The Ghost of William Penn: More Lore on Local Filmmaker Seigmund Lubin (1841-1923)
By Tom Roy Smith, aka., William Penn, Times Guest Columnist
Governor William Penn speaking…
“Welcome! Welcome!”
Today’s instruction touts silent filmmaker Seigmund Lubin.
A wee back Sig’ Lubin shared space in a lesson touting the personal memories of Minnie Chadwick. Precious ‘Minne.’
Today’s lesson on Lubin runs strictly him in overview. Seigmund Lubin was a self starter.
Pennsylvania has since founding been a great place for self starters.
Transplant Philadelphian, Seigmund Lubin started making silent shorts in 1897. Yes that early!
The native born Prussian loved Delco as a locale to make his earliest pre 1910 films. Later, it was with minded purposefulness that he picked a place to erect his studio, which resembled ground features he so loved in Delco.
Why did he move? He moved to a less confining locale. A locale that resembled the best that Delco had to offer.
Lubin had appreciated one Delco lay of ground feature: quarries. Lubin loved using stone walls as background. Quarries provided these. From cliff faces he would often drop a prop body, which action closed many a fight scene.
Good guy always won in outcome.
Oh! No one disputes the plausible claim that credits Lubin films for the tag: ‘cliff hanger.’
Hollywood, most of Hollywood, claim there were no films before Hollywood. However, years before California took primacy for filmmaking, sections of New Jersey, Pennsylvania and New York served first filmmakers.
Think inclusive with Sig’ Lubin... Delaware Co., PA.
The way Lubin started his career was prosaic.
His daughters he lovingly prodded into a bedroom pillow fight.
Daddy Lubin cranked the film camera handle and recorded the happy mayhem. Of tike weight, his daughters made bounces on a bed while pomading each other.
The film survives: You can ‘hear’ – hear the shrieks of glee laughter!
(Timeless, if the film was entered into a funny video contest it would win.)
End Part I of three Parts