Classic Movie Travels: Essanay Studios Chicago

Before Hollywood, there was Chicago…

As a Chicago native, I’ve always been fascinated by my town’s place in early cinema. After all, this was the place for moviemaking. The filmmaking industry had not yet been localized to sunny California just yet. As the manager at my internship with Essanay Studios Chicago used to say, “Before Hollywood, there was Chicago.”

Filled with bustling city life, and glamorous theaters to boot, Chicago was built to thrive and entertain the masses. It was very much a cultural hub, where people from all walks of life could easily find amusement through vaudeville, live theater, street performers, and even the opera. With so much talent circulating within the city, it is no surprise to find that many beloved performers got their start here.

Chicago native, Gloria Swanson

Among the many performers the city attracted, one, in particular, was born right here. Though there are discrepancies as to where in the city she was born, Gloria Swanson was also a Chicago native. Born Gloria May Josephine Svensson to a Swedish father and Polish mother on March 27th, 1899, she was raised in the Swedish Lutheran tradition. Because her father was employed by the U.S. Army transport service, the family moved around frequently, but she was intermittently raised on Chicago’s North side.

Swanson was fifteen years old when her aunt, Inga, suggested that they visit nearby Essanay Studios at 1333-1345 West Argyle Street. The movie studio derived its name from a combination of the founders’ last names–James K. Spoor and Gilbert Anderson. Hence, we have S & A, or Essanay.

The Factory Complex that became the home of Essanay Studios

Inga was already friends with Spoor, so it was no trouble for Gloria and Inga to visit. While on the lot, Gloria asked if she could be an extra in a crowd scene. A director who saw her expanded upon her role, and later had Essanay hire her as a stock player for four days’ work at $3.25 a week. Afterwards, she graduated as a guaranteed player, and renamed herself Gloria Swanson.

Gloria Swanson on an Essanay set

Each day, Swanson and many other notable players (including Wallace Beery, Broncho Billy, Ben Turpin, Bebe Daniels, Harold Lloyd, and Charlie Chaplin) would go to work on the Essanay lot, entering through its famous terra cotta entrance and onto the current film set. Interestingly, it was here that Louella Parsons was hired on as a screenwriter, before going on to become a famous Hollywood gossip columnist.

Actor Wallace Beery met Gloria Swanson while working at Essanay, and the two fell in love right on the studio lot. Though they moved West together when Essanay did, their marriage did not last.

Swanson and Beery in 1916

Spoor and Anderson eventually tired of lugging their equipment around Chicago to make movies on the plains of Rogers Park. Additionally, Chicago’s cold winters also put a damper on the filming process. This prompted the duo to visit California, where they entertained the prospect of opening a second location out West. They eventually settled on Niles, California, with its year-round, camera-friendly climate.

While visiting Hollywood, the team was introduced to another legendary actor, who would begin his early work with Essanay Studios: Charlie Chaplin. Upon seeing the young comic’s impeccable slapstick skills, Essanay persuaded him to leave Keystone Studios for a salary of $1,250 per week.

The Tramp featuring Charlie Chaplin

In 1915, Swanson was given an uncredited bit part in Chaplin’s first Essanay film, His New Job. Once Chaplin became a big star, he became more vocal about his dislike for Chicago weather, and wanted to return to Hollywood to make more of a profit. Essanay tried to blackmail him to stay by threatening to send pictures of his mother, who was insane from syphilis and dying in a sanitarium, to the Chicago Tribune. After Chaplin resisted and left Essanay, it marked the beginning of a decline for the studio. Chaplin’s departure prompted the move of many other star players, including Swanson.

Unfortunately, not much of Chicago’s film history remains. However, the former Essanay Studios Chicago still stands.

Once Essanay Studios Chicago stopped functioning under Spoor and Anderson, the building took on another life of its own. It was later taken over by an independent producer who made industrial films until about 1970. The studio was then passed to a non-profit television corporation, which loaned the space as the midwest office of Technicolor productions. The Essanay location in Niles, California, no longer functions as a studio, but is instead a Silent Film Museum, housing many of Essanay’s props and equipment.

Today, the Essanay lot is home to St. Augustine’s College, which is an Episcopalian school namely serving the Hispanic community. This past summer, I was hired on as a writer for Essanay Studios Chicago, which maintained a team of wonderful people who were dedicated to the preservation of early film and Chicago’s cinematic history. At the time, St. Augustine College and our team was working to do some fundraising in order to create a center for early film in the former studio, and to revitalize the space as a cultural hub for the local community. Unfortunately, the college pulled the plug on the project. Nonetheless, the history still stands, and is luckily not going anywhere!

Although the Essanay team with which I worked is no longer stationed in the studio, I am confident that you can still arrange for a tour of the former studio. I would highly recommend calling in advance, just so the school can set you up with someone who is familiar with the building’s historical importance and landmark status. In the meantime, allow me to step in!

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This is the door to Essanay Studios, which is probably the most famous relic of Chicago’s cinematic contributions. It still has the original logo, and the two Essanay Indians. The door needs a little love and care, but fortunately, our fundraising efforts covered its restoration.

The famous Essanay doorway with its original logo

The terra-cotta Indian Heads flanking the entrance were Essanay’s trademarks

Essanay Studios built 1908-1915 was designated as a Chicago Landmark on March 26, 1996 by Richard M. Daley, Mayor

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In the basement of the studio, you’ll find original vaults in which the film was stored. Yes, original, and fireproof. The shelving is original to the vault and hasn’t been modified since Chaplin’s day.

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The next few pictures are some shots taken around the office…

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The studio itself is still intact, though is used as the school’s Charlie Chaplin Auditorium. The mainstage is an expansive room, which, amazingly, boasts the original catwalks from above. There is a mural of Chaplin and Jackie Coogan from The Kid in the middle of the room, just over a balcony. One can only imagine all of the talent and incredible sets that graced this simple room!

The Charlie Chaplin Auditorium

Charlie Chaplin “The Kid” mural

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The exterior of the main building also boasts original stairs, balconies, and stage entrances.

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If you are curious about early film, and especially Chicago’s role in silent cinema, I highly recommend that you arrange for a tour of the former studio. Best of all, it’s free to walk past the landmark door that some of cinema’s greatest legends walked through each work day. Get ready for your close-up!

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–Annette Bochenek for Classic Movie Hub

Annette Bochenek is an independent scholar of Hollywood’s Golden Age and Travel Writer for Classic Movie Hub. You can read more about Annette’s Classic Movie Travels at Hometowns to Hollywood