Jean Bacon
Jean Speck (Johannes) (born March 8, 1860 in Hattingen ; † October 19, 1933 in Zurich ) was a German - Swiss cinema entrepreneur and film distributor .
life and work
Speck emigrated to Zurich in the 1880s. There he worked as a shoemaker for a few years and then worked as an innkeeper in the "Weisses Kreuz" and the "Schwanen".
He also ran the “Cafe Afrikaner” at Predigerplatz 54. Various "exotic curiosities" appeared there. He later opened a panopticon in Zurich , where, in addition to all kinds of "exotic abnormalities", three-minute films were shown.
After Speck sold his Panoptikum in 1906, he opened the "Kinematographen-Theater" in 1907 as the holder of the 1st City Zurich cinema license on Waisenhausgasse in Zurich. Films of 15 minutes were shown there. He was so successful with it that in 1908 he opened the "Specks Eden Theater" in Rorschach .
In 1913, Speck founded his own film distribution company, namely “Projektions Helvetia AG”, thus creating Switzerland's first cinema empire over the next three decades. In 1921, Speck opened the first “Odeon” cinema in Brugg .
The passion for films was passed on to his nephew Eugen Sterk. In 1912 he also joined the “Speckische” company.
As a bon vivant, Speck was married three times and when he had squandered his fortune, he was penniless at the age of 70. The welfare office in Zurich described Speck as a "cracked fox" and refused to support.
Web links
- Jean Bacon. The history of the cinema. In: Sterk Cine AG.
- Christian Baertschi: Bacon, Jean. In: Historical Lexicon of Switzerland
- Jean Speck, cinema pioneer and dandy. In: Presidential Department City of Zurich
Individual evidence
- ^ H. Gysler: Times that do not recur. 1943, Schweizer Film = Film Suisse: official Swiss organ, accessed on June 22, 2020 .
- ^ Odeon cinema in Brugg. Cantonal Monument Preservation Aargau, accessed on June 22, 2020 .
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Bacon, Jean |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Bacon, Johannes |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | German-Swiss cinema entrepreneur and film distributor |
| DATE OF BIRTH | March 8, 1860 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Hattingen |
| DATE OF DEATH | October 19, 1933 |
| Place of death | Zurich |