Tag Archives: chicago

Silent Chicago: Sherlock Found – The Rediscovery and Restoration of a Piece of Film History

Sherlock Found – The Rediscovery and Restoration of a Piece of Film History The year is 1916. The Chicago-based Essanay Film Manufacturing Company is, arguably, at the height of its powers. Just the year before, they had counted Charlie Chaplin … Continue reading

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Silent Chicago: Murder in the Windy City: The Story Behind “Chicago”: The Chicago Silent Era (Part 8)

  Murder in the Windy City: The Story Behind “Chicago” The story of Roxie Hart and Velma Kelly has been told time and time again in the form of musicals, Broadway shows and films, but it began as a play … Continue reading

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Silent Chicago: The Diamond from the Sky: American’s Crown Jewel: The Chicago Silent Era (Part 7)

  The Diamond from the Sky: American’s Crown Jewel The serial film was nothing new when the American Film Manufacturing Company released “The Diamond from the Sky” in 1915. In fact, just months before, the Thanhouser Film Corporation had wrapped … Continue reading

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Silent Chicago: Flying High With Flying A in the Windy City -The American Film Manufacturing Company: The Chicago Silent Era (Part 6)

  Flying High With Flying A in the Windy City: The American Film Manufacturing Company Formed by Samuel Hutchinson and Charles Hite, the American Film Manufacturing Company was incorporated in 1910 and held the distinction of being the only independent … Continue reading

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Silent Chicago: The Little Colonel Meets Poe: Henry B. Walthall at Essanay: The Chicago Silent Era (Part 5)

  The Little Colonel Meets Poe: Henry B. Walthall at Essanay Henry B. Walthall is widely remembered today for his performance as The Little Colonel in D.W. Griffith’s controversial “The Birth of a Nation,” and for his work under Griffith … Continue reading

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Silent Chicago: S & A and the Windy City: The Chicago Silent Era (Part 4)

  S & A and the Windy City Though not the first film studio to be built and based in Chicago, Essanay grew to be one of the largest and most popular of the Chicago-based studios. The sheer number of … Continue reading

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Silent Chicago: Lions and Tigers and Colonel Selig: The Chicago Silent Era (Part 3)

  Lions and Tigers and Colonel Selig In the early days of silent cinema, Chicago was responsible for 20% of the total output of the US film industry. One of the biggest contributors to this staggering statistic was Chicago’s own … Continue reading

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Silent Chicago: The Selig Polyscope Company and the Birth of Film in the Windy City: The Chicago Silent Era (Part 2)

The Selig Polyscope Company and the Birth of Film in the Windy City “Colonel” William Selig By the time William N. Selig died in 1948, he had produced thousands of films via the Selig Polyscope Company, discovered a number of … Continue reading

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Silent Chicago: Charlie Chaplin at Essanay

Charlie Chaplin at Essanay A celebratory dance and a hefty paycheck signaled the start of Charlie Chaplin’s stay with the Essanay Film Manufacturing Company, but his year-and-a-half stay with the studio produced more than that. It was the start of … Continue reading

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Preserving History: The Essanay Studios Indiegogo Campaign

Preserving History: The Restoration of Iconic Essanay Studios The Famous terracotta entrance to present-day Essanay Studios. History is such a beautiful thing. Like a giant puzzle with endless pieces, History provides us with context for concepts and events as infinite in … Continue reading

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