Editing Universal Pictures (section)

===Early years===
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Universal was founded by [[Carl Laemmle]], Mark Dintenfass, [[Charles O Baumann|Charles O. Baumann]], Adam Kessel, [[Pat Powers (producer)|Pat Powers]], William Swanson, [[David Horsley]], Robert H. Cochrane{{efn|Robert H. Cochrane (1879–1973) formed the Cochrane Advertising Agency in Chicago in 1904. He joined the Laemmle Film Service as advertising manager in 1906 and, for the next 30 years, devoted himself to promoting Carl Laemmle as the "star" of various motion picture enterprises. In 1912 Cochrane was elected vice-president of the Universal Film Manufacturing Company and served as president of Universal in 1936–37 after Laemmle sold his interests.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Cochrane |first=Robert H. |date=2007 |title=Beginning of motion picture press agenting |url=https://muse.jhu.edu/login?auth=0&type=summary&url=/journals/film_history/v019/19.3cochrane.html |journal=Film History: An International Journal |publisher=Indiana University Press |volume=19 |issue=3 |pages=330–332 |doi= 10.2979/fil.2007.19.3.330|s2cid=191585832 |access-date=January 7, 2016}}</ref>}} and [[Jules Brulatour]]. One story has Laemmle watching a box office for hours, counting patrons, and calculating the day's takings. Within weeks of his [[Chicago]] trip, Laemmle gave up [[dry goods]] to buy the first several [[Nickelodeon (movie theater)|nickelodeons]]. For Laemmle and other such entrepreneurs, the creation in 1908 of the Edison-backed [[Motion Picture Patents Company]] (or the "Edison Trust") meant that exhibitors were expected to pay fees for Trust-produced films they showed. Based on the [[Latham Loop]]{{dubious|date=February 2025}}<!-- a rival patent, according to [[Motion Picture Patents Company]] --> used in cameras and projectors, along with other patents, the Trust collected fees on all aspects of movie production and exhibition and attempted to enforce a [[monopoly]] on distribution.

Soon, Laemmle and other disgruntled nickelodeon owners decided to avoid paying Edison by producing their own pictures. In June 1909, Laemmle started the Yankee Film Company with his brothers-in-law<ref>{{Cite book |last=Reeder |first=Thomas |url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/1273678339 |title=Time is money! : the Century, Rainbow, and Stern Brothers comedies of Julius and Abe Stern |date=2021 |isbn=978-1-62933-798-2 |location=Orlando, Florida |oclc=1273678339}}</ref> [[Abe Stern]] and [[Julius Stern (producer)|Julius Stern]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=Vander Hook |first1=Sue |url=https://archive.org/details/stevenspielbergg0000vand |url-access=registration |title=Steven Spielberg: Groundbreaking Director |publisher=ABDO Publishing Company |year=2010 |page=[https://archive.org/details/stevenspielbergg0000vand/page/35 35] |isbn=978-1617852527 |access-date=April 12, 2018 }}</ref> That company quickly evolved into the [[Independent Moving Pictures|Independent Moving Pictures Company]] (IMP), with studios in [[Fort Lee, New Jersey]], where many early films in [[America's first motion picture industry]] were produced in the early 20th century.<ref>{{citation   | last = Rose   | first = Liza   | title = 100 years ago, Fort Lee was the first town to bask in movie magic   | newspaper = The Star-Ledger   | date = April 29, 2012 | url = http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2012/04/100_years_ago_fort_lee_was_the.html   | access-date = November 11, 2012 }}</ref><ref>{{Citation   | last = Koszarski   | first = Richard      | title = Fort Lee: The Film Town   | place = Rome, Italy   | publisher = John Libbey Publishing -CIC srl    | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=5w0r8YKan04C    | isbn=  0-86196-653-8    | year = 2004      }}</ref><ref>{{cite web   | title = Studios and Films   | publisher = Fort Lee Film Commission   | url = http://www.fortleefilm.org/studios.html   | access-date = May 30, 2011 | archive-date = April 25, 2011 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110425014840/http://www.fortleefilm.org/studios.html   | url-status = dead   }}</ref><ref>{{Citation   | last = Fort Lee Film Commission   | title = Fort Lee Birthplace of the Motion Picture Industry   | publisher = Arcadia Publishing   | year = 2006   | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=ViR3b72xkK0C   | isbn = 0-7385-4501-5   }}</ref> Laemmle broke with Edison's custom of refusing to give [[billing (filmmaking)|billing]] and [[motion picture credits|screen credits]] to performers. By naming the movie stars, he attracted many of the leading players of the time, contributing to the creation of the [[star system (filmmaking)|star system]]. In 1910, he promoted [[Florence Lawrence]], formerly known as "[[Biograph Girl|The Biograph Girl]]",<ref>{{Cite web |title=Florence Lawrence |url=http://www.cemeteryguide.com/lawrence.html |access-date=March 28, 2022 |website=www.cemeteryguide.com}}</ref> and actor [[King Baggot]], in what may be the first instance of a studio using stars in its marketing.

[[File:Ivanhoe-Baggot-1913-Poster.jpg|right|thumb|Poster for ''[[Ivanhoe (1913 U.S. film)|Ivanhoe]]'' (1913)]]
The Universal Film Manufacturing Company was incorporated in New York City on April 30, 1912.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://universal.filmmakersdestination.com/about-us/ |title=About Us: Universal Studios History |website=The Filmmakers Destination |publisher=[[NBCUniversal]] |access-date=February 12, 2016}}</ref> Laemmle, who emerged as president in July 1912, was the primary figure in the partnership with Dintenfass, Baumann, Kessel, Powers, Swanson, Horsley, and Brulatour. The company was established on June 8, 1912, formed in a merger of Independent Moving Pictures (IMP), the [[Powers Motion Picture Company]], [[Rex Motion Picture Manufacturing Company]], [[Champion Film Company]], [[Nestor Film Company]], and the [[New York Motion Picture Company]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/n85138017.html|title=LC Linked Data Service: Authorities and Vocabularies (Library of Congress)|website=The Library of Congress}}</ref> Eventually all would be bought out by Laemmle. The new Universal studio was a [[Vertical integration|vertically integrated company]], with movie production, distribution, and exhibition venues{{contradict inline|date=February 2025}} all linked in the same corporate entity, the central element of the [[Studio system]] era.

[[File:Universal Moving Pictures Trademark Registration Certificate Sep 12 1916.jpg | thumb | left | Trademark for Universal Moving Pictures, September 12, 1916.|class=skin-invert-image]]
[[File:A Great Love - Clifford S. Elfelt - 1916, Universal Big U - EYE FLM25830 - OB 685649.webm|thumb|Melodrama ''A Great Love'' (1916) by [[Clifford S. Elfelt]] for Universal Big U. Dutch intertitles, 12:33. Collection [[EYE Film Institute Netherlands]].]]
Following the westward trend of the industry, by the end of 1912, the company was focusing its production efforts in the Hollywood area. 

{{anchor|Universal Weekly}}
''Universal Weekly'' and ''Moving Picture Weekly''<ref>{{Cite web |last=Hoyt |first=Eric |date=2015 |title=Early Cinema – Moving Picture Weekly |url=https://mediahistoryproject.org/collections/earlycinema/#moving-picture-weekly |access-date=November 23, 2022 |website=Lantern Media History Project, [[Wisconsin Center for Film and Theater Research]]}}</ref> were the alternating names of Universal's internal magazine that began publication in this era; the magazine was intended to market Universal's films to exhibitors.<ref name=":0">{{Cite book |last=Hoyt |first=Eric |url=https://luminosoa.org/site/books/m/10.1525/luminos.122/ |title=Ink-Stained Hollywood: The Triumph of American Cinema's Trade Press |date=March 22, 2022 |publisher=University of California Press |isbn=978-0-520-38369-2 |doi=10.1525/luminos.122|s2cid=246343126 }}</ref> Since much of Universal's early film output was destroyed in subsequent fires and nitrate degradation, the surviving issues of these magazines are a crucial source for film historians.<ref name=":0" />[[File:The Universal Program 02.png|thumb|class=skin-invert-image|Universal advertisement touting the benefit of the studio's short films to theater operators<ref>{{cite magazine|title=The Universal Program|url=https://archive.org/details/motionpicturenew133unse/page/2704/mode/1up
|magazine=Motion Picture News|publisher=Motion Picture News, inc|date=May 6, 1916|page=2704|access-date=February 7, 2021}}</ref>]]

[[File:Universal Pictures film sets photographed 1915.jpg|thumb|Universal Pictures film sets photographed 1915]]
On March 15, 1915,<ref name="Universal Story"/>{{Rp|8}} Laemmle opened the world's largest motion picture production facility, [[Universal Studios Hollywood|Universal City Studios]], on a 230-acre (0.9-km<sup>2</sup>) converted farm just over the [[Cahuenga Pass]] from Hollywood.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Universal Studios Lot {{!}} Universal Studios |url=https://www.universalstudioslot.com/about-us |access-date=March 28, 2022 |website=Universal Studios Lot}}</ref> Studio management became the third facet of Universal's operations, with the studio incorporated as a distinct subsidiary organization. Unlike other movie moguls, Laemmle opened his studio to tourists. Universal became the largest studio in Hollywood and remained so for a decade. However, it sought an audience mostly in small towns, producing mostly inexpensive [[melodrama]]s, [[western (genre)|westerns]], and [[serial film|serials]].

In 1916, [[#Early years|Universal]] formed a three-tier branding system for their releases. Unlike the top-tier studios, Universal did not own any theaters{{contradict inline|date=February 2025}} to market its feature films. Universal branding their product gave theater owners and audiences a quick reference guide.  Branding would help theater owners judge films they were about to lease and help fans decide which movies they wanted to see. Universal released three different types of feature motion pictures:<ref name="Zmuda2015">{{cite book|author=Michael Zmuda|title=The Five Sedgwicks: Pioneer Entertainers of Vaudeville, Film and Television|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=u1piCQAAQBAJ&pg=PA54|date=April 30, 2015|publisher=McFarland|isbn=978-0-7864-9668-6|pages=54–}}</ref><ref>[[B movies (Hollywood Golden Age)#Roots of the B movie: 1910s–1920s]]</ref>

* Red Feather Photoplays – low-budget feature films
* Bluebird Photoplays – mainstream feature release and more ambitious productions
* Jewel – prestige motion pictures featuring high budgets using prominent actors
Directors of "Jewel" films included [[Jack Conway (filmmaker)|Jack Conway]], [[John Ford]], [[Rex Ingram (director)|Rex Ingram]], [[Robert Z. Leonard]], [[George Marshall (director)|George Marshall]], and [[Lois Weber]], one of the few women directing films in Hollywood.<ref name="Universal Story">{{cite book |last=Hirschhorn |first=Clive |author-link=Clive Hirschhorn |date=1985 |orig-year=1983 |title=The Universal Story |location=New York |publisher=Crown Publishers  |isbn=0-7064-1873-5}}</ref>{{Rp|13}}

Starting in the mid-1920s, Universal branded its most expensive and heavily promoted feature films as "Super-Jewel" productions. These included films such as [[Erich von Stroheim]]'s ''[[Foolish Wives]]'' (1922), [[Clarence Brown]]'s ''[[The Acquittal]]'' (1923), [[Hobart Henley]]'s ''[[A Lady of Quality (1924 film)|A Lady of Quality]]'' (1924), [[Harry A. Pollard]]'s ''[[Uncle Tom's Cabin (1927 film)|Uncle Tom's Cabin]]'' (1927), and [[Edward Sloman]]'s ''[[Surrender (1927 film)|Surrender]]'' (1927).

Despite Laemmle's role as an innovator, he was an extremely cautious studio chief. Unlike rivals [[Adolph Zukor]], [[William Fox (producer)|William Fox]], and [[Marcus Loew]], Laemmle chose not to develop a [[theater chain]]. He also financed all of his own films, refusing to take on debt. This policy nearly bankrupted the studio when actor-director [[Erich von Stroheim]] insisted on excessively lavish production values for his films ''[[Blind Husbands]]'' (1919) and ''[[Foolish Wives]]'' (1922), but Universal shrewdly gained a return on some of the expenditure by launching a sensational [[ad campaign]] that attracted moviegoers. [[Character actor]] [[Lon Chaney Sr.|Lon Chaney]] became a drawing card for Universal in the mid-1910s, appearing steadily in dramas. However, Chaney left Universal in 1917 because of a salary dispute, and his two biggest hits for Universal were made as isolated returns to the studio: ''[[The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1923 film)|The Hunchback of Notre Dame]]'' (1923) and ''[[The Phantom of the Opera (1925 film)|The Phantom of the Opera]]'' (1925).<ref>{{Cite web |last=Opam |first=Kwame |date=June 6, 2017 |title=Universal is adding The Phantom of the Opera and The Hunchback of Notre Dame to its cinematic universe |url=https://www.theverge.com/2017/6/6/15746148/universal-dark-universe-phantom-of-the-opera-hunchback-of-notre-dame |access-date=March 28, 2022 |website=The Verge |language=en}}</ref>

During the early 1920s Laemmle entrusted most of Universal's production policy decisions to [[Irving Thalberg]]. Thalberg had been Laemmle's personal secretary, and Laemmle was impressed by his cogent observations of how efficiently the studio could be operated. Promoted to studio chief in 1919, Thalberg made distinct improvements of quality and prestige in Universal's output in addition to dealing with star director [[Erich von Stroheim]]'s increasing inability to control the expense and length of his films, eventually firing Stroheim on October 6, 1922, six weeks into the production of ''[[Merry-Go-Round (1923 film)|Merry-Go-Round]]'' (1923) and replacing him with [[Rupert Julian]]. [[Louis B. Mayer]] lured Thalberg away from Universal in late 1922 to his own growing studio, [[Louis B. Mayer Productions]], as vice-president in charge of production, and when [[Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer]] was formed in 1924 Thalberg continued in the same position for the new company. Without Thalberg's guidance, Universal became a second-tier studio and would remain so for several decades. 
[[File:Universal Pictures Comedy Short Ad - Dec 6 1924 UW.jpg|thumb|Advertisement for comedy short films with [[Arthur Lake (actor)|Arthur Lake]] and [[Olive Hasbrouck]]]]
[[File:Deutsche Universal-Film AG 1930.jpg|thumb|Share of the Deutsche Universal-Film AG, issued March 4, 1930]]
In 1926, Universal opened a production unit in Germany, Deutsche Universal-Film AG, under the direction of [[Joe Pasternak]]. This unit produced three to four films per year until 1936, migrating to Hungary and then Austria in the face of [[Hitler]]'s increasing domination of central Europe. With the advent of sound, these productions were made in the German language or, occasionally, Hungarian or Polish. In the U.S., Universal Pictures did not distribute any of this subsidiary's films. Still, some of them were exhibited through other independent, foreign-language film distributors based in New York City without the benefit of English subtitles. Nazi persecution and a change in ownership for the parent Universal Pictures organization resulted in the dissolution of this subsidiary.

In the early years, Universal had a "clean picture" policy. However, by April 1927, Carl Laemmle considered this a mistake as "unclean pictures" from other studios generated more profit while Universal lost money.<ref>Leonard Leff and Jerold Simmons ''The Dame in the Kimono'', 1990 (original edition)</ref>