(10) I Gen Weart and Mrs. Weart - First 10 Minutes, II Beverly Bayne

circa 1967

Two interviews conducted by William F. Grisham. He first interviews Gen. D. L. Weart and Gertrude Spoor Weart, the daughter of George K. Spoor, co-founder of Essanay Studios. Weart shares memories of her father and his role in the Chicago film industry during the silent era.

Then he interviews an actress, Beverly Bayne, who discusses her childhood, personal life, and acting career. She talks about how she began her career at Essanay when she as just 16, when she was a student at Hyde Park High School. Bayne made 400 films in Chicago before 1915; she and Francis X. Bushman were among the earliest and most popular of the screen couples.

Gen. D. L. Weart: (00:03)
Scale Company. So we talked it over with him and the two of them together figured out this proposition Amet was a mechanic and he knew how to make things. And Mr. Spoor had the idea—well, finally, they got a machine that worked and then they put in for a patent, Mr. Spoor put up the money, but, they hadn't consulted the patent lawyer. So,  he didn't put his name in on the application. So the patent was issued to Amet they machines were,  at that time, Mr. Spoor was acquainted with,  nearly all the border bill people in Chicago because—
 
William Grisham: (01:03)
Let me interrupt there. Why—how was—You were going to tell me, go ahead. Why was he?

Gen. D. L. Weart: (01:07)
Because he had these road shows that he put on in the, in the suburbs, out in Waukegan and other places around Northern Illinois. So he naturally knew Cole.
 
Gertrude Weart: (01:23)
Martin Beck?
 
Gen. D. L. Weart: (01:25)
Are the two that I have heard him talk to the most out. He originally started to import pictures from France, little short strips. And he showed them as little strips in the break in a bar in the vaudeville shows. Well lists became more and more popular. And one of Martin Beck's theaters—there was a lad by the name of [inaudible]. The boy that was the usher—that he was not sure there was an usher in one of these theaters by the name of Bell and Mr. Spoor employed him to operate their projection machine during this little short strip. And, as time went on, one of the machine was not acting properly.

And Bell told Mr. Spoor that he had a good friend by the name of Howell was a mechanic and he could fix it. So Howell came in and became—he was a repairman on the machine. And this went on for a number of years and, and Bell became and more of an operator. And finally, and as I recall, sometime around 1913, Mr. Sport turned over the machine business and all that he had built up to Bell and Howell and told him to take it and make a business of their own out of it.

William Grisham: (3:25)
Very good.

Gertrude Weart: (03:26)
You ever know the [inaudible] and the film as his trademark. His sister, Molly, drew it from a penny—was Indian head on a penny. And that became daddy's trademark. And—

William Grisham: (03:45)
Did Molly suggest this or did your father?

Gertrude Weart: (03:47)
I think daddy suggested it probably cause he was the one that had the ideas. But Molly, you see, you sent Molly to the Art Institute for many years.

William Grisham: (03;58)
And then therefore he wanted Molly.
 
Gertrude Weart: (04:00)
Yes. That’s the reason he wanted Molly to do it.
 
William Grisham: (04:02):
All right. You say that again now in your own words so that if I ever want to put this in another docent, all right. You tell me about his sending Molly to school

Gertrude Weart: (04:12)
And daddy—George sent a tiny jar to me. I was really sent Molly to the Art Institute for several years, and that's where she learned to draw. And she drew beautifully and still does draw beautifully. And it was upon his suggestion that she make the Indian head, which he copied from a penny.

William Grisham: (04:33)
Very good. Just a moment. Recollections of John [inaudible]. Natural. Efficient.

Gertrude Weart: (04:39)
He was a tall, slender man, very studious, always very serious with a beard.

William Grisham: (04:48)
How did your father meet him?

Gertrude Weart: (04:50)
I don't know. I really don't know.

William Grisham: (04:53)
Was he, as the papers said, a Swedish physicist or was he mainly a man who could work with his hands and was a good draftsman. Was he a draftsman primarily?
 
Gertrude Weart: (05:08)
Now that I'm not too sure of either. I'm sorry.

William Grisham; (05:11)
But he worked with your father then on this?

Gertrude Weart: (05:14)
For years. Just for years.

William Grisham: (05:16)
Did they have any offers—that is, offers for the process from anybody in Hollywood or anywhere?
 
Gertrude Weart (05:25):
No.
 
William Grisham (05:25):
No offers?
 
Gertrude Weart (05:26):
Not that I know of.

William Grisham: (05:28)
Several films were made. Do you recall any of those films that were made there were—there was a film of Niagara falls? Am I Right?

Gertrude Weart: (05:34)
That was the main one that I remember.

William Grisham: (05:37)
And what did it look like? What are your impressions? What did it look like?

Gertrude Weart: (05:39)
That was—it was just, oh, you just felt wet. They would look like—look so wonderful. So natural the way it was.

William Grisham: (05:49)
Also there was one called City Lights. Did you recall this was with the city lights was done?
 
Gertrude Weart: (05:53)
Yes.
 
William Grisham (05:53)
And I believe that was put to that.
 
Gertrude Weart (05:59)
That’s right
 
William Grisham (06:00)
And then a film called The Flag Maker. In some versions, it was called The American. Do you remember that? That was done on the west coast?

Gertrude Weart: (06:09)
Yes, I remember. I remember about it. Yes. No, I didn't see it. Unfortunately.

William Grisham: (06:14)
The City Lights received very good reviews in Chicago and in New York as at what was the major reason that this was driven out was sound? Is that correct? The sound that had come in—
 
Gertrude Weart: (06:26)
The sound had come in, yes.
 
William Grisham: (6:27)
Come in as they couldn't change over.
 
Gertrude Weart: (6:28)
That was it.

William Grisham: (06:31)
[Inaudible] Jim Anderson

Gertrude Weart: (06:35)
Well, he was all very pleasant to me because I was the other lands daughter. But he was very, very pleasant. I don't know. I just never, I always, I never knew him very well.

William Grisham: (06:48)
Wow. Chaplin talks about him as a very fine [inaudible] being who had a number of various projects.  I know that he supported some boxers and

Gertrude Weart: (07:01)
Oh, sure he would do that sort of thing. I know he had a very big heart
 
William Grisham (07:07)
A very generous man.
 
Gertrude Weart: (07:09)
And  I don't know what his little wife—I don't think she's still living. Bless her heart. Max Leona is I know the little daughter

William Grisham: (07:14)
Maxine is, yes.
 
Gertrude Weart: (07:15)
Her name is Max Leona.
 
William Grisham: (07:17)
Max Leona?
 
Gertrude Weart: (07:18)
Yes
 
William Grisham: (7:20)
Ah, good.

Gertrude Weart: (07:20)
Leona after his sister.
 
William Grisham (07:21)
Max Leona.
 
Gertrude Weart (7:23)
Yes.
 
William Grisham (07:24)
I see. Well, she called herself Maxine.

Gertrude Weart: (07:29)
Oh, does she? Well her name is Max Leona

William Grisham: (07:32)
Alright.
 
Gen. D. L. Weart: (07:33)
In 1913, Mr. Spoor and his brother, Harry, who was in charge of the European distribution of pictures were building a motion picture theater in Berlin. They visited Berlin and the mayor gave him this statue of a Lady Godiva on a white bear, which is the symbol of Berlin. Then the war came along and of course that all went up.
 
Gertrude Weart: (08:11)
He lost everything .
 
Gen. D. L. Weart: (08:12)
It all went up and nothing ever happened to them, but they were building a theater their own in Berlin at the time.

William Grisham: (08:18)
I also have some information that I guess it was—it was Harry then who?  or Essanay. I have no idea who owned a building. Am I correct? In Berlin? Okay. Harry owned some real estate.
 
Gertrude Weart (08:30)
Yes, I think so.
 
William Grisham (08:32)
Then Marvin Spoor was director of photography. He was the youngest of the seven brothers. Am I correct?
 
Gertrude Weart: (08:41)
That’s right.
 
William Grisham:(08:42)
And he was then made a director of photography of Essanay or?

Gen. D. L. Weart: (08:46)
I don't know that, but he was one of the main camera men.

William Grisham: (08:52)
One of the main camera in there. Very good. Then what happened there between Spoor and Anderson? What was the date? Approximately?

Gen. D. L. Weart: (09:03)
As I recall, it was sometime around 1916 and Mr. Spoor and Anderson decided to break up the partnership. And Mr. Spoor bought him out for somewhere around a million dollars.

William Grisham: (09:18)
Tell me about that.

Gertrude Weart: (09:20):
Well, he was utterly delightful. He really was. And he had a marvelous sense of humor. You could just see everything talk.
 
William Grisham: (09:28)
This is about Max Linder?
 
Gertrude Weart: (09:29)
Max Linder. Yes, he was a remarkable person. He really was. And daddy made some very good pictures with him, I think.

William Grisham: (09:36):
Tell me this. They were, according to—they were not good box office. There were three made at Essanay, I believe. And then your father and Max terminated the contract, primarily because Max couldn't stand the Chicago cold.

Gertrude Weart: (09:51):
That's right. He didn't like the cold. You were just perfectly frigid all the time. He just couldn't stand it. I swore off

William Grisham: (10:08)
Wallace Berry in the works. All right, go ahead. Okay.

Gertrude Weart: (10:12)
Well Wallace Berry, it wasn't so successful at first. But he soon became very successful and the pride of his life was this wonderful car. And he got a little Essanay and he put it on the car and that's all that was necessary. So he had an accident and daddy had to pay about a hundred thousand dollars.

William Grisham: (10:33):
A hundred-thousand dollars.

Gen. D. L. Weart: (10:35):
Was it that much?

William Grisham: (10:39):
Good heavens. What was the accident? Do you remember?

Gertrude Weart: (10:40)
He ran into another car, killed somebody, I think.

William Grisham: (10:45)
I heard that he may have done that, but this was this as this confirmed that he did kill somebody or

Gertrude Weart: (10:52)
I think he did, dear. I'm not too sure. He injured somebody anyway, I know.
 
William Grisham: (10:54)
The car was a Mercer, was it not?
 
Gertrude Weart (10:56)
Yes. It was a Mercer. That's right. That's what it was. It was a Mercer and he thought he was so proud of it.

—————

William Grisham (11:16):
And how did you get—yeah, we're recording. Okay, go ahead.

Beverly Bayne: (11:19):
Well, I—

William Grisham: (11:22):
Yes, like this. Now this is Beverly Bayne. Essanay Studios. Moving the wrong thing. Beverly Bayne, Essanay studios, Chicago.

Beverly Bayne: (11:35)
Well, that's where I started my career, Essanay, in Chicago. And it was really a truly Cinderella like story.  I was going to a Hyde Park High School in Chicago, and I had only been three weeks in my freshman term when girl [inaudible] said, “Oh, you're so interested in the theater and movies and things like that. That, don't you think it would be wonderful if we go up to the Essanay and see how pictures are taken? There's such a mystery about them.” And, I was thrilled to pieces. She said, “You know, my mother and father know they head director Harry McRae Webster, and I'm sure he'd be delighted to have us come. And we'll take pictures along because they love young society girls who have pretty clothes and long white gloves to go in the ballroom scenes.”


Well, that excited me beyond words. And so we went up on a Wednesday and Mr. Webster took us all through the studio and we saw how the movies were taken. Maybe the last scene was taken first and he explained the whole thing and, oh, it was such a mystery and so exciting and so thrilling to two young girls. And, the following Tuesday afternoon, about four, when I got home from school, the phone rang and it was Mr. Webster's secretary. And she said, “Mr. Webster would like to have you come to the studio tomorrow morning at 10: 30.” What I thought that was rather strange because Mr. Webster had said before, “You know, we start at nine o'clock in the morning and we—"
 
 
William Grisham: (13:23)
You start at nine o'clock at—
 
Beverly Bayne: (13:29)
Well, you start  at nine in the morning and you punch a time clock of all things.

And then you—the studio closes promptly at five and from nine until one on Saturday. And so I couldn't understand why he was asking me for 10:30. So I  said to my mother, “Oh mother, may I go? Please let me go.” And she said, “Yes, if your aunt goes with you.” Where you see in those days we did use chaperones. It’s sort of a lost art today. Well, anyway,  the next morning we were at the studio and Mr. Webster came bustling, you know, bustling in and he said, “Here. Here's a script. Go out and have your lunch and come back after you do. And I'll take you through a scene.” And, oh, my heart was palpitating. And he said, “You're part of the part of Marion. Now you go and study it and come back.” So that's what we did.

I had a bowl of vegetable soup. I remember, and I had about four tablespoons full and that was it. I couldn't eat anymore. I was so excited. The part of Marion was the lead in the picture. So we went back,  to the studio Mr. Webster set up in the green room,  tables and chairs, and, arranged for me to walk the scenes with him. And of course in those days you made up your own lines You've got the sense of a story. And then the actors made up their own lines and you follow the script that way. Well, he took me through this scene once and that he had my aunt sit in where he had been, and I went through the scene and he sat up front, as directors were known to do with the idea of a megaphone in their hands.

And as you worked and said your lines, why he would say, “Well, now turn a little more to the right now, look up now, smile. And, now you go over and wave goodbye to somebody.” Well, he was very satisfied. I could see with the scene. And he said, “Now, little lady did,” he said, “What would you consider your services worth? You know, you have to be here from nine to five every day. And from nine, until one on Saturdays.” We never worked Sundays. And I said, “Oh, Mr. Webster, I've never been in the theater. I don't know what to say.” Well, I, who was getting an allowance of 25 cents a week, knew that actors, tremendous [inaudible] of money. So I tried to think in large numbers. So he said, “Now go on. I'm not going to give it to you.”

“You know, if you're not worth it—if I can't pay it.” And he said, “Just say anything.” And so I said, very timidly, $30, $35 or $25 a week. Well, the dear man, I can see him now, his face flushed, a twinkle came in his eye and he said, “Well, I'll tell you, little lady.” He said, “I'll start you the first week. You will just work under my personal direction. And for four weeks, you'll get $25 a week. And then you'll go into regular stock and play with the other directors and rest of the company at Essanay.” And he says, “From then on it's up to you.” And I'm here to glad to relate that my next job six months later was $75 and then it went to $350. So I have always been very amused at my childlike asking $25 as though it were a big sum. I who had twenty-five cents allowance.
 
William Grisham: (17:32)
Excellent. Tell me this. Now, you said that you had come to Chicago. But where had your earlier schooling been?

Beverly Bayne: (17:40)
Well, in Minneapolis and in Philadelphia. My stepfather traveled a great deal and Duluth—I was about in the first or second grade in Duluth. And then we moved to Philadelphia and Minneapolis was where I was born. And I did go back at a certain number of months or years to go to school there and stayed with an aunt and my grandmother and went to school there.

William Grisham: (18:08)
I have,  a series of clippings,  one from, I believe Minneapolis. You were in society there, am I correct? As you're, if your family was? How was that?

Beverly Bayne: (18:18)
Well, we, you know, we were just sort of middle-class. A nice middle class family. And—but I did go back there and play at the Bainbridge of theater. The Bainbridge stock company in— Brandon Rhodes. I see him once in a while on TV in brief moment and one other play. I can't even think of it now. And it's a beautiful city, and I loved it. But I haven't been back. I played Claudia there in ‘43.

William Grisham: (18:55)
Excellent. You talk about your—then you went from the motion pictures to—

Beverly Bayne: (19:02)
The stage yes.

William Grisham: (19:03)
And then what about that transition because—

Beverly Bayne: (19:05)
Well, it's very interesting because, of course, I played leads immediately in movies and never played anything else. And then went from the movies to do a plays for Oliver Morosco in Los Angeles. And we toured that and I at that time was married to Mr. Bushman and we toured east. And when I played it in a play. It was called The Master. Very dramatic title. And Edward A. Rose was the author and also director, as I recall, and when I made my entrance everybody was watching me. Everybody had the book, the script, to throw me lines and everything. And the moment I opened my mouth and it had said my first paragraph, Mr. Rose said, “Well, I don't have to worry about her.” So I've had a unique career in the fact that I played leads on the legitimate stage and in the movies. And it's been all very interesting.

William Grisham: (20:20)
What can you tell me—you were—of course you and Francis X. Bushman were the stars of Essanay.
 
Beverly Bayne: (20:28)
Considered one of the great romantic teams like Norma Talmadge and Eugene O'Brian and, let's see, oh, May Ellison and Harold Lockwood. And there were two or three others.

William Grisham: (20:44):
The period there of acting for Essanay extended. From what time to what time then?

Beverly Bayne: (20:52)
Oh my word. I couldn't tell you.

William Grisham: (20:54)
Until approximately 1917 though. Am I correct?

Beverly Bayne: (20:57)
Yes. Somewhere in there.

William Grisham: (21:00)
I see. And what do you estimate—how many films do you think that you did while you were there?

Beverly Bayne: (21:05)
Oh, I have no idea. I think a publicity person one time said possibly in the neighborhood of 400 films, but you see, we did one reelers in the early days, the early part of my career. Then we went to two-reelers then three and then they became multiple. I think that— Now one-reel is approximately— The whole picture, a thousand feet. That was one picture. And so of course doing three or four of those a week, you could line up quite a number. And then of course, I think,  let me see, [inaudible], I believe was five reels.

William Grisham: (21:46)
You are right. It was five reels. I just finished that. Tell me this. What directors, for instance—the kind of directing that went on then. Was it—it certainly was a primitive from the kinds of films that I have seen from Essanay. It was—tell me about that. What did—what is your opinion of the direction?

Beverly Bayne: (22:08)
Well, one very fine director we had was Theodore H. Wharton and another was Charles Braedon, I think. Charles [inaudible]. And now maybe he was—
 
William Grisham: (22:27)
MGM? Probably
 
Beverly Bayne: (22:29)
No, I think that was later. Mr. Baker who had been an ex stock director. You see, everybody was corralled from the stock companies because they were easy in learning lines or they had some schooling or experience. But the reason that they took me was that I was untrained and this was a new medium—new technique that they could mold me a child of 16 into the techniques that they wanted. And I know that the woman that was the leading woman ahead of me was about forty.
 
William Grisham: (23:10)
Ruth Stonehouse was
 
Beverly Bayne: (23:11)
Well, no, no. She was an extra girl and Essanay at the same time. And I was and then she did a better part. But this was, I don't know if I should say it because she was an older woman and played in stock, but her name was Bransc and she was playing young girls and old ladies the next day, you see, and they would change about. And of course they,  it was rather ridiculous to have a young girl of twenty playing an old woman, but they did. They make them up.

And—but it was a vast college of knowledge. I'll tell you about the theatrical profession because, of course, to my sense, acting is merely a keen imagination, the ability to hold within oneself memories or experiences that they've seen or watched or something. Or even going to the theater and seeing how the great actors and my mother as a little girl always took me in Minneapolis to some of the greatest plays, the greatest stars. They, oh dear, who were they? Lovely ones. And so in that way, I had a certain place when I had this opportunity given to me by Mr. Webster. And I want, just one week from the first time that I went to the studio, I was playing lead in my first picture.

William Grisham: (24:41)
That's remarkable. Tell me about this. Your mother then was—she enjoyed the theater very much

Beverly Bayne: (24:49)
Oh yes, had a great appreciation.
 
William Grisham: (24:51)
Tell me more about your mother.
 
Beverly Bayne: (23:53)
Well, mother was a precious person. She lived her whole life to develop me as a fine person, a lady. And also gave me the opportunity to learn how to become a good actress. None of our family had ever been in the theater, but by the token of her giving me these opportunities, it—I didn't make a lot of bad mistakes because I remembered how people behave themselves in the legitimate theater. And that aided me in the movies.

William Grisham: (25:37)
Excellent. Now, can you tell me a little bit about the studios as you remember them? They were over on Argyle Street?

Beverly Bayne: (25:45)
1333 Argyle.

William Grisham: (25:46)
Right and they're pretty much as they were even today.

Beverly Bayne (25:49):
Didn't the Jam Handy people buy the studio?

William Grisham: (25:57)
Wilding is the name of them, but yeah they did have something to do with it, yes.

Beverly Bayne (26:00):
Yes. I think they rent it or something, but are they still there?

William Grisham: (26:06)
They’re still there, and they are still operating under the Wildling, yes.
 
Beverly Bayne: (26:07)
Is that so?
 
William Grisham (26:08)
We took the sign down and you could see the Essanay right underneath their sign.

Beverly Bayne (26:11):
Oh yes. Well, I remember Darrell Bob Spoor. Oh, he was the, director. I mean the manager of that stage, you know, and he was such a darling and Major Spoor. I believe Marvin is—we called him Major in those days. Nice young man and tall. And my memories and, of course, Harry McRae Webster was an excellent director and I always worked in many of his pictures. Did you know that Luella Parsons was a script woman at Essanay.

William Grisham (26:55):
I knew that would you tell me a little bit then about Luella because she, I believe—George K. Spoor’s wife rather took pity on her. She was recently divorced. Am I correct? Or was she widowed? Yes. And she had a little child called baby later on baby Parsons, who was in the Essanay pictures?

Beverly Bayne: (27:14)
Oh, well, let me say that she was married to— I can't even recall the name now, but Captain something or other in Chicago. And he and Luella used to come over to my mother and father's home on the North Side there. Malden Avenue and Wilson, I think it's called. Was it Wilson and Malden? And they used to play bridge together all the time and I would meet Luella on the street going up to Essanay and we would talk and she'd tell about a script that was coming in and whether I would like it or not. And she, afterwards, not only did the script work, but became secretary to Mr. Bushman and worked, yes, with him. And then later, of course, she went to Hollywood and she had—Harriet Parsons was her daughter. The little girl that was at Essanay. And of course she is now. I don't know. Somebody said, I believe she was selling real estate. And the mother is in [inaudible], Luella. She's, I won't say a little, in some difficulty physically, I believe.

William Grisham: (28:37)
Well, tell me about—she has written about you.

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