Mutual Film Corporation was an early American film conglomerate that produced some of Charlie Chaplin's greatest comedies. Founded in 1912, it was absorbed by Film Booking Offices of America, which evolved into RKO Pictures.

Founding

Mutual's predecessor film businesses began with the partnership behind the Western Film Exchange, founded in Milwaukee, Wisconsin in July 1906. The partnership included Harry E. Aitken, Roy Aitken, and

John R. Freuler John Rudolph Freuler (November 17, 18721958) was an American businessman in the film industry who owned theaters, film exchanges, and film studios. He signed Charlie Chaplin to a lucrative contract at Mutual Film. Later in his career he owned Mon ...

. In 1910, Freuler also formed a partnership with Chicago film distributor Samuel S. Hutchinson, establishing a production entity known as the

American Film Manufacturing Company The American Film Manufacturing Company, also known as Flying “A” Studios, was an American motion picture production company. In 1915, the formal name was changed to the American Film Company. History The American Film Manufacturing Comp ...

. In early 1912 the Shallenberger brothers (Wilbert E. and William Edgar), Crawford Livingston, and others as investors including Charles J. Hite, the President & CEO of Thanhouser Film Corporation, joined Freuler and Harry E. Aitken in the formation of Mutual Film. Mutual Film Corporation was formed in 1912 by a group of American businessmen including Harry E. Aitken. A releasing and distribution company, Mutual also had numerous subsidiary production units, including Keystone Studios, famed producer of comedies. Mutual is celebrated for signing Charlie Chaplin in 1916; he produced some of his best comedies while working for the company., although he felt that the company's tight production schedules led to the films becoming increasingly formulaic. As a result of this concern, Chaplin went with First National Pictures to have a contract that allowed him more flexibile production schedules so he could focus on making better films. As 1912 progressed, the company included auxiliary units such as Keystone Studios, the Majestic Studios (which would later become the Reliance-Majestic Studios through Harry Aitken's partnership with D. W. Griffith), and the New York Motion Picture Company. In 1915, the workers of Keystone Studios, Kay-Bee Studios (a subsidiary of the New York Motion Picture Company) and Reliance-Majestic Studio left Mutual, along with the Aitken brothers, to form the

Triangle Film Corporation 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 1 ...

. Now as complete owners of the former Reliance-Majestic Studio, by 1917 the conglomerate operated as the distributor for four subsidiary studios in

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

, three of which were in the

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...

area and the other in Santa Barbara. They were Signal Film Corporation, Vogue Films, Inc., Lone Star Film Company and American Film Company. Vogue Films, Inc. operated a studio at Santa Monica Boulevard and Gower street in Los Angeles producing two-reel

comedy film A comedy film is a category of film which emphasizes humor. These films are designed to make the audience laugh through amusement. Films in this style traditionally have a happy ending (black comedy being an exception). Comedy is one of the ol ...

s exclusively. Among the other subsidiaries of the New York Motion Picture Company were: 101-Bison Company, Broncho Film Company, & Domino Film Company.

Legal cases

In 1915, the

United States Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that involve a point o ...

ruled in ''

Mutual Film Corporation v. Industrial Commission of Ohio __NOTOC__ ''Mutual Film Corporation v. Industrial Commission of Ohio'', 236 U.S. 230 (1915), was a landmark decision of the US Supreme Court ruling by a 9-0 vote that the free speech protection of the Ohio Constitution, which was substantially sim ...

'' that motion pictures were a form of business, not an art form, and therefore not covered by the First Amendment.
Shortly after this decision, cities began to pass ordinances banning the public exhibition of "immoral" films, concerning the major movie studio, studios that state or federal regulations would soon follow. This ruling remained in effect until '' Joseph Burstyn, Inc v. Wilson'' in 1952 which declared that film was a legitimate artistic medium with free speech protections.

Productions

In 1916, Charlie Chaplin became the highest paid entertainer in the world when he signed a contract with Mutual for a salary of $670,000 per year. Mutual built Chaplin his very own studio and allowed him total freedom to make twelve two-reel films during this fruitful twelve-month period. Chaplin subsequently recognised this period of film-making as the most inventive and liberating of his career, although he also had concerns that the films produced were increasingly formulaic during the length of his contract. During 1916 and 1917, the Lone Star Film Company had Charlie Chaplin working at their studio at 1025 Lillian Way, in Hollywood. Charlie Chaplin moved on to found

United Artists United Artists Corporation (UA), currently doing business as United Artists Digital Studios, is an American digital production company. Founded in 1919 by D. W. Griffith, Charlie Chaplin, Mary Pickford, and Douglas Fairbanks, the stud ...

in 1919 with

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 ...

, D. W. Griffith, and

Douglas Fairbanks Douglas Elton Fairbanks Sr. (born Douglas Elton Thomas Ullman; May 23, 1883 – December 12, 1939) was an American actor, screenwriter, director, and producer. He was best known for his swashbuckling roles in silent films including '' The Thi ...

. In 1918, Mutual Film Corporation ceased production. Like many other companies established at this time, Mutual was eventually absorbed by larger corporations, in this case Film Booking Offices of America and later RKO Radio Pictures. With the exception of the Chaplin films, most of the Mutual shorts and feature dramas are lost to time and decomposition.

Selected filmography

References

Bibliography

*Robert S. Birchard, "Silent-Era Filmmaking in Santa Barbara" Charleston: Arcadia Publishing, 2007

External links

Mutual Film Corporation
at the AFI Catalog of Feature Films {{Authority control Entertainment companies established in 1912 Mass media companies established in 1912 Mass media companies disestablished in 1918 Silent film studios American silent films by studio Film studios in Southern California Defunct American film studios Companies based in Los Angeles Entertainment companies based in California 1912 establishments in California 1918 disestablishments in California Defunct companies based in Greater Los Angeles 1910s in California Articles containing video clips Film production companies of the United States