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California Motion Picture Corporation was a film company based in
San Rafael, California San Rafael ( ; Spanish language, Spanish for "Raphael (archangel), St. Raphael", ) is a city in and the county seat of Marin County, California, United States. The city is located in the North Bay (San Francisco Bay Area), North Bay region of th ...
, in
Marin County Marin County ( ) is a county located in the northwestern part of the San Francisco Bay Area of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 262,231. Its county seat and largest city is San Rafael. Marin County is ac ...
during the
silent film A silent film is a film without synchronized recorded sound (or more generally, no audible dialogue). Though silent films convey narrative and emotion visually, various plot elements (such as a setting or era) or key lines of dialogue may, w ...
era. The company lasted from 1914 until January 1916 when it went bankrupt. It was subsequently renamed and lasted until 1920. It produced at least 15 films. The film company is known for its feature-length films about early California history. Alex E. Beyfuss managed the company. The Marin County Library has a digital collection related to the studio. Their productions included '' Salomy Jane'' (1914), ''
Mrs. Wiggs of the Cabbage Patch ''Mrs. Wiggs of the Cabbage Patch'' is a 1901 novel by American author Alice Hegan Rice, about a southern family humorously coping with poverty. It was highly popular on its release,Lowell Hayes Harrison, ''A New History of Kentucky'' (1997), p ...
'' (1914), ''
Mignon ''Mignon'' () is an 1866 ''opéra comique'' (or opera in its second version) in three acts by Ambroise Thomas. The original French libretto was by Jules Barbier and Michel Carré, based on Goethe's 1795-96 novel '' Wilhelm Meisters Lehrjahre''. ...
'' (1915), and '' Who's Your Servant?'' (1920).
Frank Erlanger Frank Erlanger (March 25, 1882 – 1961), also credited as Frank A. Erlanger or Frank Charles Erlanger was a Hungarian-American silent film actor best known for his work with the Balboa Amusement Producing Company. Early life The Erlangers were a ...
was one of the actors who worked for the studio. ''Salomy Jane'' survives in its entirety. George E. Middleton was a director with the studio and Beatriz Michelena a leading actress.
Harold Entwistle Charles Harold Entwistle (September 5, 1865 – April 1, 1944) was an actor on stage and in films, a manager of theaters and touring theater companies, and director from England who migrated to the United States and worked in Hollywood duri ...
and
William Nigh William Nigh, born Emil Kreuske (October 12, 1881 – November 27, 1955), was an American film Film director, director, screenwriter, writer, and actor. His film work sometimes lists him as either "Will Nigh" or "William Nye". Biography Nig ...
also directed films for the company. An announcement of the company's incorporation gives a San Francisco main office address at 356 Pine Street and lists the board of directors as: James Woods, manager of the St. Francis Hotel; Baldwin Wood, attorney; Charles Payne, President Payne Real Estate Company; Thomas B. Eastland, President Coast Realty Co.; A. M. Johnson, Attorney; and Robin Y. Hayne, Capitalist as well as officer from a steamship company and Pacific Telephonen and Telegraph. It was billed as the largest film company in the west.


History

Stage actress Michelena married George E. Middleton, a prominent San Francisco automobile dealer, on Sunday, March 3, 1907. The private wedding took place at 232 Divisadero Street, the home of the parents of bridesmaid Margaret McGovern, "a lifelong friend of the bride". The couple spent a few weeks in Los Angeles for their honeymoon. Middleton was the manager of the local Middleton Motor Car Company and the son of a California timber baron. He introduced Michelena to his society friends and business partners, including the trustees of
Charles Crocker Charles Crocker (September 16, 1822 – August 14, 1888) was an American railroad executive who was one of the founders of the Central Pacific Railroad, which constructed the westernmost portion of the first transcontinental railroad, and took ...
's estate who had rebuilt the
St. Francis Hotel The Westin St. Francis, formerly known as St. Francis Hotel, is a hotel located on Powell and Geary Streets in San Francisco, adjacent to the whole western edge of Union Square, San Francisco, California, Union Square. The two 12-story south wi ...
after the 1906 earthquake and fire. Middleton set up the California Motion Picture Company in San Rafael in 1912 for the purpose of shooting promotional footage of the automobiles he was selling. He determined that his pretty wife could star in movies made by his company. By 1914, Middleton and Michelena were making three major films at the same time. The first
feature Feature may refer to: Computing * Feature recognition, could be a hole, pocket, or notch * Feature (computer vision), could be an edge, corner or blob * Feature (machine learning), in statistics: individual measurable properties of the phenome ...
completed by CMPC was ''Salomy Jane'', screened initially at the St. Francis Hotel by invitation only. Michelena's role was
Bret Harte Bret Harte ( , born Francis Brett Hart, August 25, 1836 – May 5, 1902) was an American short story writer and poet best remembered for short fiction featuring miners, gamblers, and other romantic figures of the California Gold Rush. In a caree ...
's Salomy Jane Clay, an energetic daughter of an emigrant miner. She is wooed by four men but prefers a fifth played by British heartthrob House Peters. The movie saw limited nationwide distribution and was judged a hit by viewers who were impressed by the wild California scenery: giant
redwood trees Cupressaceae or the cypress family is a family of conifers. The family includes 27–30 genera (17 Monotypic taxon, monotypic), which include the junipers and redwoods, with about 130–140 species in total. They are Monoecy, monoecious, Trioecy ...
, winding roads hugging rocky bluffs and the Russian River Michelena's dominant portrayal of the title role was also an appeal. Journalist Josephine Clifford McCracken wrote of her in the June 1915 issue of ''
Overland Monthly The ''Overland Monthly'' was a monthly literary magazine, literary and cultural magazine, based in California, United States. It was founded in 1868 and published between the second half of the 19th century and the first half of the 20th centu ...
'': One CMPC shooting location was on family property near
Boulder Creek, California Boulder Creek () is a small rural mountain community in the coastal Santa Cruz Mountains. It is a census-designated place (CDP) in Santa Cruz County, California, Santa Cruz County, California, with a population of 5,429 as of the 2020 United Sta ...
, where Middleton's father had established a timber holding now known as the Middleton Tract. (Obituary for brother of George E. Middleton) Other filming locations included undeveloped portions of Sonoma, Santa Cruz and Marin counties. In San Rafael, the studio boasted a large glass-walled and -roofed building that let in light but not wind so that shooting for indoor scenes could take place in full light without the telltale flapping of tablecloths and clothing blown by gusts. Considered expensive at the time, the company used a 1,250
Bell & Howell Bell and Howell is a United States brand of cameras, lenses, and motion picture machinery. It was originally founded as a company in 1907, and headquartered in Wheeling, Illinois. The company was acquired by Böwe Systec in 2003. Since 2010, the ...
movie camera, worth about $ in current value. The camera held two reels of film so that two negatives were made of each scene. A second $700 camera provided a third reel of the same scene, from another perspective. Even though ''Salomy Jane'' did not return a profit (likely due to second-string distribution channels), its favorable reception convinced Middleton that his wife could challenge the world's top
movie star A movie star (also known as a film star or cinema star) is an actor who is famous for their starring, or leading, roles in movies. The term is used for performers who are marketable stars as they become popular household names and whose names ...
,
Mary Pickford Gladys Louise Smith (April 8, 1892 – May 29, 1979), known professionally as Mary Pickford, was a Canadian-American film actress and producer. A Canadian pioneers in early Hollywood, pioneer in the American film industry with a Hollywood care ...
, and almost all CMPC movies had her as their star. Unfortunately, Michelena's ego expanded with the glowing reviews of her skill, and her demands for star treatment brought heavier expenses to productions that continued to lose money. ''Mignon'', ''The Lily of Poverty Flat'', ''A Phyllis of the Sierras'', ''Salvation Nell'' and ''The Rose of the Misty Pool'' all failed to turn a profit, and a lavish production of ''Faust'' which was in production in 1915 was given until the end of the year to be completed. ''Faust'' was not done by January 1916, and CMPC president Herbert Payne shut the film company down and filed for bankruptcy. ''Faust'' was never released. Middleton and Michelena bought the bankrupt film company for "a few thousand dollars" in 1917 and renamed it Michelena Studios. Their new company was called Beatriz Michelena Features, and shooting began on their next feature-length film, ''Just Squaw''. Michelena's lead character was a white woman raised by American Indians, a woman who does not realize her racial heritage until after she falls into forbidden love with a white man. The movie played for only a week in San Francisco in 1919, and did not return a profit. The moviemakers' new distributor, Robertson-Cole, was unable to find the right market for ''Heart of Juanita'' and ''The Flame of Hellgate'' in 1920. American audiences had grown more sophisticated, yet Michelena Studios was still employing their earlier production techniques. After shooting ''The Flame of Hellgate'', Middleton and Michelena stopped making movies altogether. She returned to her singing performances and he returned to his car sales. They reportedly divorced in the mid-1920s, though Middleton told the 1930 US Census that they were married.1930; Census Place: San Rafael, Marin, California; Roll: 176; Page: 10A; Enumeration District: 0020; Image: 981.0; FHL microfilm: 2339911. The union produced no children.


Filmography

*'' Salomy Jane'' (1914) *''
Mrs. Wiggs of the Cabbage Patch ''Mrs. Wiggs of the Cabbage Patch'' is a 1901 novel by American author Alice Hegan Rice, about a southern family humorously coping with poverty. It was highly popular on its release,Lowell Hayes Harrison, ''A New History of Kentucky'' (1997), p ...
'' (1914) *'' The Lily of Poverty Flat'' (1915) *''
Mignon ''Mignon'' () is an 1866 ''opéra comique'' (or opera in its second version) in three acts by Ambroise Thomas. The original French libretto was by Jules Barbier and Michel Carré, based on Goethe's 1795-96 novel '' Wilhelm Meisters Lehrjahre''. ...
'' (1915) *'' Salvation Nell'' (1915) *'' The Rose of Misty Pool'' (1915) *'' A Phyllis of the Sierras'' (1915) *''
Unwritten Law Unwritten Law is an American punk rock band formed in 1990 in Poway, California by drummer Wade Youman. The band has undergone multiple line-up changes, with Youman the sole remaining original member – however, he has left the group twice in i ...
'' (1916), advertized as an adaptation of an
Edwin Milton Royle Edwin Milton Royle (March 2, 1862 – February 16, 1942) was an American playwright. He was born in Lexington, Missouri, and died in New York City. Over 30 of his plays were performed. His best-known play is '' The Squaw Man'' (1905), which ...
play *'' The Woman Who Dared'' (1916) *'' Heart of Juanita'' (1919) *'' Who's Your Servant?'' (1920) *'' The Flame of Hellgate'' (1920) a Beatriz Michelena Features production


See also

*
List of World Film films List of films produced or distributed by the American company World Film Company active between 1914 and 1919.Slide p.121 The company also released a number of imported foreign films for the American market. The company was merged into Selznick Pi ...


References

{{Reflist Cinema of the San Francisco Bay Area Defunct film and television production companies of the United States