Thomas Harper Ince (November 16, 1880 – November 19, 1924) was an American silent film - era filmmaker and media proprietor. Ince was known as the "Father of the

Western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

" and was responsible for making over 800 films. He revolutionized the motion picture industry by creating the first major Hollywood studio facility and invented

movie production Filmmaking (film production) is the process by which a motion picture is produced. Filmmaking involves a number of complex and discrete stages, starting with an initial story, idea, or commission. It then continues through screenwriting, castin ...

by introducing the "

assembly line An assembly line is a manufacturing process (often called a ''progressive assembly'') in which parts (usually interchangeable parts) are added as the semi-finished assembly moves from workstation to workstation where the parts are added in seq ...

" system of

filmmaking Filmmaking (film production) is the process by which a motion picture is produced. Filmmaking involves a number of complex and discrete stages, starting with an initial story, idea, or commission. It then continues through screenwriting, casti ...

. He was the first mogul to build his own film studio dubbed "Inceville" in Palisades Highlands. Ince was also instrumental in developing the role of the producer in motion pictures. Three of his films, '' The Italian'' (1915), for which he wrote the

screenplay ''ScreenPlay'' is a television drama anthology series broadcast on BBC2 between 9 July 1986 and 27 October 1993. Background After single-play anthology series went off the air, the BBC introduced several showcases for made-for-television, fe ...

, ''

Hell's Hinges ''Hell's Hinges'' is a 1916 American silent Western film starring William S. Hart and Clara Williams. Directed by Charles Swickard, William S. Hart and Clifford Smith, and produced by Thomas H. Ince, the screenplay was written by C. Gardne ...

'' (1916) and ''

Civilization A civilization (or civilisation) is any complex society characterized by the development of a state, social stratification, urbanization, and symbolic systems of communication beyond natural spoken language (namely, a writing system). Ci ...

'' (1916), which he directed, were selected for

preservation Preservation may refer to: Heritage and conservation * Preservation (library and archival science), activities aimed at prolonging the life of a record while making as few changes as possible * ''Preservation'' (magazine), published by the Nat ...

by the

National Film Registry The National Film Registry (NFR) is the United States National Film Preservation Board's (NFPB) collection of films selected for preservation, each selected for its historical, cultural and aesthetic contributions since the NFPB’s inception i ...

. He later entered into a partnership with D. W. Griffith and

Mack Sennett Mack Sennett (born Michael Sinnott; January 17, 1880 – November 5, 1960) was a Canadian-American film actor, director, and producer, and studio head, known as the 'King of Comedy'. Born in Danville, Quebec, in 1880, he started in films in the ...

to form the

Triangle Motion Picture Company Triangle Film Corporation (also known as Triangle Motion Picture Company) was a major American motion-picture studio, founded in July 1915 in Culver City, California and terminated 7 years later in 1922. History The studio was founded in July ...

, whose studios are the present-day site of

Sony Pictures Sony Pictures Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Sony Pictures or SPE, and formerly known as Columbia Pictures Entertainment, Inc.) is an American diversified multinational mass media and entertainment studio Conglomerate (company), conglom ...

. He then built a new studio about a mile from Triangle, which is now the site of

Culver Studios The Culver Studios is a movie studio in Culver City, California. Originally created by silent movie pioneer Thomas H. Ince, classics from Hollywood's Golden Age were filmed there. It is currently owned by Hackman Capital Partners, which completel ...

. Ince's untimely death at the height of his career, after he became severely ill aboard the private yacht of media tycoon

William Randolph Hearst William Randolph Hearst Sr. (; April 29, 1863 – August 14, 1951) was an American businessman, newspaper publisher, and politician known for developing the nation's largest newspaper chain and media company, Hearst Communications. His flamboya ...

, has caused much speculation, although the official cause of his death was heart failure. Taves' extensive biography contains a strong rebuttal to the much rumored murder of Thomas Ince; see pp. 1-13.

Life and career

Thomas Harper Ince was born on November 16, 1880 in

Newport, Rhode Island Newport is an American seaside city on Aquidneck Island in Newport County, Rhode Island. It is located in Narragansett Bay, approximately southeast of Providence, Rhode Island, Providence, south of Fall River, Massachusetts, south of Boston, ...

, the middle of three sons and a daughter raised by English immigrants, John E. and Emma Ince. His father was born in

Wigan Wigan ( ) is a large town in Greater Manchester, England, on the River Douglas, Lancashire, River Douglas. The town is midway between the two cities of Manchester, to the south-east, and Liverpool, to the south-west. Bolton lies to the nor ...

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly. The non-metropolitan county of Lancashi ...

in 1841, and was the youngest of nine boys who enlisted in the British Navy as a "

powder monkey A powder boy or powder monkey manned naval artillery guns as a member of a warship's crew, primarily during the Age of Sail. His chief role was to ferry gunpowder from the powder magazine in the ship's hold to the artillery pieces, either in ...

". He later disembarked at

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...

, and found work as a reporter and coal miner. Around 1887, when Ince was about seven, the family moved to

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

to pursue theater work. Ince's father worked as both an actor and musical agent and his mother, Ince himself, sister Bertha and brothers,

John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Secon ...

and

Ralph Ralph (pronounced ; or ,) is a male given name of English, Scottish and Irish origin, derived from the Old English ''Rædwulf'' and Radulf, cognate with the Old Norse ''Raðulfr'' (''rað'' "counsel" and ''ulfr'' "wolf"). The most common forms ...

all worked as actors. Ince made his

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

debut at 15 in a small role of a revival 1893 play, ''Shore Acres'' by

James A. Herne James A. Herne (born James Ahearn; February 1, 1839 – June 2, 1901) was an American playwright and actor. He is considered by some critics to be the "American Ibsen", and his controversial play ''Margaret Fleming'' is often credited with havin ...

. He appeared with several stock companies as a child and was later an office boy for theatrical manager

Daniel Frohman Daniel Frohman (August 22, 1851 – December 26, 1940) was an American theatrical producer and manager, and an early film producer. Biography Frohman was born to a American Jews, Jewish family in Sandusky, Ohio. His parents were Henry (1826&nda ...

. He later formed an unsuccessful

vaudeville Vaudeville (; ) is a theatrical genre of variety entertainment born in France at the end of the 19th century. A vaudeville was originally a comedy without psychological or moral intentions, based on a comical situation: a dramatic composition ...

company known as "Thomas H. Ince and His Comedians" in

Atlantic Highlands, New Jersey Atlantic Highlands is a borough in Monmouth County, New Jersey, in the Bayshore Region. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough's population was 4,385,Elinor Kershaw ("Nell") and they were married on October 19 of that year. They had three children. Ince's directing career began in 1910 through a chance encounter in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

with an employee from his old acting troupe,

William S. Hart William Surrey Hart (December 6, 1864 – June 23, 1946) was an American silent film actor, screenwriter, director and producer. He is remembered as a foremost Western star of the silent era who "imbued all of his characters with honor and integ ...

. Ince found his first film work as an actor for the

Biograph Company The Biograph Company, also known as the American Mutoscope and Biograph Company, was a motion picture company founded in 1895 and active until 1916. It was the first company in the United States devoted entirely to film production and exhibition ...

, directed by his future partner,

D.W. Griffith David Wark Griffith (January 22, 1875 – July 23, 1948) was an American film director. Considered one of the most influential figures in the history of the motion picture, he pioneered many aspects of film editing and expanded the art of the na ...

. Griffith was impressed enough with Ince to hire him as a

production coordinator A production coordinator (officially called production office coordinator and abbreviated POC) is a unionized position in stagecraft under the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE) and is governed in Los Angeles by Local 871 ...

at Biograph. This led to more work coordinating productions at

Carl Laemmle Carl Laemmle (; born Karl Lämmle; January 17, 1867 – September 24, 1939) was a film producer and the co-founder and, until 1934, owner of Universal Pictures. He produced or worked on over 400 films. Regarded as one of the most important o ...

's Independent Motion Pictures Co. (IMP). That same year, a director at IMP was unable to complete work on a small feature film, so in a moment of bravado, Ince suggested that Laemmle hire him as a full-time director to complete the film. Impressed with the young man, Laemmle sent him to

Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...

to make one-reel shorts with his new stars,

Mary Pickford Gladys Marie Smith (April 8, 1892 – May 29, 1979), known professionally as Mary Pickford, was a Canadian-American stage and screen actress and producer with a career that spanned five decades. A pioneer in the US film industry, she co-founde ...

and

Owen Moore Owen Moore (12 December 1886 – 9 June 1939) was an Irish-born American actor, appearing in more than 279 movies spanning from 1908 to 1937. Early life and career Moore was born in Fordstown Crossroads, County Meath, Ireland. Along with his p ...

, out of the reach of

Thomas Edison Thomas Alva Edison (February 11, 1847October 18, 1931) was an American inventor and businessman. He developed many devices in fields such as electric power generation, mass communication, sound recording, and motion pictures. These inventio ...

Motion Picture Patents Company The Motion Picture Patents Company (MPPC, also known as the Edison Trust), founded in December 1908 and terminated seven years later in 1915 after conflicts within the industry, was a trust of all the major US film companies and local foreign-bran ...

-—the trust that was attempting to crush all independent production companies and corner the market on film production. Ince's output, however, was small. Although he tackled many different subjects, he was strongly drawn to

westerns The Western is a genre set in the American frontier and commonly associated with folk tales of the Western United States, particularly the Southwestern United States, as well as Northern Mexico and Western Canada. It is commonly referred ...

and

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...

dramas. Clashes between the trust and independent films became exacerbated, so Ince moved to California to escape these pressures. He hoped to achieve the effects accomplished with minimal facilities like Griffith, which he believed, could only be accomplished in

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood, ...

. After only a year with IMP, Ince quit. In September 1911, Ince walked into the offices of actor-financier

Charles O. Baumann Charles O. Baumann (January 20, 1874 – July 18, 1931) was an American film producer, film studio executive, and pioneer in the motion picture industry. Biography Career He was a partner in the Crescent Film Company formed in 1908 and in ...

(1874–1931) who co-owned the New York Motion Picture Company (NYMP) with actor-writer Adam Kessel, Jr. (1866–1946). Ince had found out that NYMPC had recently established a West Coast studio named Bison Studios at 1719 Alessandro (now known as Glendale Blvd.) in Edendale (present-day

Echo Park Echo Park is a neighborhood in the east-central region of Los Angeles, California. Located to the northwest of Downtown, it is bordered by Silver Lake to the west and Chinatown to the east. The culturally diverse neighborhood has become known fo ...

) to make westerns and he wanted to direct those pictures.

''The offer came as a distinct shock, but I kept cool and concealed my excitement. I tried to convey the impression that he would have to raise the ante a trifle if he wanted me. That also worked, and I signed a contract for three months at $150 a week. Very soon after that, with Mrs. Ince, my cameraman, property man and
Ethel Grandin Ethel Grandin (March 3, 1894 – September 28, 1988) was an American silent film actress. Grandin was born in New York City. She was married to Ray C. Smallwood from 1912 until his death on February 23, 1964; they had a son named Arthur Small ...
, my leading woman, I turned my face westward.''

Together with his young wife and a small entourage, Ince moved to Bison Studios to begin work immediately. He was shocked, however, to discover that the studio was nothing more than a "tract of land graced only by a four-room bungalow and a barn."

Inceville

Ince's aspirations soon led him to leave the narrow confines of Edendale and find a location that would give him greater scope and variety. He settled upon a tract of land called ''Bison Ranch'' located at Sunset Blvd. and Pacific Coast Highway in the

Santa Monica Mountains The Santa Monica Mountains is a coastal mountain range in Southern California, next to the Pacific Ocean. It is part of the Transverse Ranges. Because of its proximity to densely populated regions, it is one of the most visited natural areas in ...

, (the present-day location of the

Self-Realization Fellowship Lake Shrine The Self-Realization Fellowship Lake Shrine lies a few blocks from the Pacific Ocean, on Sunset Boulevard in Pacific Palisades, California. It was founded and dedicated by Paramahansa Yogananda, on August 20, 1950, and is owned by the Self-Realiz ...

) which he rented by the day. By 1912, he had earned enough money to purchase the ranch and was granted permission by NYMP to lease another in the Palisades Highlands stretching up Santa Ynez Canyon between

Santa Monica Santa Monica (; Spanish: ''Santa Mónica'') is a city in Los Angeles County, situated along Santa Monica Bay on California's South Coast. Santa Monica's 2020 U.S. Census population was 93,076. Santa Monica is a popular resort town, owing to ...

and Malibu where

Universal Studios Universal Pictures (legally Universal City Studios LLC, also known as Universal Studios, or simply Universal; common metonym: Uni, and formerly named Universal Film Manufacturing Company and Universal-International Pictures Inc.) is an Ameri ...

was eventually established, which was owned by The Miller Bros of

Ponca City, Oklahoma Ponca City ( iow, Chína Uhánⁿdhe) is a city in Kay County in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The city was named after the Ponca tribe. Ponca City had a population of 25,387 at the time of the 2010 census- and a population of 24,424 in the 2020 ...

. And it was here Ince built his first movie studio.

The "Miller 101 Bison Ranch Studio", which the Millers dubbed "Inceville" (and was later re-christened "Triangle Ranch") was the first of its kind in that it featured silent stages, production offices, printing labs, a commissary large enough to serve lunch to hundreds of workers, dressing rooms, props houses, elaborate sets, and other necessities – all in one location. While the site was under construction, Ince also leased the 101 Ranch and Wild West Show from the Miller Bros., bringing the whole troupe from Oklahoma out to California via train. The show consisted of 300

cowboy A cowboy is an animal herder who tends cattle on ranches in North America, traditionally on horseback, and often performs a multitude of other ranch-related tasks. The historic American cowboy of the late 19th century arose from the '' vaquer ...

s and cowgirls; 600 horses, cattle and other livestock (including steers and

bison Bison are large bovines in the genus ''Bison'' (Greek: "wild ox" (bison)) within the tribe Bovini. Two extant and numerous extinct species are recognised. Of the two surviving species, the American bison, ''B. bison'', found only in North Ame ...

) and a whole

Sioux The Sioux or Oceti Sakowin (; Dakota language, Dakota: Help:IPA, /otʃʰeːtʰi ʃakoːwĩ/) are groups of Native Americans in the United States, Native American tribes and First Nations in Canada, First Nations peoples in North America. The ...

tribe (200 of them in all) who set up their

teepees A tipi , often called a lodge in English, is a conical tent, historically made of animal hides or pelts, and in more recent generations of canvas, stretched on a framework of wooden poles. The word is Siouan, and in use in Dakhótiyapi, Lakȟó ...

on the property. They were then renamed "The Bison-101 Ranch Co.", and specialized in making westerns released under the name World Famous Features. 101 Ranch - Season of 1913

When construction was completed, the streets were lined with many types of structures, from humble cottages to mansions, mimicking the style and architecture of different countries. Extensive outdoor western sets were built and used on the site for several years. According to Katherine La Hue in her book, ''Pacific Palisades: Where the Mountains Meet the Sea'':

''Ince invested $35,000 in building, stages and sets ... a bit of Switzerland, a
Puritan The Puritans were English Protestants in the 16th and 17th centuries who sought to purify the Church of England of Catholic Church, Roman Catholic practices, maintaining that the Church of England had not been fully reformed and should become m ...
settlement, a
Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
ese village ... beyond the breakers, an ancient
brigantine A brigantine is a two-masted sailing vessel with a fully square-rigged foremast and at least two sails on the main mast: a square topsail and a gaff sail mainsail (behind the mast). The main mast is the second and taller of the two masts. Older ...
weighed anchor, cutlassed men swarming over the sides of the ship, while on the shore performing cowboys galloped about, twirling their lassos in pursuit of errant cattle ... The main herds were kept in the hills, where Ince also raised feed and garden produce. Supplies of every sort were needed to house and feed a veritable army of actors, directors and subordinates.''

While the cowboys, Native Americans and assorted workmen lived at "Inceville", the main actors came from

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

and other communities as needed, taking the red trolley cars to the Long Wharf at Temescal Canyon, where

buckboard A buckboard is a four-wheeled wagon of simple construction meant to be drawn by a horse or other large animal. A distinctly American utility vehicle, the buckboard has no springs between the body and the axles. The suspension is provided by the f ...

s conveyed them to the set. Ince lived in a house overlooking the vast studio, later the location of Marquez Knolls. Here he functioned as the central authority over multiple production units, changing the way films were made by organizing production methods into a disciplined system of filmmaking. Indeed, "Inceville" became a prototype for Hollywood film studios of the future, with a studio head (Ince), producers, directors, production managers, production staff, and writers all working together under one organization (the unit system) and under the supervision of a General Manager,

Fred J. Balshofer Fred J. Balshofer (November 2, 1877 – June 21, 1969) was a pioneering silent film director, producer, screenwriter, and cinematographer in the United States. Biography Balshofer was born in New York City and became interested in the photogr ...

. Before this, the

director Director may refer to: Literature * ''Director'' (magazine), a British magazine * ''The Director'' (novel), a 1971 novel by Henry Denker * ''The Director'' (play), a 2000 play by Nancy Hasty Music * Director (band), an Irish rock band * ''D ...

and

cameraman A camera operator, or depending on the context cameraman or camerawoman, is a professional operator of a film camera or video camera as part of a film crew. The term "cameraman" does not imply that a male is performing the task. In filmmakin ...

controlled the production of the picture, but Ince put the producer in charge of the film from inception to final product. He defined the producer's role in both a creative and industrial sense. He was also one of the first to hire a separate

screenwriter A screenplay writer (also called screenwriter, scriptwriter, scribe or scenarist) is a writer who practices the craft of screenwriting, writing screenplays on which mass media, such as films, television programs and video games, are based. ...

, director, and

editor Editing is the process of selecting and preparing written, photographic, visual, audible, or cinematic material used by a person or an entity to convey a message or information. The editing process can involve correction, condensation, orga ...

(instead of the director doing everything themselves). By 1913, the concept of the

production manager In the cinema of the United States, a unit production manager (UPM) is the Directors Guild of America–approved title for the top below-the-line staff position, responsible for the administration of a feature film or television production. Non- ...

had been created. With the aid of George Stout, an accountant for NYMP, Ince re-organized how films were outputted to bring discipline to the process. After this adjustment the studio's weekly output increased from one to two, and later three two-reel pictures per week, released under such names as "Kay-Bee" (Kessel-Baumann), "Domino" (comedy), and "Broncho" (western) productions. These were written, produced, cut, and assembled, with the finished product delivered within a week. By enabling more than one film to be made at a time, Ince decentralized the process of movie production to meet the increased demand from theaters. This was the dawning of the assembly-line system that all studios eventually adopted. With this model, developed between 1913 and 1918, Ince gradually exercised even more control over the film production process as a director-general. In 1913 alone, he made over 150 two-reeler movies, mostly Westerns, thereby anchoring the popularity of the genre for decades. While many of Ince's films were praised in

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

, many American critics did not share this high opinion. One such picture was '' The Battle of Gettysburg'' (1913) which was five reels long. The picture helped bring into vogue the idea of the feature-length film. Another important early movie for Ince was '' The Italian'' (1915), which depicted

immigrant Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not natives or where they do not possess citizenship in order to settle as permanent residents or naturalized citizens. Commuters, tourists, and ...

life in

. Two of his most successful films were among his first, ''War on the Plains'' (1912) and ''

Custer's Last Fight ''Custer's Last Fight'' (also known as ''Custer's Last Raid'') is a 1912 American silent short Western film. It is the first film about George Armstrong Custer and his final stand at the Battle of the Little Bighorn. Francis Ford, the older b ...

'' (1912), which featured many Native Americans who had actually been in the battle. Even though he was the first producer-director and directed most of his early productions, by 1913 Ince eventually ceased full-time directing to concentrate on producing, transferring this responsibility to such proteges as Francis Ford and his brother

John Ford John Martin Feeney (February 1, 1894 – August 31, 1973), known professionally as John Ford, was an American film director and naval officer. He is widely regarded as one of the most important and influential filmmakers of his generation. He ...

, Jack Conway,

William Desmond Taylor William Desmond Taylor (born William Cunningham Deane-Tanner, 26 April 1872 – 1 February 1922) was an Anglo-Irish-American film director and actor. A popular figure in the growing Hollywood motion picture colony of the 1910s and early 1920s, ...

Reginald Barker Reginald C. Barker (April 2, 1886 – February 23, 1945) was a pioneer film director. Biography Born in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, Barker's family moved to Scotland when he was an infant and then to the United States. Living in California, ...

Fred Niblo Fred Niblo (born Frederick Liedtke; January 6, 1874 – November 11, 1948) was an American pioneer film actor, director and producer. Biography He was born Frederick Liedtke (several sources give "Frederico Nobile", apparently erroneously) in Yo ...

, Henry King and

Frank Borzage Frank Borzage (; April 23, 1894 – June 19, 1962) was an Academy Award-winning American film director and actor, known for directing '' 7th Heaven'' (1927), '' Street Angel'' (1928), '' Bad Girl'' (1931), '' A Farewell to Arms'' (1932), ''Man's ...

. The story was the preeminent aspect of Ince's pictures. Films such as The Italian, The Gangsters and the Girl (1914), and

The Clodhopper ''The Clodhopper'' is a 1917 American comedy drama film from Kay Bee Pictures starring Charles Ray and Margery Wilson and directed by Victor Schertzinger. Plot Isaac Nelson (French) is the tight-fisted president of a country bank and owns a far ...

(1917) are excellent examples of the dramatic structure that resulted from his masterful editing. Film preservationist David Shepard said of Ince in ''The American Film Heritage'': Ince also discovered many talents, including his old actor friend, William S. Hart, who made some of the best early westerns, beginning in 1914. Later, a rift developed between the two over sharing of profits. Portentously, on January 16, 1916, a few days after the opening of his first

Culver City Culver City is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 40,779. Founded in 1917 as a "whites only" sundown town, it is now an ethnically diverse city with what was called the "third-most ...

studio, a fire broke out at "Inceville", the first of many that eventually destroyed all of the buildings. Ince later gave up on the studio and sold it to Hart, who renamed it "Hartville." Three years later, Hart sold the lot to

Robertson-Cole Pictures Corporation Film Booking Offices of America (FBO), registered as FBO Pictures Corp., was an American film studio of the silent era, a midsize producer and distributor of mostly low-budget films. The business began in 1918 as Robertson-Cole, an Anglo-Americ ...

, which continued filming there until 1922. La Hue writes that "the place was virtually a ghost town when the last remnants of "Inceville" were burned on July 4, 1922, leaving only a "weatherworn old

church Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a building for Christian religious activities * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian communal worship * Chris ...

, which stood sentinel over the charred ruins."

Ince-Triangle Studios

By 1915, Ince was considered one of the best-known producer-directors. Around this time,

real estate Real estate is property consisting of land and the buildings on it, along with its natural resources such as crops, minerals or water; immovable property of this nature; an interest vested in this (also) an item of real property, (more general ...

mogul

Harry Culver Harry Hazel Culver (January 22, 1880 – August 17, 1946) was a real estate developer and promoter. He was born in Milford, Nebraska, the middle child of five of Jacob H. and Ada L. (Davison) Culver, who lived on a farm. At age 18, he enlisted i ...

noticed Ince shooting a western in

Ballona Creek Ballona Creek (pronunciation: “Bah-yo-nuh” or “Buy-yo-nah” ) is an channelized stream in southwestern Los Angeles County, California, United States, that was once a “year-round river lined with sycamores and willows.” Ballona Creek ...

. Impressed with his talents, Culver convinced Ince to move from Inceville and re-locate to what was to become

. Taking Culver's advice, Ince left NYMP and on July 19 partnered with

and

to form The Triangle Motion Picture Company based on their prestige as producers. Triangle (so named because from an aerial point of view the property had a triangular shape) was built at 10202 West Washington Boulevard (which became the Ince/Triangle Studios, before becoming Lot 1 of the prestigious MGM Studios, and is now

Sony Pictures Studios The Sony Pictures Studios is an American television and film studio complex located in Culver City, California at 10202 West Washington Boulevard and bounded by Culver Boulevard (south), Washington Boulevard (north), Overland Avenue (west) and ...

as a result the aftermath of Griffith's ''

The Birth of a Nation ''The Birth of a Nation'', originally called ''The Clansman'', is a 1915 American silent epic drama film directed by D. W. Griffith and starring Lillian Gish. The screenplay is adapted from Thomas Dixon Jr.'s 1905 novel and play ''The Cla ...

.'' Although a box-office success, the film led to

riots A riot is a form of civil disorder commonly characterized by a group lashing out in a violent public disturbance against authority, property, or people. Riots typically involve destruction of property, public or private. The property targeted ...

in major northern cities due to its controversial content. Triangle was one of the first vertically integrated film companies. By combining production, distribution, and theater operations under one roof, the partners created the most dynamic studio in Hollywood. They attracted directors and stars of the day, including Pickford, Lillian Gish, Fatty Arbuckle, Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle, and Douglas Fairbanks, Douglas Fairbanks, Sr. They also produced some of the most enduring films of the silent era, including the Keystone Kops comedy franchise. Originally a distributor of films produced by NYMP, the Reliance Motion Picture Corp., Majestic Pictures, Majestic Motion Picture Co., and Keystone Studios, The Keystone Film Co., by November 1916 the company's distribution was handled by Triangle Distributing Corporation. Though Ince had many credits as a director at Triangle, he only supervised the production of most pictures, working primarily as executive producer. One of his important pictures as a director was ''

'' (1916), an epic plea for peace and American neutrality set in a mythical country and dedicated to the mothers of those who died in World War I. The film competed with Griffith's famous epic, ''Intolerance (film), Intolerance'' and beat it at the box office. ''

'' was selected for preservation in the

by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant". Ince added a few stages and an administration building to Triangle Studios before selling his shares to Griffith and Sennett in 1918. Three years later, the studios were acquired by Goldwyn Pictures, and in 1924 the facility became Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer studios. Although many believe that such classics as Gone with the Wind (film), Gone with the Wind and King Kong (1933 film), King Kong were later filmed on that same lot, those movies in fact had been shot at 9336 West Washington Blvd at the Thomas H. Ince Studios.

Thomas H. Ince Studios

For a while, Ince joined competitor Adolph Zukor to form Paramount-Artcraft Pictures (later Paramount Pictures). However, he yearned to go back to running his own studio. On July 19, 1918, following Samuel Goldwyn's acquisition of the Triangle lot, he purchased a 14-acre (57,000 m²) property at 9336 West Washington Blvd. on an option basis from Culver along with a $132,000 loan. Thus was formed Thomas H. Ince Studios, which operated from 1919 to 1924. (The area later known as RKO Forty Acres was southeast of the studio.) Ince Studios was to be another Culver City historic landmark. When Ince conceived the idea of building his own studio, he was determined to have it different from the others. Plans submitted to him by architects Meyer & Holler, included having a whole front administrative building made into a replica of George Washington's home at Mount Vernon. The resulting administration building, known as "The Mansion", was the first building on the lot. Mansion-front

In back of the impressive office building were approximately 40 buildings, most of which were designed in the Colonial Revival architecture, Colonial Revival style. A small group of bungalows, built for various movie stars and designed in styles popular in the 1920s and '30s, were constructed on the west side of the lot. By 1920, two glass stages, a hospital, fire department, reservoir/swimming pool, and the back lot were completed. That same year, President Woodrow Wilson took a tour of the studios as did the Albert I of Belgium, King and Elisabeth of Bavaria (1876–1965), Queen of Belgium, along with their son, Leopold III of Belgium, Prince Leopold, among much pomp and ceremony. Ince had two or three companies working continuously on the lot at any given time. According to film historian Marc Wanamaker, Ince worked with a team of eight directors but "he retained creative control of his films, developing the shooting scripts" and personally assembling each of his films. By now, Ince had drifted away from westerns in favor of social dramas and he made a few significant films including ''Anna Christie'' (1923), based on the play by Eugene O'Neill, and ''Human Wreckage'' (1923), which was an early anti-drug film starring Dorothy Davenport (widow of addicted star Wallace Reid). Although Ince found distribution for his films through Paramount and MGM, he was no longer as powerful as he once had been and tried to regain his status in Hollywood. In 1919, with several other independent entrepreneurs (notably his old partner at Triangle, Mack Sennett, Marshall Neilan, Allan Dwan and Maurice Tourneur) he co-founded the independent releasing company, Associated Producers, Inc., to distribute their films. However, Associated Producers merged with First National Pictures, First National in 1922. Though Ince still made some significant motion pictures, the studio system was starting to take over Hollywood. With little room for an independent producer and despite his attempts, Ince could not regain the powerful standing he once held in the industry. He and other independent producers tried to form the Cinematic Finance Corporation in 1921, which made loans to producers who already had been successful, but only accomplished its goal in a limited sense. In 1925, a year after Ince's death, the studio was sold (with Pathé, Pathé America) to Ince's friend Cecil B. DeMille. Besides DeMille, among those who had offices on the lot were producer Howard Hughes and Selznick International Pictures. About four years later, DeMille sold his interest to Pathé and the studio became known as the Pathé Culver City Studio. By 1928 after mergers, the studio became RKO/Pathé. By 1957, a number of other studios followed: Desilu Productions, Desilu Culver, Culver City Studios, Laird International Studios, etc. In 1991, Sony Pictures Entertainment purchased the property as the home for its television endeavors, renaming it

, and eventually selling it in 2004 to a group of investors; the street intersecting the studios was renamed Ince Blvd. The studio is still home to Brooksfilms today.

Death

Ince's death at the age of 44 has been the subject of much speculation and scandal, with rumors of murder, mystery, and jealousy. The official cause of his death was heart failure, and while witnesses (including his widow Nell) corroborate that his medical condition brought about his death, rumors and sensationalism continued decades later, fueled with the 2001 release of the movie ''The Cat's Meow''. Ince and

had been negotiating a deal under which Hearst's Cosmopolitan Productions would use Ince's studio. Hearst visited Ince at his home, his "Dias Dorados" estate at 1051 Benedict Canyon Drive, on Saturday November 15 and invited him for a weekend cruise on his yacht to honor Ince's birthday and to work out details of the Ince/Cosmopolitan deal. According to Ince's widow, Nell, Ince took a train to San Diego, where he joined the guests the next morning. At dinner that Sunday night, the group celebrated his birthday but later Ince suffered an acute bout of indigestion due to his consumption of salted almonds and champagne, both forbidden as he had peptic ulcers. Accompanied by Dr. Goodman, a licensed though non-practicing physician, Ince traveled by train to Del Mar, California, Del Mar, where he was taken to a hotel and given medical treatment by a second doctor and a nurse. Ince then summoned his wife and Dr. Ida Cowan Glasgow (Ince's personal physician) to Del Mar with Ince's eldest son William accompanying them. The group traveled by train to his Los Angeles home where Ince died. Nell said that Ince had been treated for chest pains caused by Angina pectoris, angina, but years later his son William became a physician and said that his father's illness resembled thrombosis. Dr. Glasgow signed the death certificate citing heart failure as the cause of death. The front page of the Wednesday morning ''Los Angeles Times'' supposedly sensationalized the story: '"Movie Producer Shot on Hearst Yacht!", but the headlines vanished in the evening edition. On November 20, the ''Los Angeles Times'' published Ince's obituary citing heart disease as the cause of death along with his failing health from an automobile accident two years earlier. A month later, the ''New York Times'' reported that the San Diego District Attorney announced that Ince's death was caused by heart failure and no further investigation was necessary. Both Ince and his wife were practicing Theosophy (Blavatskian), Theosophists who preferred cremation and had arranged for it long before Ince's death. While rumors prevailed that Ince's widow suddenly departed the country after her husband's death, she actually left for Europe about seven months later in July 1925. However, several conflicting stories circulated about the incident, often revolving around a claim that Hearst shot Ince in the head after mistaking him for Charlie Chaplin. Chaplin's valet, Toraichi Kono, claimed to have seen Ince when he came ashore via stretcher in San Diego. Kono told his wife that Ince's head was "bleeding from a bullet wound." The story quickly spread among Japanese domestic workers throughout Beverly Hills. Charles Lederer, the nephew of Hearst's longtime partner Marion Davies, also told a similar story to Peter Bogdanovich, the director of ''The Cat's Meow''. Elinor Glyn, who was on the yacht, told Eleanor Boardman that everyone aboard the yacht had been sworn to secrecy about the events, which would indicate more than a death under natural circumstances. But during Ince's funeral, the ''Los Angeles Times'' noted that his casket would remain open for one hour "to afford friends and studio employees to pass for one last glimpse of the man they loved and respected", with no witnesses ever mentioning a bullet wound. Ince's body was cremated on November 21 in Hollywood Forever Cemetery and the ashes returned to his family on December 24, 1924 who reportedly scattered them at sea. Thomas H Ince - Standing 1922

Movie columnist Louella Parsons' name also figured into the Ince scandal, with some speculating that she had been aboard the ''Oneida'' that fatal day. When the ''Oneida'' sailed, Parsons was a New York movie columnist for one of Hearst's papers. Supposedly, after the Ince affair, Hearst gave her a lifetime contract and expanded her broadcast syndication, syndication. However, other sources show that Parsons did not gain her position with Hearst as part of "hush money" but had been the motion picture editor of the Hearst-owned ''New York American'' in December 1923 and her contract was signed a year before Ince's death. Another story circulated that Hearst provided Nell Ince with a trust fund just before she left for

and that Hearst paid off Ince's mortgage on his Château Élysée apartment building in Hollywood. But Nell was left a very wealthy woman and the Château Élysée was an apartment she had already owned and had built on the grounds where the Ince home once stood. Years later, Hearst spoke to a journalist about the rumor that he had murdered Tom Ince. "Not only am I innocent of this Ince murder," he said, "So is everybody else." Nell Ince herself was increasingly frustrated over the Hearst rumors surrounding her husband's death and remarked: "Do you think I would have done nothing if I even suspected that my husband had been victim of foul play on anyone's part?" But the myth of Ince's death overshadowed his reputation as a pioneering filmmaker and his role in the growth of the film industry. His studio was sold soon after he died. His final film, ''Enticement (1925 film), Enticement'', a romance set in the French Alps, was released posthumously in 1925.

In popular culture

''Murder at San Simeon'' (Charles Scribner's Sons, Scribner), a 1996 novel by Patty Hearst, Patricia Hearst (William Randolph's granddaughter) and Cordelia Frances Biddle, is a mystery based on the 1924 death of producer Thomas Ince aboard the yacht of William Randolph Hearst. This fictitious version presents Chaplin and Davies as lovers and Hearst as the jealous old man unwilling to share his mistress. ''RKO 281'' is a 1999 film about the making of ''Citizen Kane''. The movie includes a scene depicting screenwriter Herman Mankiewicz telling director Orson Welles his account of the incident. ''The Cat's Meow'', the 2001 film directed by Peter Bogdanovich, is another fictitious version of Ince's death. Bogdanovich notes that he heard the story from director Orson Welles, who said he heard it from screenwriter Charles Lederer (Marion Davies's nephew).French, Lawrence
"Peter Bogdanovich on Completing Orson Welles Long Awaited ''The Other Side of the Wind for Showtime''"
(March 9, 2008 interview). ''Wellesnet: The Orson Welles Web Resource'', March 14, 2008. Retrieved 5 January 2013 In Bogdanovich's film, Ince is portrayed by Cary Elwes. The movie was adapted by Steven Peros from his own play, which premiered in Los Angeles in 1997. Ince's star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame is located at 6727 Hollywood Blvd. in

The Silver Sheet

A studio publication promoting ''Thomas H. Ince Productions''. File:Silver Sheet September 01 1920.pdf, ''The Silver Sheet'' (1920) File:Silver Sheet December 01 1921.pdf, ''Hail the Woman'' (1921) File:Silver Sheet September 01 1922.pdf, ''Skin Deep (1922 film), Skin Deep'' (1922) File:Silver Sheet October 01 1922.pdf, ''Lorna Doone (1922 film), Lorna Doone'' (1922) File:Silver Sheet January 01 1923.pdf, ''Scars of Jealousy'' (1923) File:Silver Sheet January 01 1923 - BELL BOY 13.pdf, ''Bell Boy 13'' (1923) File:Silver Sheet January 01 1923 - GALLOPING FISH.pdf, ''The Galloping Fish'' (1924) File:Silver Sheet January 01 1923 - SOUL OF THE BEAST.pdf, ''Soul of the Beast'' (1923) File:Silver Sheet January 01 1923 - ANNA CHRISTIE.pdf, ''Anna Christie (1923 film), Anna Christie'' (1923) File:Silver Sheet February 01 1923 - WHAT A WIFE LEARNED.pdf, ''What a Wife Learned'' (1923) File:Silver Sheet May 01 1923 - MAN OF ACTION.pdf, ''A Man of Action (1923 film), A Man of Action'' (1923) File:Silver Sheet May 01 1923 - HER REPUTATION.pdf, ''Her Reputation (1923 film), Her Reputation'' (1923) File:Silver Sheet January 01 1924 - CHRISTINE OF THE HUNGRY HEART.pdf, ''Christine of the Hungry Heart'' (1924) File:Silver Sheet January 01 1924 - IDLE TONGUES.pdf, ''Idle Tongues'' (1924) File:Silver Sheet January 01 1924 - MARRIAGE CHEAT.pdf, ''The Marriage Cheat'' (1924) File:Silver Sheet January 01 1924 - ENTICEMENT.pdf, ''Enticement'' (1925) File:Silver Sheet April 01 1924 - THOSE WHO DANCE.pdf, ''Those Who Dance (1924 film), Those Who Dance'' (1924) File:Silver Sheet January 01 1925 - PLAYING WITH SOULS.pdf, ''Playing with Souls'' (1925)

Filmography, posters and newspaper ads

:''see Thomas H. Ince filmography'' File:The Battle of Gettysburg 1913 newpaperad.jpg, '' The Battle of Gettysburg'' (1913) File:The Wrath of the Gods poster.jpg, ''The Wrath of the Gods (1914 film), The Wrath of the Gods'' (1914) File:TheItalian-moviepamphlet-1915.jpg, '' The Italian'' (1915) File:The Return of Draw Egan poster.jpg, ''The Return of Draw Egan'' (1916) File:The Phantom 1916.jpg, ''The Phantom'' (1916) File:Triangle Keystone.jpg, Triangle-Keystone comedies (1916) File:Aryan poster.jpg, ''The Aryan'' (1916) File:Civilization Poster.jpg, ''

'' (1916) File:Civilization (1916) - Peace Song.jpg, ''

Peace Song'' (1916) File:Civilization.jpg, ''

'' (1916) File:Hell's Hinges.jpg, ''

'' (1916) File:Alohaoe-newspaperad-1916.jpg, ''Aloha Oe (film), Aloha Oe'' (1916) File:Giblyn-charles-peggy-1916-lobbycardposter.jpg, ''Peggy (1916 film), Peggy'' (1916) False to the Finish.jpg, ''False to the Finish'' (1917) Haunted by Himself.jpg, ''Haunted by Himself'' (1917) Her Busted Debut.jpg, ''Her Busted Debut'' (1917) Mystic Faces.jpg, ''Mystic Faces'' (1918) File:Wagon Tracks 1919 film.jpg, ''Wagon Tracks'' (1919) Child of M'sieu.jpg, ' (1919) File:Silk Hosiery (1920) - 1.jpg, ''Silk Hosiery'' (1920) File:Herhusbandsfriend-1921-newspaperad.jpg, ''Her Husband's Friend'' (1921) File:Lorna Doone Poster.jpg, ''Lorna Doone (1922 film), Lorna Doone'' (1922)

Notes

References

* * * * * *

External links

*
Ince Theater, Culver City, California

Thomas H. Ince Papers, 1913–1964, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.

Thomas H. Ince Papers, 1907–1925, Museum of Modern Art, Film Study Center Special Collections, New York City
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ince, Thomas Harper 1880 births 1924 deaths Cinema pioneers American male screenwriters American male silent film actors American film production company founders American people of English descent Writers from Newport, Rhode Island Male actors from Rhode Island 20th-century American male actors Articles containing video clips Death conspiracy theories Film directors from Rhode Island Screenwriters from Rhode Island 20th-century American male writers 20th-century American screenwriters