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Edwin Thanhouser (November 11, 1865 – March 21, 1956) was an American actor, businessman, and film producer. He was most notable as a founder of the
Thanhouser Company The Thanhouser Company (later the Thanhouser Film Corporation) was one of the first motion picture studios, founded in 1909 by Edwin Thanhouser, his wife Gertrude and his brother-in-law Lloyd Lonergan. It operated in New York City until 1920, ...
, which was one of the first motion picture studios. His wife
Gertrude Thanhouser Gertrude Homan Thanhouser (April 23, 1882 – May 29, 1951), wife of co-founder Edwin Thanhouser, worked at the Thanhouser Company film studio as actress, scenario writer, film editor, and studio executive. Her efforts made the studio one of the ...
and brother-in-law
Lloyd Lonergan Lloyd Lonergan (March 3, 1870, Chicago, Illinois - April 6, 1937, New York City) was one of the most prolific scenario and screenwriters in American silent film. A brother-in-law of Edwin Thanhouser he worked for the Thanhouser Company b ...
were co-founders.


Biography

Thanhouser was born in
Baltimore, Maryland Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic, and the 30th most populous city in the United States with a population of 585,708 in 2020. Baltimore wa ...
. In 1893, he joined the traveling company of Alessandro Salvini. After Salvini's unexpected death in 1896, Thanhouser managed the Academy Theater in
Milwaukee, Wisconsin Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at the 2020 census, Milwaukee i ...
, for the
Shubert family The Shubert family was responsible for the establishment of the Broadway district, in New York City, as the hub of the theater industry in the United States. They dominated the legitimate theater and vaudeville in the first half of the 20th c ...
and then the Bush Temple Theater in
Chicago, Illinois (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...
. He formed a stock company that put on hundreds of theatrical productions. On February 8, 1900, Thanhouser married actress Gertrude Homan. In 1909, Thanhouser and his family moved to
New Rochelle, New York New Rochelle (; older french: La Nouvelle-Rochelle) is a city in Westchester County, New York, United States, in the southeastern portion of the state. In 2020, the city had a population of 79,726, making it the seventh-largest in the state o ...
, where he leased space in an old wooden skating rink to start the Thanhouser Company. This pioneering movie studio released its first commercial film on March 15, 1910. Thanhouser brought actress
Florence La Badie Florence La Badie (born Florence Russ; April 27, 1888 – October 13, 1917) was an American-Canadian actress in the early days of the silent film era. She was a major star between 1911 and 1917. Her career was at its height when she died a ...
to the company in 1911. From 1911 to 1917, she was the company's most prominent star. In 1912, he sold the film company to group headed by
Charles J. Hite Charles Jackson Hite (June 7, 1876 – August 21, 1914) was an American businessman and film producer of the early 20th century, most importantly the president and chief executive officer of the Thanhouser Film Corporation from 1912 to 1914. ...
. Early in 1915, after Hite's death in an accident, Thanhouser took charge of the company again, but was not as successful as he had been before. The
Thanhouser Film Corporation The Thanhouser Company (later the Thanhouser Film Corporation) was one of the first motion picture studios, founded in 1909 by Edwin Thanhouser, his wife Gertrude and his brother-in-law Lloyd Lonergan. It operated in New York City until 1920 ...
was liquidated in 1920. Edwin Thanhouser engaged in securities investments and collected art in his later years. He died March 21, 1956.Slide, Anthony. ''The New Historical Dictionary of the American Film Industry''. Routledge (2014)


References


External links

*
Edwin Thanhouser biography entry on Thanhouser website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Thanhouser, Edwin 1865 births 1956 deaths 19th-century American male actors American male stage actors 20th-century American businesspeople Male actors from Baltimore Businesspeople from Baltimore Film producers from New York (state) Silent film people Thanhouser Company Silent film producers Male actors from New Rochelle, New York