The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1930-03-25
BY PAUL w. WHITE
Tinted Press staff Correspondent

NEW YORK, March 25.-The
story of William Fox's way to wealth
has the ring of the familiar. 1t is
the story of the immigrant boy who
with Alger-like persistence over
came privation and hardship, f1outed
powerful rivals and made good. The
fact is simply that he knew what
he wanted.
What he wanted-while he still
was in his teens-waS a theater. He
got one. Later he was to get around
$50 of them The battle for their
control, as we'll as the control Of
what was shown in them was to re-
suit in a dozen legal and financial
clashes with more than $190,000,000
as the stake.
Fox was born Jan. I, 1879, In
Tulchva, Hungary. While he was
still an infant, his family moved
from their rambling native hills to
the brick-and -dust of New York'S
east side. Fox went to the public
schools and, at IS, started to work.
He sponged suits and he got SIS g.
week. Of this sum he kept out so
cents for himself A dime gained him
weekly admission to theater.
Hopes Are Jeered
When his boss heard of such ex-
travagance he was indignant. OF
what use would this boy become who
Squandered his money in a theater?
And Foxs mother also was unsyrn-
pathetic when William first preached
the idea that he should some day
buy a Showhouse.
Fox's salary advanced until It
reached SIT a week. He had saved
5000 and when the proprietor re-
fused to pay him more, he bought
the business. Soon he was to have
sucient capital to buy, In 1904, a
theater on Broadway, Brooklyn, at
cost of $1,666.66.
When the camp chair seats of
this tiny theater were f1lled-and
this happy condition obtained but
rarely-the gross receipts were $3.50.
Only year or so ago the palatial
Roxy theater in New York, one Of
the Fox chain, took in 100000 over
four week showing of 1.-THE Cock
Eyed World"
Rothschild Is Scoffer
In the early days Of the movies,
Edmund Rothschild, Fox's early en-
ployer and now prosperous banker,
called at the small theater and saw
one of the Pickering films. 1t is
Hollywood legend that Rothschild
announced that the show was ter
rible; that Fox himself was slightly
crazed, and that the whole idea was
unsound
For why should good workman
like yourself" Rothschild was quot
ed as saying, take real money and
show such a foolishnesS as horse
cowboys jumping, murderers firing
guns. Is this then busineSs?"
But the little "hole in the wall"
began to provide profits and within
the first five years Fox had built
fortune Of $250,000 that enabled him
to put twenty theaters in operation.
Then he began to encounter OBJ
stacleS.
The General Film Corporation
producers combine-prevented him
from showing it's pictures. He was
forced to take second-rate films I'M
til the corporation was dissolved by
governmental order.
Organizes Corporation
Fox determined to take no more
chances on buying pictures made
by others. Accordingly, in 1913, he
organized the Fox Film Corpora
ton. capitalized at 100000.
Whether, on his own, Fox could
have made a success, in producing
motion pictures, is at least debat-
able, but he found another man to
help him revolutionize the new in
dustry. Fox supplied the money
brains. For the shownanship brains
he depended on the genial, volatile
Winfield Sheehan.
A few days ago Sheehan an
nounced he was opposed to Fox on
the problem of refinancing the Fox
properties. The break between the
two had been forecast, but 1t was
none the less upsetting. The trade
has yet to believe that Bill Fox and
Winnie Sheehan are, for all time,
"through "