Customer Reviews

Broncho Billy and the Essanay Film Company

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This is a well told story of the first movie cowboy hero and about the original development many aspects of how to tell a story with moving pictures. It is a well researched book, but is quite readable. It would be of interest to the casual fan of the movies, not just the serious student silent film. There are many beautifully detailed stills and publicity shots.

"Broncho Billy" Anderson was at one time famous around the world. Now he may be forgotten, but much of the language of the movies that we take for granted was invented by him and by his contemporaries. Broncho Billy was in many ways ahead of his time, understanding right away the value of realism and authenticity and the importance of involving the camera as closely with the action as possible.

I would recommend this book to anyone interested in the history of the movies or the West.

In 1908, pioneering filmmaker and actor G.M. Anderson had a problem. His studio was based in Chicago, and he needed lots of sunshine to film short films for nickelodeons. Unfortunately, the cold Chicago weather made it difficult to film outside for several months. He packed up his troupe and tried filming in Santa Monica, Lakeside, and San Rafael, California, Morrison, Colorado, El Paso, Texas, and other places. Finally, he found the perfect spot for a new studio to use for westerns -- Niles (now Fremont) California.

There, for about four years, he and his Essanay co-workers cranked out a huge number of films, mostly westerns. They were not high art, but they were very entertaining. Anderson became a big movie star due to his "Broncho Billy" character. He became very rich. He bought a legitimate theater, began promoting boxers, and was running the Niles baseball team. By 1915 he had hired the biggest movie star of them all -- Charlie Chaplin.

Unfortunately, the studio was closed in 1916. Chaplin left for more money at Mutual, so Essanay's cash cow was gone. Anderson seemed bored with the "Broncho Billy" films. He only filmed a handful of films after this. Essanay's management wanted to produce longer films in Chicago, not in California.

This books is worth the price for the many, many beautiful and rare photos of Essanay films and photos of the studio in operation. Author Kiehn has assembled an incredibly detailed filmography of all of Anderson's Essany films, and the Essany films made away from Chicago. There is a comprehensive personnel list of everybody that ever worked for the studio. But Kiehn's exhaustive research and his storytelling ability make this a fascinating book.

This book is a must-read for fans of silent films, Charlie Chaplin fans and western buffs. You will not be disappointed.

This book sets the record straight on all the mis-information and incorrect dates about G. M. Anderson from his date of birth to the end of his career. It is a wonderful read about his three roles in "The Great Train Robbery," to his action filled days in Nile, California, to his last days in the rest home. David Keihn has captured Anderson's movie creativity and presented it all in a month by month, year by year sequence. It is a silent screen history lesson that reads like a book of fiction. The beautiful photographs and complete filmography makes this book a must buy for any fan of Western movies or the silent screen.

David Kiehn's great book focuses on Essanay and the history of the studio, as well as short biographies of the founders. Very readable, the best way to describe the book is to say it is equal to any of Kevin Brownlow's silent film histories. I found this book through the "Treasures 5 - The West" DVD set (which includes a Broncho Billy film). If you are a movie fan, you will enjoy this book.

Visiting the Niles Essanay Silent Film Musem and Edison Theater in Niles, Fremont, CA, one is transformed back in time and this book clearly punctuates that time . Anyone with an interest in the history of movies will love this book. It is one of the most comprehensive ever written on the subject of silent movies. It is easy to see the transition from Vaudeville and Nickelodeon entertainment to motion pictures and how so many tried the new entertainment medium that later became the mega studios we know today.