The King of the Movies

Book excerpt: That immigrant Jews had a profound impact on the growth of American cinema is well known and has been the subject of much scholarship. But America's first Jewish movie mogul, Siegmund Lubin of Philadelphia, has never been closely studied. Drawing upon contemporary accounts and interviews with Lubin's surviving family, friends, and employees, this work details the life and career of the once-famous "Pop" Lubin. It also seeks to explore the complex personality of this early film pioneer and the impact he had on the initial development of the movies. Torn between his loyalty to Edison and his desire to help the young Jewish independents trying to break into the business, Lubin adopted a complex strategy for working both sides of the fence. Sam Goldwyn, Jesse Lasky, Mark Dintenfass, Charles Baumann, and Adam Kessel all benefited from his discreet assistance. Lubin also became the first American film pioneer to utilize the motion picture to combat anti-Semitism.