Theodore Wharton
Encyclopedia
Theodore Wharton was an American film director
, producer and writer. He directed 48 films in the 1910s
and 1920s
, including the 1915 film
The New Adventures of J. Rufus Wallingford
, which featured Oliver Hardy
.
He was born April 12, 1875 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin
. He was the younger brother of Leopold Wharton
(1870–1927), who was also a film director.
In 1890 Wharton started in both the business side of the theater as well as acting in Dallas, Texas
. He worked for a number of stock companies, including that of Augustin Daly
until 1899, and then became a stage manager. In 1907 he visited Edison Studios
and worked there until 1909. Over the next 3 years he wrote and directed many screenplays for various studios including Essanay Studios
.
During 1912 the US government commissioned him to produce The Late Indian Wars, the first sevel-reel motion picture in America. It was filmed on location in the great plains, with a script by General Charles King
and a large cast including other generals and "Buffalo Bill" Cody
. The Whartons Studio opened in Ithaca, New York
in 1914. Stars he directed included Francis X. Bushman
, Henry B. Walthall
and Beverly Bayne
.
In the 1902s Wharton moved to Santa Cruz, California
, as promoted by mayor Fred Swanton
.
He died November 28, 1931 in Hollywood, California.
Film director
A film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking. They control a film's artistic and dramatic nathan roach, while guiding the technical crew and actors.-Responsibilities:...
, producer and writer. He directed 48 films in the 1910s
1910 in film
The year 1910 in film involved some significant events.-Events:*The newsreel footage of the funeral of King Edward VII of the United Kingdom is shot in Kinemacolor, making it the first color newsreel....
and 1920s
1920 in film
The year 1920 in film involved some significant events.-Events:* November 27 - The Mark of Zorro, starring Douglas Fairbanks opens.-Top grossing films :-Films released in 1920:U.S.A. unless stated*The $1,000,000 Reward...
, including the 1915 film
1915 in film
The year 1915 in film involved some significant events.-Events:* February 8 : D.W Griffith's The Birth of a Nation premieres at Clune's Auditorium Los Angeles and breaks box office and film length records, running at a total length of 3 hrs 10 minutes.* June 18 : The Motion Picture Directors...
The New Adventures of J. Rufus Wallingford
The New Adventures of J. Rufus Wallingford
-Cast:* Burr McIntosh - J. Rufus 'Jim Wallingford* Max Figman - Blackie Daw* Lolita Robertson - Violet Warden* Frances White - Fanny Warden* Edward O'Connor - Onion Jones* Harry Mainhall - Benzy Falls Jr.* Allan Murnane - Andre Perigourd...
, which featured Oliver Hardy
Oliver Hardy
Oliver Hardy was an American comic actor famous as one half of Laurel and Hardy, the classic double act that began in the era of silent films and lasted nearly 30 years, from 1927 to 1955.-Early life:...
.
He was born April 12, 1875 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Wisconsin
Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...
. He was the younger brother of Leopold Wharton
Leopold Wharton
Leopold Wharton was an American film director, producer and writer. He directed 37 films between 1911 and 1922, including the 1915 film The New Adventures of J. Rufus Wallingford, which featured Oliver Hardy....
(1870–1927), who was also a film director.
In 1890 Wharton started in both the business side of the theater as well as acting in Dallas, Texas
Dallas, Texas
Dallas is the third-largest city in Texas and the ninth-largest in the United States. The Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex is the largest metropolitan area in the South and fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States...
. He worked for a number of stock companies, including that of Augustin Daly
Augustin Daly
John Augustin Daly was an American theatrical manager and playwright active in both the US and UK.-Biography:Daly was born in Plymouth, North Carolina and educated at Norfolk, Va...
until 1899, and then became a stage manager. In 1907 he visited Edison Studios
Edison Studios
Edison Studios was an American motion picture production company owned by the Edison Company of inventor Thomas Edison. The studio made close to 1,200 films as the Edison Manufacturing Company and Thomas A. Edison, Inc. until the studio's closing in 1918...
and worked there until 1909. Over the next 3 years he wrote and directed many screenplays for various studios including Essanay Studios
Essanay Studios
The Essanay Film Manufacturing Company was an American motion picture studio. It is best known today for its series of Charlie Chaplin comedies of 1915.-Founding:...
.
During 1912 the US government commissioned him to produce The Late Indian Wars, the first sevel-reel motion picture in America. It was filmed on location in the great plains, with a script by General Charles King
Charles King (general)
Charles King was a United States soldier and a distinguished writer.-Biography:...
and a large cast including other generals and "Buffalo Bill" Cody
Buffalo Bill
William Frederick "Buffalo Bill" Cody was a United States soldier, bison hunter and showman. He was born in the Iowa Territory , in LeClaire but lived several years in Canada before his family moved to the Kansas Territory. Buffalo Bill received the Medal of Honor in 1872 for service to the US...
. The Whartons Studio opened in Ithaca, New York
Ithaca, New York
The city of Ithaca, is a city in upstate New York and the county seat of Tompkins County, as well as the largest community in the Ithaca-Tompkins County metropolitan area...
in 1914. Stars he directed included Francis X. Bushman
Francis X. Bushman
Francis Xavier Bushman was an American actor, film director, and screenwriter. His matinee idol career started in 1911 in the silent film His Friend's Wife, but it did not survive the silent screen era....
, Henry B. Walthall
Henry B. Walthall
Henry Brazeale Walthall was an American film actor.-Career:Walthall began his career as a stage actor, appearing on Broadway in a supporting role in William Vaughn Moody's The Great Divide in 1906–1908. His career in movies began in 1908, in the film Rescued from an Eagle's Nest, which also...
and Beverly Bayne
Beverly Bayne
Beverly Bayne was an American actress who appeared in silent films beginning in 1910 in Chicago, Illinois, where she worked for Essanay Studios.-Early life:...
.
In the 1902s Wharton moved to Santa Cruz, California
Santa Cruz, California
Santa Cruz is the county seat and largest city of Santa Cruz County, California in the US. As of the 2010 U.S. Census, Santa Cruz had a total population of 59,946...
, as promoted by mayor Fred Swanton
Fred Swanton
Fred Wilder Swanton was a businessman who served as mayor of Santa Cruz, California from 1927 until 1933. He promoted the expansion of Santa Cruz County from a small lumber town along the Pacific Coast to a booming beach resort city...
.
He died November 28, 1931 in Hollywood, California.
Selected filmography
- Abraham Lincoln's ClemencyAbraham Lincoln's ClemencyAbraham Lincoln's Clemency was a 1910 film directed by Theodore Wharton and produced by Pathé Films. The plot revolves around US President Abraham Lincoln pardoning a hapless sentry who had fallen asleep while on duty during the height of the Civil War. Due to the soldier's incompetence he is due...
(19101910 in filmThe year 1910 in film involved some significant events.-Events:*The newsreel footage of the funeral of King Edward VII of the United Kingdom is shot in Kinemacolor, making it the first color newsreel....
) - The Exploits of ElaineThe Exploits of ElaineThe Exploits of Elaine is a film serial in the genre of The Perils of Pauline.The Exploits of Elaine tells the story of a young woman named Elaine who, with the help of a detective, tries to find the man, known only as "The Clutching Hand", who murdered her father. The Clutching Hand was the first...
(19141914 in filmThe year 1914 in film involved some significant events, including the debut of Cecil B. DeMille as a director.-Events:*The 3,300-seat Mark Strand Theatre opens in New York City....
) - The New Adventures of J. Rufus WallingfordThe New Adventures of J. Rufus Wallingford-Cast:* Burr McIntosh - J. Rufus 'Jim Wallingford* Max Figman - Blackie Daw* Lolita Robertson - Violet Warden* Frances White - Fanny Warden* Edward O'Connor - Onion Jones* Harry Mainhall - Benzy Falls Jr.* Allan Murnane - Andre Perigourd...
(1915) - The New Exploits of ElaineThe New Exploits of ElaineThe New Exploits of Elaine is a 1915 action film serial directed by Louis J. Gasnier, Leopold Wharton and Theodore Wharton.-Cast:* Pearl White as Elaine Dodge* Creighton Hale as Walter Jameson* Arnold Daly as Detective Craig Kennedy...
(1915) - The Romance of ElaineThe Romance of ElaineThe Romance of Elaine is a 1915 silent adventure film serial directed by George B. Seitz, Leopold Wharton and Theodore Wharton. The film is considered to be lost.-Cast:* Pearl White - Elaine Dodge* Creighton Hale - Walter Jameson...
(19151915 in filmThe year 1915 in film involved some significant events.-Events:* February 8 : D.W Griffith's The Birth of a Nation premieres at Clune's Auditorium Los Angeles and breaks box office and film length records, running at a total length of 3 hrs 10 minutes.* June 18 : The Motion Picture Directors...
) - The Lottery ManThe Lottery ManThe Lottery Man is a silent comedy film featuring Oliver Hardy and produced at the Whartons Studio in Ithaca, New York. A print of the film exists in the film archive of the Library of Congress.-Cast:* Thurlow Bergen - Jack Wright-a son...
(19161916 in filmThe year 1916 in film involved some significant events.-Events:* October 17 - release of A Daughter of the Gods, the first US production with a million dollar budget, with the first nude scene by a major star....
) - PatriaPatria (1917 film)Patria is a 1917 15-chapter serial film starring Irene Castle, Milton Sills, and Warner Oland based on the novel The Last of the Fighting Channings by Louis Joseph Vance. The film is notable for the first time that Wallace Beery portrays Pancho Villa, a role that he would repeat in Viva Villa! in...
(19171917 in filmThe year 1917 in film involved some significant events.-Events:*Foundation of Universum Film AG , as a propaganda film company, in Berlin.*Technicolor System 1, a two-color process, is introduced...
) - The Moon RidersThe Moon Riders (serial)The Moon Riders is a 1920 Western film serial directed by B. Reeves Eason and Theodore Wharton. The film is considered to be lost.-Cast:* Art Acord - Buck Ravelle, a Ranger* Mildred Moore - Anna Baldwin, Arizona's Daughter...
(19201920 in filmThe year 1920 in film involved some significant events.-Events:* November 27 - The Mark of Zorro, starring Douglas Fairbanks opens.-Top grossing films :-Films released in 1920:U.S.A. unless stated*The $1,000,000 Reward...
) - The Eagle's TalonsThe Eagle's TalonsThe Eagle's Talons is a 1923 film serial directed by Duke Worne. The film is considered to be lost.-Cast:* Fred Thomson - Jack Alden* Ann Little - Enid Markham* Al Wilson - Charles Dean* Herbert Fortier - Gregory Markham* Joseph W...
(19231923 in film-Events:*April 15 - Lee De Forest demonstrates the Phonofilm sound-on-film system at the Rivoli Theater in New York with a series of short musical films featuring vaudeville performers.-Top grossing films :-Films released in 1923:U.S.A...
)