John Paul Harris (December 4, 1871 – January 26, 1926) was a

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...

businessman and politician who opened the world's first theater devoted entirely to showing

Motion pictures A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmosphere ...

Business career

Harris was born on December 4, 1871 to John and Bridget (Gaughan) Harris. Harris' father was a vaudeville producer and Harris' work in the entertainment industry began with his father's company, Harris Comedy and Specialty Co. In 1897 Harris Comedy and Specialty Co. showed Pittsburgh's first motion picture. On June 19, 1905, Harris and his brother-in-law, Harry Davis opened a small film theater on a Smithfield Street storefront in

Downtown Pittsburgh Downtown Pittsburgh, colloquially referred to as the Golden Triangle, and officially the Central Business District, is the urban downtown center of Pittsburgh. It is located at the confluence of the Allegheny River and the Monongahela River whose ...

. The theater, known as the

Nickelodeon Nickelodeon (often shortened to Nick) is an American pay television television channel, channel which launched on April 1, 1979, as the first cable channel for children. It is run by Paramount Global through its List of assets owned by Param ...

, was the first devoted exclusively for the exhibition of movies. The Harris-Davis company owned theaters in

Western Pennsylvania Western Pennsylvania is a region in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania, covering the western third of the state. Pittsburgh is the region's principal city, with a metropolitan area population of about 2.4 million people, and serves as its economic ...

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

, and

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

. In addition to owning theaters, Harris held shares in two

National League The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League (NL), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the world's oldest extant professional team s ...

baseball clubs. From November 15, 1910 to December 17, 1910, Harris served as the principal owner of the

Boston Doves The Atlanta Braves, a current Major League Baseball franchise, originated in Boston, Massachusetts. This article details the history of the Boston Braves, from 1871 to 1952, after which they moved to Milwaukee, and then to Atlanta. During it ...

. Following his sale of the Boston club, Harris purchased interest in the

Pittsburgh Pirates The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Founded as part of the American Associati ...

Politics

In 1922, Harris was elected to represent the 45th District in the

Pennsylvania State Senate The Pennsylvania State Senate is the upper house of the Pennsylvania General Assembly, the Pennsylvania state legislature. The State Senate meets in the State Capitol building in Harrisburg. Senators are elected for four year terms, staggered ev ...

to fill the unexpired term caused by the death of Norman Whitten. In 1924, Harris was elected to a full four-year term. In 1925, Harris became a support of Governor

Gifford Pinchot Gifford Pinchot (August 11, 1865October 4, 1946) was an American forester and politician. He served as the fourth chief of the U.S. Division of Forestry, as the first head of the United States Forest Service, and as the 28th governor of Pennsy ...

. Although the two had many differing views, Harris supported Pinchot's efforts to enforce prohibition and enact election reform. On January 26, 1926, Harris suffered a heart attack during a legislative hearing on election reform bills. He died soon thereafter. He was succeeded in the Senate by his brother Frank Joseph Harris.

Legacy

The Harris Theater in Pittsburgh is named in honor of Harris. The John P. Harris Film Society,

Point Park University Point Park University is a private university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Formerly known as Point Park College, the school name was revised in 2004 to reflect the number of graduate programs being offered. History Beginnings The university bega ...

's cinema club, is named after Harris.

References

1871 deaths 1926 deaths American entertainment industry businesspeople Baseball executives Boston Braves (baseball) Republican Party Pennsylvania state senators Businesspeople from Pittsburgh {{US-baseball-business-bio-stub