“Lights, camera, action!” could very well have echoed near the Vitagraph Smokestack. This smokestack is more than just bricks and mortar. It is a surviving piece of Brooklyn’s, and indeed America’s, early film history.
Before Hollywood, Brooklyn was a filmmaking hub. Vitagraph Studios, established in 1906, stood near this very spot. Now, look up at the Vitagraph Smokestack. Notice the name “Vitagraph” emblazoned in brick. It’s a ghostly reminder of the silent film era.
Vitagraph Studios was a pioneer. They produced comedies starring John Bunny. He was America’s most popular comedian before Charlie Chaplin. The studio also launched Motion Picture Story Magazine in 1911. It was the first motion picture magazine. Stars like Norma and Constance Talmadge graced its productions.
J. Stuart Blackton, a founder, was key to the studio’s success. He even interviewed Thomas Edison. Edison was impressed with Blackton’s drawings. They made a cartoon film together. It was decades before Mickey Mouse. Blackton and his partners bought equipment from Edison. They filmed their first production on a Nassau Street rooftop in Manhattan in 1897.
The studio pioneered stop-motion animation. Blackton shot “Humorous Phases of a Funny Face” here. The studio innovated editing techniques. It streamlined production processes. Vitagraph produced up to eight films a week at its peak.
However, Vitagraph lacked foresight. They didn’t link their studio to a movie chain. Competitors like Paramount and Fox thrived with their theaters. By the early 1920s, Vitagraph struggled to find screens for its films.
In 1925, Warner Brothers bought Vitagraph. They renamed it Vitaphone Studios. Much of the film industry moved to Los Angeles. Warner Brothers kept the Brooklyn studio. They used it for short films. The East Coast studio was convenient. Vaudeville artists like Burns and Allen didn’t travel to Los Angeles.
NBC bought the studio in 1952. They filmed the soap opera “Underworld” here. The studio became the largest television studio on the East Coast. Shows like the Perry Como and Sammy Davis shows were filmed here.
Eventually, Hollywood took over again. The studios went dark. In the 1960s, the original Vitagraph Studio building was sold. It became the Shulamith School for Girls.
There was a plan to demolish the smokestack. Activists and historians fought to save it. They understood its historical significance. Now, the Vitagraph Smokestack stands. It is a monument to Brooklyn’s filmmaking past. It’s a reminder that stories can rise from the most unexpected places.