Educational Pictures (or Educational Film Exchanges, Inc.) was a film distribution company founded in 1919 by Earle (E. W.) Hammons (1882–1962). Educational primarily distributed short subjects, and today is probably best known for its series of 1930s comedies starring Buster Keaton,[1] as well as for a series of one-reel comedies featuring Shirley Temple's earliest screen appearances. Educational declared bankruptcy in 1940.
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Earl Hammons originally established the company to make instructional films for schools, but making comedies for theatrical release proved more lucrative.[2] Educational did indeed issue many educational, travelogue, and novelty shorts, but its main enterprise was comedy.[3] Educational's heyday was the 1920s, when the popular silent comedies of Al St. John, Lupino Lane, Lige Conley, Lloyd Hamilton,[4] and Monty Collins complemented many a moviehouse bill as "the spice of the program". Educational also released silent cartoons including the Felix the Cat and Aesop's Fables series.[5] In 1930, cartoonist Paul Terry signed with Educational to distribute his cartoons.
Educational made a smooth transition to sound movies by handling the early talking comedies of comedy pioneer Mack Sennett. Comedians Monty Collins, Vernon Dent, Harry Gribbon, and Edward Everett Horton all starred in the studio's early talkies. Educational's most prolific comedian in the 1930s was undoubtedly the Sennett star Andy Clyde, who made 54 comedies. Sennett also introduced singing star Bing Crosby to movie audiences. But Sennett soon became plagued by financial problems, and he left Educational in 1932.[6]
Educational replaced the Sennett films with star-name comedians.[7] Andy Clyde and Harry Langdon led Educational's release schedule for a few years, then Buster Keaton headlined a series that yielded 16 popular two-reel comedies.[8]
For a time Educational maintained studios on both coasts. New York-based talent from vaudeville and radio starred in Educational's East Coast productions: Joe Cook, Tim and Irene Ryan, Sylvia Froos, Warren Hull, Tom Howard and George Shelton, Stoopnagle and Budd, Bert Lahr, and Willie Howard. Many stars made debuts in Educational shorts: Bob Hope, The Ritz Brothers, June Allyson, Imogene Coca, and Danny Kaye in New York; and Shirley Temple, Joan Davis, and Roy Rogers in Hollywood. During its last year of production, Educational showcased the young comedy/dance team of Herman Timberg, Jr. and Pat Rooney, Jr., singers Niela Goodelle and Lee Sullivan, comic Charles Kemper, and comedienne Harriet Hutchins.
Twentieth Century-Fox and its predecessor, Fox Film Corporation, had been distributing Educational product to theaters. In 1937 after signing with the Terrytoons studio, the studio dropped its line of short comedies, and withdrew its support from Educational. Hammons tried to keep his company going while trying to enter the feature-film market with the financially-troubled Grand National Pictures. The drain on his finances forced both companies into bankruptcy. The final Educational comedies were released in January 1939, and the film library was sold at auction in 1940. Most were obtained by Astor Pictures that re-released them to cinemas with a compilation of Bing Crosby's shorts released as the feature The Road to Hollywood to exploit Paramount's "Road to..." film series.
Much of Educational's silent film library was lost in a laboratory fire in 1937,[9] but the sound comedies survive today.
The quality of Educational's films varied widely in a large part consequent from the low-budget nature of the studio. Many future stars (such as Shirley Temple) made their first few film appearances at Educational, and many former stars like Fatty Arbuckle and Harry Langdon found work with Educational when they couldn't get jobs elsewhere. Because Educational maintained its New York area studio for so long, it also relied on Broadway and vaudeville talent (such as Joe Cook), figures who were famous among theatregoers and New York nightclub patrons but sometimes little known elsewhere.
Educational Pictures had a logo of a genie's lamp, above which the words "Educational Pictures" appeared formed by the smoke from the lamp. Below the lamp, enclosed in quotation marks were the words The Spice of the Program. (Latter day historians have conjectured that given the overall quality of the bulk of Educational's output, 'The Space on the Program' might have been somewhat more appropriate.)
The appearance of the logo was somewhat unique to Educational. The shorts would begin with the opening title card, usually having "E. W. Hammons presents" at the top, followed by the title of the short. The Educational logo would appear full screen. Normally, movie studios would have their logos appear before the opening titles, while Educational placed its logo after the opening credits.
At the end, there would be a standard end title card with the mini-logo for Educational Pictures appearing somewhere in the end title.