Silent Movie Capital
The Essanay building in Chicago was later taken over by independent producer Norman Wilding, who made 16mm industrial films. Wilding’s tenancy was much longer than Essanay’s. In the early 1970s a portion of the studio was offered to Columbia College (Chicago) for a dollar but the offer lapsed without action. Then it was given to a non-profit television corporation which sold it. One tenant was the midwest office of Technicolor.
Chicago led the world in the manufacture of 16 mm. film projectors, producing 57,000 units in 1949.
Wilding Picture Productions, Inc.
1333-45 W. Argyle Street
Chicago Tribune November 10, 1949
KEYSTONE COPS MAKE WAY FOR MODERN MOVIES
Cameras Still Grind at Essanay Studio
BY LEIGH ATKINSON
There’s many a north sider who ean recall seeing a bunch of Keystone cops from the old Essanay studio hop out of a paddy wagon on Broadway and toss soft pies about to the delight of passers-by and a director and grinding cameraman.
There are some who remember watching cattle thieves get chased by a sherif and Civil war armies marching-all on the plains of Budlong woods. And there are a few who can talk about goings on inside one of America’s first movie studios at 1345 Argyle st. and recall watch- ing such stars as “Bronco Billy” Anderson. Gloria Swanson, Wallace Beery, Charlie Chaplin, Ben Turpin, Francis X. Bushman and Edward Arnold perform on Its stages.
It is doubtful, however, that who remember the days when Chicago was the film capital of the world are aware that cameras still grind in the old studio and that many favorite stars of the present day screen make pictures there.
Advertising Films Better
Essanay studio has been the Chicago home of Wilding Picture Pro ductions, Inc., since 1937 and is today one of the biggest motion picture plants outside of Hollywood in the United States. Wilding makes commercial films.
Industries have developed a new school of thought in the fields of and public relations. For instance, if a company some years ago wanted to popularize its name thru a film it usually plugged its product thruout.
For good will purposes a number of industries and firms today are making films which tell stories that bave a moral or historical theme. Advertising in these pictures is often limited to an announcement at the end which states that “this film is a public service sponsored by—.”
Often, motion pictures made at Wilding are full length, Hollywood type productions filmed in color.
Can Duplicate Any Action
Because of the tremendous power needed for operations, the firm has its own powerhouse as well as two generator trucks used to supply elec- tricity to units working on location.
One of Wilding’s most important pieces of equipment is a new $22,000 rear screen process projector and a 26 foot rear projection screen. This equipment and a large mirror permits the company to film almost any kind of action-from a storm at sea to chopping down trees in the north woods-all inside the studio on Argyle st.
Here’s how it’s done. A tobacco company wants a television commercial on film. It wants the picture to show a commentator standing in a tobacco warehouse holding and describing leaves of tobacco. It wants action in the background—workmen moving about.
Sends Location Crews
Wilding sends a crew to a south- ern state where scenes inside a warehouse are filmed. This film is projected from the rear screen projector to the mirror which reflects the image to the screen. The actor stands in front of the screen with the tobacco leaf in hand. Cameras record the actor and the screen and in the finished picture it appears the actor is standing in the warehouse.
President of the corporation which makes sound slide films as well as motion pictures is C. H. Bradfield Jr., who has been head of the firm since the death of the founder, Nor- man E. Wilding. in 1946. Executive vice president is H. Fish. Scene of the modest beginning in 1914 of the corporation which now has studios and offices in a number of cities was Grand Rapids. Mich.
Chicago Tribune June 22, 1958
CHICAGO PART OF FILM WORLD
Wilding Productions Having Good Year
BY JAMES GAVIN
The motion picture business is doing all right-in Chicago.
Evidence of this may be obtained in the 1958 production schedule of Wilding Picture Productions, Inc., one of the world s largest producers of industrial films.
Wilding estimated it will produce 100 to 125 major business films before year-end. Its output. will be part of some 5,000 such films that the 500 to 600 industrial movie producers thruout the country out this year.
Cost at 130 Millions
The over-all cost of this output will be about 130 million dollars which is only 2 million dollars less than the peak year of 1957 and despite the current business recession.
Probably it s only fitting that Chicago get some recognition in tha movie industry because it was once the world’s film capital.
Some old-timers are around who will say they remember seeing Keystone cops scurry from a paddy wagon on Broadway and toss pies.
Such slap stick productions were made by the old Essanay studio, 1345 Argyle st., which has been Wilding’s home base since 1937. Stars such as “Bronco Billy” Anderson, Gloria Swanson, Wallace Beery, Charlie Chaplin, Ben Turpin, Francis X. Bushman, and Edward Arnold performed on the studio’s sets.
No, this isn’t a Hollywood scene; it’s in no other place but Chicago. Scene is in studios of Wilding Picture Productions, Inc., on Chicago’s north side. Wilding this year will produce 100 to 125 films for businesses, the company said.
3 Movie Sound Sets
The 2½ acre location provides floor space of 60,000 square feet including three motion picture sound stages. On these stages films have been produced for some of the giants of industry.
Wilding customers have included Ford Motor company, Chrysler corporation, Goodyear Tire and Rubber company; General Electric company, United States Steel corporation, Aluminum Company of America, and Standard Oil company (Indiana).
A recent survey by Wilding concluded that the of industrial films may triple that 130 dollar figure by 1960.
Since 1954 the industry’s volume has doubled and a large part of the increasing use by industry is attributed to the successful use of film in World War II to train men in the armed services.
Cover Many Subjects
Industrial films cover a wide range of subjects, from expounding proper use of the company’s products (aimed at salesmen to aid their sales pitch) to productivity (to get management’s rising costs problems before employees).
Another growing aspect of Wilding’s business lately has been its industrial shows which travel the country and introduce company products.
For decades, Wilding was the MGM of concept-to-completion industrial films, a.k.a. sales and training “trips through the factory,” producer of extravagant live sales meetings, and later commercials, for Chicago’s manufacturing economy.
It was a badge of honor to work at Wilding, to be part of the city’s biggest but tightly-knit permanent staff that worked out of a two-story, three building complex with three sound stages, editorial offices, its own equipment, carpentry shop, prop room and set storage, screening rooms and more.
It was where local film unions were born and the genesis of future generations of film workers. Local 476’s Mark Hogan’s grandfather worked at the original Essanay Studios and his father at Wilding.
Wilding’s ultimate end in 1972, coinciding with the disappearance of manufacturing and film technology that changed the industry, took several twists and turns. Local projector manufacturer Bell & Howell bought Wilding for a reported tax write-off, one veteran filmmaker recalls, and closed the studio before the year ended. Bell & Howell donated the real estate to Ch. 11, which in turn sold the property.
Miss Wilma Shuesler, Ralph Biddy, and Howard Adams, of Wilding Picture Productions, 1345 Argyle street were killed on September 20, 1937 when the airplane from which they were taking motion pictures of the Burlington railroad s streamliner, the Zephyr, crashed when it was caught in the air stream of the train speed-
White Wonder
Morton Salt
1958
Partial Filmography
The Monitors (1969)
To Live Again (1963)
White Wonder (1858)
Colorado Holiday (1955)
About Fallout (1955)
Inside Harvester (1952)
Paradise for Buster (1952)
You Can’t Lose (1951)
How We Got What We Have (1950)
Last Date (1950)
The Case of Tommy Tucker (1950)
Roots in the Soil (1949)
Big Tim (1948)
Ascorbic Acid and Scurvy (1947)
Shortest Way Home (1946)
Insomnia (1945)
By Jupiter! (1941)
Uncle Joe (1941)
American Portrait (1940)
Blame It on Love (1940)
Five Grand and a Girl (1940)
More Worlds to Conquer (1940)
Start the Music (1939)
Practical Magic (1937)
World’s Fair (1934)
Chrysler Corporation presents
“Assembly Lines Of Defense”
Wilding Picture Productions, Inc.
Does anyone have information about Wilding’s involvement with the US Navy and films that were produced during WW2 for the government?
Thanks very much in advance.
I have old reels and canisters of film that have the Wilding Productions, Inc. stickers on them. Do you want them?
Erich Leuck, I was a Wilding employee in Detroit the late fifties – and have fond memories and some wide screen film.
Wilding, Inc. also produced vinyl promotional vinyl records for FORD such as
XTAC-8679 mono. FORD DIVISION FORD MOTOR COMPANY Presents…SERVICING CAR POWER BRAKES (Part 1)
XTAC-9176 mono. FORD DIVISION FORD MOTOR COMPANY Presents…1957 TRUCK SERVICE FEATURES
XTAC-9448 mono. FORD DIVISION FORD MOTOR COMPANY Presents…It Can Be Yours (How A Combination Salesman Sells Trucks)
XTAC-10223 mono. FORD DIVISION FORD MOTOR COMPANY presents… “APPEARANCE RECONDITIONING” (PART 1)
All were Columbia CHICAGO pressings, and were created for the FORD DIVISION of the FORD MOTOR COMPANY. All were promotional advertising and marketing disks, and featured XTAC matrix number prefixes and numbers.
Would appreciate any help from collectors that could provide label scans and information of some of these disks? There were 100’s of these vinyl disks issued by Columbia Custom record division in the 1950’s for FORD. please contact reginald@mail2world.com
My father, Robert Dunphey Sr, was an executive at Wilding for most of his professional career–at the Chicago and Detroit studios. I have fond memories of playing on the set in Chicago as a young boy on Saturday mornings while my dad would do a few hours of work. Unfortunately, my father passed away unexpectedly in 1978, so many of my best memories are from those Wilding days. Any unwanted film, pictures, etc, would be welcome–especially involving Ford and Simonize Car Wax (Wilding actually used our home in a Simonize commercial in the late 60’s, but I can’t find it on line anywhere). Thanks in advance!
My mother, Ruby Peed Melull, worked at Wilding Studios. She was a script girl and also did some hand modeling for stills. She met my father there. He was a Navy photographer and worked out of Glenview Naval Air Base towards the end of WWII. Wilding and the Navy apparently collaborated on Navy training films together and that is how my mother and father met.
While at Wilding, Mom met Kirby Grant, the star from the Sky King TV series. They became good friends. She also talked about Wilding filming episodes of Hazel with Don Defore. I think Mom left Wilding in 1951.
I am putting together an essay about my mother’s hands for my ChicagoNow blog, Talking to the World. I hope to have it up by Mothers Day. You can
look for it here: http://www.chicagonow.com/talking-world . I will be including a few Wilding photos. Thank you! Would love to hear from others with Wilding connections and memories.
I have a film canister from 1964 addressed to Vic Damone. It has never been opened. I’m wondering if there is lost footage of movie stars on it! I’m going to try and find a place that can possibly play these reels!
@jill lowe… did you ever get to watch those films yet… real curious as to what is on that reel…lol
I’m a collector/historian specializing in “industrial shows,” which were part of Wilding’s business. I have many souvenir record albums of live musicals staged at new car announcement meetings for Ford dealers, manager meetings of Standard Oil, conventions of Pepsi bottlers, GE executives, etc etc.
I would love to find films of these Wilding-produced shows. I know quite a few of them were filmed. If anyone reading this (Erich Leuck? Tom Murphy?) has any of these films or suggestions for who to contact, I’d greatly appreciate it. steve@industrialmusicals.com
I know that some form of Wilding survived to at least 1976, as that’s the date of a Wilding produced Exxon show that I have in my record collection.
Leo Cassettari was my father and worked at Wilding and later started Studio Seven in Chicago. Would love to hear from any body about this wonderful time of Chicago film production
I was a child actress at Wilding Studios in the 1940s and worked with Ed Graybill, director, on films for Kraft Cheese Co., American Farm Manufacturers Assn., Squibb harmaceuticals, and others. I have good memories of being on the sound stages there. I wonder if any of those films survive.
Wilding continued operations in Chicago and Detroit, producing film, video, major corporate events and exhibits until January, 1981. It was purchased from Bell & Howell for $4 million by St. Louis-based Maritz, Inc. Maritz merged the company with their motion picture and events division, Communico, and named the new division Maritz Communications Company. (MCC).
MCC continued until April, 1991, when Maritz closed the division, selling off most operations and internalizing part of video and events production. By 2009, Maritz had sold off remaining production operations and ceased all internal video and event production.
My husband, Ivan Carlson, worked at Wilding Studios. He built sets.
His father, Al Carlson, also built sets at Wilding.
We had a life-long friend, Jerrie Krueger Fowler, a film editor, who also worked there.
All three of these talented people have passed away.
I heard many stories about their days working at Wilding Studios.
I came across this website today in search for information regarding Wilding Productions. I have been a film collector for man years, focusing on industrial shorts. I have several Wilding films in my collection, including The Shortest Way Home made for Greyhound Line n 1946, and The New Jersey Turnpike, made in 1954 for Cities Service. The traffic jam sequences were filmed in the Chicago area, not NJ. Mitch Dakelman dakelmanm@aol.com
My father John Weigel did many industrial films for Wilding Studios. He was a big part of the studios. My brother Tim Weigel became a sports announcer in Chicago. My other brother Tony and myself also went into broadcasting.
We recently found something among family moments. My Father-in-Law received a plaque making him a member of the Wilding Cartwheelers Club for his role in the Production of Challenge. It is signed by H. Williams Hanmer, President Wilding Inc. is there a way to find out what year Challenge was filmed?
My father, Tom Prendergast, worked for Wilding in Detroit, then was transferred to Chicago just prior to WWII. I have vague recollections of his involvement in some aspect of producing training films for the U.S. Navy. I remember that when he went to “sea” (Lake Michigan?) on a Navy ship, the Wilding crew was issued khaki uniforms similar to those worn by officers, sans any rank insignia. Is there a library of these Wilding training films produced in WWII? Wilding was presented with an “E” award for their work with the Navy during WWII. He proudly wore his “E” lapel pin.
Following WWII, my father moved us to California, seeking employment in the motion picture industry. He ended up a marketing representative for Carlings and Hamm breweries, respectively.
Yes, I can proudly say I worked for Wilding Division Bell&Howell, Southfield,Michigan. I worked for Bob Gaunt, Linclon Mercury Div, Ford Motor Company, and Tony Gibbs, Ford Account, Ford Motor Division. Wilding was sold to Maritz of Fenton, Missouri, I continued to work for Wilding as Senior Producer /DGA Director for both Ford and Lincoln Mercury, I was the Producer/Director of the 1985 Ford Motor Company Intro Shoe “Driven To Win.”
I moved out to Los Angeles, in 1986. Where I opened a company “Creative Center, a division of VanDun Communication Corp. My partner on both business and Life (a Choreographer and Dancer) Susan B. Donovan. Susie was a “Regular” on the Carol Burnett Show).
Wilding Division was a wonderful to work, and learn, and become a true Film and Television Professional
I continue to Produce and Direct Television Specials, and large scale Corporate Communications “Broadcast Events. Ms. Donovan and I produced (I directed) the Korean War Veterans Memorial Dedication, on the National Mall, in Washington, DC, more than 300,000 veterans and family attended the Event in 1995.
I was “Mentored” by the best…when I am asked how I have accomplished to much… I simply say:. I work at Wilding, and where I was able to stand on shoulders of giants.