities in Fort Lee , New Jersey . Soon, however, Goldwyn Pictures moved within Fort Lee to the larger Universal Studios on Main Street, built in 1915 . In 1920 the company acquired the former Triangle Studios in Culver City and rented two more studios in New York City . The operation at Fort Lee was practically stopped.
The artistically most interesting films that Goldwyn Pictures produced were The Penalty (1920), The Ace of Hearts (1921), Souls for Sale (1923) and Wild Oranges (1924).
Sam Goldwyn remained the dominant figure in the company for a long time, but from 1922 he retired. Whether this withdrawal was voluntary or enforced is controversial in the literature. In 1923 he founded his own company, Samuel Goldwyn Productions .
The departure of their most capable manager put Goldwyn Pictures in financial trouble. Lee Shubert eventually took control ; at the same time, Marcus Loew - owner of Loews Theaters and Metro Pictures Corporation - began to influence the ailing company. On his initiative, Goldwyn Pictures were merged with Metro Pictures Corporation and Louis B. Mayer Pictures in 1924 and formed Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer . The Goldwyn Pictures contributed to this union in addition to important studio facilities in Culver City also the company logo - Leo the Lion (in German: Leo, der Löwe ).
Leo, the lion
The lion "Leo", which is still shown in the opening credits of all MGM films, was originally introduced as a trademark of Samuel Goldwyn's Goldwyn Picture Corporation in 1921. The lion head was created with the film tape surrounding it with the motto “ Ars Gratia Artis ” (German: “Art for the sake of art”) over the Thalia mask with ivy tendrils - muse and protector of the theater - by the publicist and press officer of the studio (and later MGM) Howard Dietz . He was inspired by the mascot of "his alma mater ", Columbia University of New York.
Although the lion was always called "Leo", there were various representatives: The first, used 1921–1928 during the silent film era , came to the USA from Sudan in 1917 and was called "Slats" by his animal trainer Volney Phifer. In the absence of sound, the audience at the time could not hear the lion's roar - but could well imagine. Slats died in 1936 and was buried on Phifer's animal farm in Gilette , New Jersey .
In addition to this “film welcome appearance”, the “official studio mascot” was shown in over 2000 public appearances. There were different animals that were sometimes also rented. The next lion to make the logo was "Jackie" in 1928. It was he who first had the recorded roar of "Leo the Lion" heard in the opening credits of White Shadows in the South Seas ( White Shadows , 1928). While this is a silent film, the roar was played by a phonograph as soon as the lion head logo appeared on the screen. Jackie was shown before all black and white films from 1928–1956, and it was he who first looked down on his audience in Technicolor in 1932 .
When MGM completely switched production to the 4th Technicolor process in 1934 , "Tanner" was the next lion in the film logo and remained so in all Technicolor productions until 1956. "Jackie" also continued to be used. Even with the introduction of the CinemaScope widescreen in 1953, nothing changed.
It wasn't until 1956 that there were again small changes: The name of the studio - from the beginning below the Thalia mask and the ivy tendrils in a box - now moved up over Leo's head and Leo's head got a stronger mane. It was first used in the opening credits of the Tom & Jerry cartoons in 1957. Since then, in over fifty years, only the aspect ratios, lettering, individual colors and company names have changed.
Filmography (selection)
- 1917 - The Cinderella Man (directed by George Loane Tucker ), with Mae Marsh
- 1918 - Our Little Wife ( Edward Dillon ), with Madge Kennedy
- 1918 - Just for Tonight ( Charles Giblyn ), with Tom Moore
- 1919 - The World and Its Woman ( Frank Lloyd ), with Geraldine Farrar
- 1919 - Flame of the Desert ( Reginald Barker ), with Geraldine Farrar
- 1919 - Jubilo ( Clarence G. Badger ), with Will Rogers
- 1920 - Water, Water Everywhere (Clarence G. Badger), with Will Rogers
- 1920 - The Strange Boarder (Clarence G. Badger), with Will Rogers
- 1920 - The Woman and the Puppet (Reginald Barker), with Geraldine Farrar
- 1920 - The Penalty ( Wallace Worsley ), with Lon Chaney , Charles Clary, and Doris Pawn
- 1920 Honest Hutch (Clarence G. Badger), with Will Rogers
- 1920 - The Man Who Had Everything ( Alfred E. Green )
- 1920 - What Happened to Rosa ( Victor Schertzinger ), with Mabel Normand
- 1921 - A Tale of Two Worlds (Frank Lloyd)
- 1921 - The Ace of Hearts (Wallace Worsley), with Lon Chaney
- 1921 - Doubling for Romeo (Clarence G. Badger), with Will Rogers
- 1922 - Sherlock Holmes ( Albert Parker ), with John Barrymore
- 1922 - Head Over Heels ( Paul Bern , Victor Schertzinger), with Mabel Normand
- 1922 - Mr. Barnes of New York (Victor Schertzinger), with Tom Moore
- 1922 - The Sin Flood (Frank Lloyd)
- 1923 - The Christian ( Maurice Tourneur )
- 1923 - Souls for Sale ( Rupert Hughes ), with Eleanor Boardman
- 1923 - Red Lights (Clarence G. Badger), with Marie Prevost
- 1924 - Wild Oranges ( King Vidor ), with Virginia Valli and Frank Mayo
- 1924 - Name the Man ( Victor Sjöström ), with Mae Busch and Conrad Nagel
Web links
- Goldwyn Pictures in the Internet Movie Database (English)
- Goldwyn Pictures Corporation 1919 - Pre MGM ( March 25, 2015 memento on the Internet Archive )
Individual evidence
- ↑ Tommy Dangcil: Hollywood Studios (= Postcard history series ). Arcadia Publishing, 2007, ISBN 978-0-7385-4708-4 , pp. 42 (English, limited preview in Google Book Search).