Benjamin B. Hampton Explained

Benjamin Bowles Hampton (1875–1932) was an American film producer, writer, and director. He led a 1916 plan to conglomerate film companies via acquisition.^[1] He was married to actress Claire Adams and was a partner in Zane Grey Pictures.^[2] He wrote the History of the American Film Industry from Its Beginnings to 1931. He is credited with producing numerous films.

Hampton published a couple of stories in Hampton's Broadway Magazine.^[3] He held copyrights on Hampton's Magazine and Hampton's Broadway Magazine.^[4] He accepted Jack London's story Mauki after it was turned down by other publications and remained committed to publishing stories of social injustices even after other publications had moved on believing readership had lost interest in that type of anti-Capitalist tale.^[5]

In his book on the history of the film industry to 1932, Hampton emphasized the industry's widespread mass market appeal in the U.S.^[6]

Hampton wrote in his film history about the success of an early fight film in 1897 and the criticism of it and "Living Pictures" generally by William Randolph Hearst as Yellow Journalism.^[7]

Selected filmography

Producer

• The Westerners (1919)
• Desert Gold (1919)
• Riders of the Dawn (1920)
• The Money Changers (1920)
• The Dwelling Place of Light (1920)
• A Certain Rich Man (1921)
• The Man of the Forest (1921)
• The Mysterious Rider (1921)
• The Gray Dawn (1922)^[8]
• Golden Dreams (1922), an adaptation of a Zane Grey novel^[5]
• Heart's Haven (1922)

Notes and References

1. Book: Afra, Kia. The Hollywood Trust: Trade Associations and the Rise of the Studio System. June 22, 2016. Rowman & Littlefield. 9781442268296. Google Books.
2. Book: Scott, Kenneth William. Zane Grey, Born to the West: A Reference Guide. April 14, 1979. Cengage Gale. 9780816178759. Google Books.
3. Book: Biggers, Earl Derr. Earl Derr Biggers Tells Stories #1. June 23, 2014. Lulu Press, Inc. 9781312301917. Google Books.
4. Web site: Catalog of Copyright Entries: Musical compositions. April 14, 1910. U.S. Government Printing Office. Google Books.
5. Web site: Catalogue of Copyright Entries: Pamphlets, leaflets, contributions to newspapers or periodicals, etc.; lectures, sermons, addresses for oral delivery; dramatic compositions; maps; motion pictures. Part 1, group 2. Library of Congress Copyright. Office. April 14, 1923. U.S. Government Printing Office. Google Books.
6. Book: Starr, Kevin. Inventing the Dream: California Through the Progressive Era. October 20, 1986. OUP USA. 9780195042344. Google Books.
7. Book: Pizzitola, Louis. Hearst Over Hollywood: Power, Passion, and Propaganda in the Movies. January 9, 2002. Columbia University Press. 9780231507554. Google Books.
8. Book: Institute, American Film. The American Film Institute Catalog of Motion Pictures Produced in the United States. April 14, 1997. University of California Press. 9780520209695. Google Books.