J. Stuart Blackton
Born in
Sheffield in 1875,
J. Stuart Blackton discovered his ability to draw at a young age. When he was
ten, his parents emigrated to
America,
where he eventually secured a job with the
New
York World, writing and illustrating. Meanwhile, he performed onstage
alongside conjuror Albert Smith, as a cartoonist.
Following his success performing at an 1896 benefit concert,
he was asked to create three films for
Edison’s
Black Maria studio. The films were subsequently shown at Proctor’s
Pleasure Palace later that year. The film
Sketching Mr Edison perhaps earned him
the most recognition, and inspired him to enter the film industry.
He returned to making animated films, including
The Enchanted Drawing (1906) and
Humorous Phases of Funny Faces (1906),
in which he featured onscreen playing the part of the cartoonist. Blackton is
seen as one of the most significant pioneers of animated film, in that he
utilised certain styles and techniques that became commonplace in the animated
film in subsequent years.
In 1897, Blackton co-founded Vitagraph with Albert Smith,
which later became a major film company. He played the lead role in
The Burglar on the Roof (1897) and
helped establish a studio in Flatbush, for which he directed a number of famous
titles.
In the 1920s, Blackton returned to
England, where he produced and
directed the first ever colour feature
The
Glorious Adventure (1922), and
The
Virgin Queen (1923).
He returned to
America in 1923, where he directed
several more films before Warner Bros bought Vitagraph in 1926. He retired, and
became bankrupt as a result of the stock market crash in 1929. He died
following a car accident in 1941 in Hollywood.
For more info, check
out these sources:
Who’s Who of Victorian Cinema – http://www.victorian-cinema.net/blackton
BFI/Screenonline – http://www.screenonline.org.uk/people
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