| Commodore J. Stuart Blackton, a pioneer in the film industry, was born in
Sheffield, England, in 1871. Shortly after he matriculated at Eton, his
family removed to New York City and the Commodore attended New York University
from which he was graduated. His first professional work was as a newspaper
artist and in 1897 he left that field to enter the motion picture industry.
In 1900 he and his associates founded time Vitagraph Company. He also founded
the first Motion Picture periodical for the motion picture fan and organized
the Motion Picture Board of Trade in 1915 and was its first president. In
1917, he began the production of personally directed features - Blackton
Productions - and is president of the J. Stuart Blackton Feature Pictures,
Inc. |