Research by Patricia Cusick Whipple
Story and additional research by Kate Corbett
Pollack
Part One.
Darjeeling, Bengal, India, April 20, 1893. A baby’s cry pierces the serene atmosphere
of this mountainous town, located in the Mahabharat Range of the Himalayas. A
gentle wind rustles through the lush, verdant tea leaves that line the terraced
hills. Mist envelopes the surrounding jungle, home to tigers, elephants,
leopards and many other exotic species. On this day, William Henry Jobbins and
Jeannette Shepherd Hauser welcomed the birth of their second son, Amos Pomeroy
Jobbins. William (1851-1893) and Jeannette (1862-1938), an ambitious couple
living in this beautiful area of India, were British subjects. Jeannette was a
direct descendent of General Seth Pomeroy, the American Revolutionary war hero,
a lineage she was very proud of. Keeping with the family tradition, she
included Amos’ fourth generation great-grandfather’s surname as her son’s
middle name. His first name was taken from his paternal grandmother, Sarah
Amos, who married Thomas Jobbins on January 17, 1847 in Coventry, England.
William and
Jeannette’s first son, Arthur, was born in Calcutta in 1891. Little Amos would
spend his early childhood in India, playing with his older brother and beholding
the rich culture of Darjeeling, at that time still under the control of the
British Empire. William, the boys’ father, was the director of the Indian Art
School in Calcutta, the capital city of West Bengal. Previously, he had taught
art in Nottingham, England, and had spent time in Venice, Italy, where he
shared a studio with James McNeill Whistler in a 17th century palazzo
on the Grand Canal designed by Venetian Baroque master Baldassare Longhena. The
two artists’ personalities clashed, and William did not enjoy working in the
same space as the now legendary American artist, whom he felt was a second-rate
painter with loose morals.[i] Jobbins’ paintings of Venice are valued among
art collectors today. Jeannette was born in India to American Christian
missionaries, and had grown up traveling to India from her native Ohio. This
colorful locale set the tone for Amos’ life, which would be a kaleidoscopic one
full of adventure, mystery, beauty, and scandal.
Sadly, William Henry
Jobbins died not long after Amos was born, resulting in Jeannette and the boys
moving back to England. Jeannette remarried by 1897 to James Bernard Scale, and
the family settled in London. Arthur and Amos were given their stepfather’s
last name. Amos Pomeroy Jobbins Scale was enrolled at the Wells House
Preparatory School for boys in 1897 at age five. The cold, dreary English
weather [ii] and
the strict school environment must have been quite a change for him after
Darjeeling, and now he had a new father figure in his life.By 1901, when he was
nine years old, Amos had begun going by the nickname “Roy”, based on his middle
name of Pomeroy.
By 1917, when he was
25, Roy had moved to New York. There he worked as a self-employed
artist,continuing to be the sole supporter of Jeannette, who had come with him.
They lived at 1131 Broadway in Manhattan, in the heart of the theatre district.
It was in this area of New York that Broadway hopefuls of all kinds lived, and
Roy had possibly moved there to pursue a career as a scenic artist for theatre. In the meantime, he procured a job painting
advertisements for Ivory Soap, one of which included a scene in India. Roy
registered for the WWI draft in 1917, and spent about a year in the air force
inventing devices used for aerial photography, bomb sites, and aerial
navigation. Among these inventions was a camera that could be used to render
camouflaged objects detectable.
After the War, Roy
began a business involvement with the Hippodrome Theatre on Sixth Avenue in
Midtown Manhattan. It was the largest theatre in the world at the time, and was
created by the same men who founded Coney Island’s Luna Park. Their formula for
success was repeated with the Hippodrome, which was built in 1904. Like Coney
Island, it was an entertainment spectacle, only an indoor theatre and not an
amusement park. Live animals, choruses with hundreds of people, performances by
Harry Houdini, dazzling sets, acrobats, clowns and performers of all types could
be seen at the Hippodrome, which became New York’s most successful theatre.
More research is needed to discern whether or not Roy was employed directly by
the Hippodrome, but he did involve them in a lawsuit regarding the use of a
contraption in their shows that he claimed to have invented: a bubble machine,
which Roy in 1919 alleged the Hippodrome used in their shows and owed him
royalties for. The lawsuit alleged that R.H. Burnside, owner of the Hippodrome,
had agreed to pay Roy $50 a week (about $660 in 2012 dollars) to use his
machine, but had never paid him. Burnside claimed that another company held the
actual patent for the device, and he had rescinded the contract with Roy as a
result. The total amount Roy was suing for was the equivalent of $3,333.00
today. By 1921, after several court dates, the judgment was reversed, and Roy
was ordered to pay the Hippodrome $422 ($5,410 today), which financially ruined
him for a time. This would not be the last time Roy attempted, to his own detriment,
to stand up to a powerful and famous man whom he felt owed him money, and
perhaps respect.[iii]
Despite his issues
with the Hippodrome, Roy was continuing to excel in the scenic arts, and by
1921 had partnered with a mysterious, handsome Russian stage lighting innovator
and artist who had come to New York in the company of world-famous ballerina
Anna Pavlova. His name was Nicholas Vladimir de Lippe Lipsky, and he had ties
to English royalty and Russian aristocracy. The two men worked together on
inventions for the theatre, and produced a series of photoplays, which were
films of stage performances. Newspaper and magazine articles from the early
1920s lauded their accomplishments. The attention Roy received piqued the
interest of a man who would change the course of his life: Hollywood producer
Jesse L. Lasky.[iv]
Lasky, a San
Francisco native and former Vaudeville performer who had worked with Al Jolson,
was one of the founders of Paramount Studios along with his best friend Cecil
B. DeMille. In 1914, Lasky and DeMille produced “The Squaw Man”, Hollywood’s
first feature film, in a rented horse barn which doubled as their production
studio. It was such a hit that the team went on to produce a number of early
silent films, many written and directed by DeMille. They would eventually form Paramount Pictures.
Prior to 1914, films weren’t usually made in California, but New York. Cecil B.
DeMille and Jesse L. Lasky put Hollywood on the map as the new capital of the
motion-picture studio.
In 1920, when he was
40 years old, Lasky opened Astoria Studios in Queens, which is still in
operation today. By the time he met Roy Pomeroy in about 1921, Lasky had
produced over 300 films. He had an apartment on Fifth Avenue in Manhattan with
his wife Blanche and their son, Jesse Jr., and frequently traveled by ocean
liner to do business in Europe when he wasn’t in California, often bringing his
family with him. Jesse L. Lasky was known as “the nicest guy in Hollywood”.
Lasky recalled of Roy Pomeroy:
We had discovered Pomeroy as
a struggling artist with an inventive mind, who had some exceedingly original
and useful ideas about the employment of miniature sets and background
projection to affect enormous budget savings in picture-making. I hired him and
he did some fine creative work on tricks and special effects. He was the first
specialist in that field and there has never been a better one… Perhaps it
isn’t strange under the circumstances that he came to feel he was God…[v]
After being hired by
Lasky for Paramount Studios, Roy packed up and headed for California. There he
began work on Cecil B. DeMille’s epic masterpiece, “The Ten Commandments”,
where he created the effect of the parting of the Red Sea using Jell-O, which
is considered to this day one of the most impressive special effects in
Hollywood history. Roy also created the effect of the Ten Commandments, given
to Moses by God, lighting up and exploding into the sky as Moses carved them
into stone tablets.
“The Ten
Commandments” was the most expensive film ever made. Director Cecil B. DeMille
had a life-size set built on the sand dunes of Guadalupe, California, where he
re-created ancient Egypt (his 1953 version was shot on location). The set
included four 20-ton statues of the Pharaoh Ramses, 300 chariots, a 110-foot
high and 800 foot wide temple, 21 Sphinxes and a crew of 1,500 construction
workers who labored to build it. 2,500 extras and 3,000 animals worked with the
cast. It went over budget and caused constant tension between DeMille and
Paramount during shooting. The film starred Estelle Taylor, a leading lady of
the Silent Film era, Theodore Roberts as Moses, and Charles de Rochefort as
Ramses. It premiered at Grauman’s Egyptian Theatre, which was constructed prior
to his Chinese Theatre. The result of Roy’s effects was triumphant: audiences loved
the film, and it was highly successful, making Paramount a fortune and
dissolving any tensions with DeMille. Paramount was impressed with Roy, and he
quickly rose to prominence, becoming the head of the Special Effects Department
for the studio. Oscars were not yet given in 1923, so he did not win anything
for his work at the time.
After the success of
“The Ten Commandments”, Roy did effects for “Feet of Clay” in 1924, and that
year also worked on “Peter Pan”, making the characters fly using piano wires
tied to their costumes. He gained a reputation as a miracle worker; the man who
could make any movie effect happen. According to Lasky, Roy was “…something of
a sacred oracle… we couldn’t have treated him with more awe and homage if he
had been Edison himself.”[vi] Certainly being treated this way by the
founders of Hollywood, some of the most important people in the industry was
thrilling for Roy. He had finally arrived, and his creativity was given free
reign and plenty of funding.
By 1927, motion
pictures changed from silent to “talkies” with the success of the first talking
picture, “The Jazz Singer”, released by Warner Brothers and starring Al Jolson.
Competing studios knew that they would need to incorporate sound effects and dialogue
into their pictures to stay competitive. Roy Pomeroy was one of the few in
Hollywood who was familiar with and good at sound technology, and the only
person at Paramount who possessed these skills. In 1927, Paramount released
“Wings”. While the film did not have speaking parts, it did have sound effects,
and Roy was in charge of creating machine gun fire and airplane engine noises. The
film is about two World War I fighter pilots who are in love with the same
woman, and stars Clara Bow. The effects involving airplanes were considered
especially impressive and exhilarating for audiences obsessed with Charles
Lindbergh, and the film was a hit, making money for Paramount. That same year
Roy patented a system he invented that made it possible for films to no longer
be shot on location if they required a foreign backdrop. The background film
could be shot separately, and then run through the camera later. Actors and
actresses would perform against a blank backdrop, and the background film
added. The concept was similar to a blue-screen, and would save the studio a
fortune. Roy assigned half of the patent to Paramount.
After the success of
“Wings”, Paramount Studios made Roy their Director of Sound Effects in 1928. He
was also head of a committee formed by several different Hollywood studios,
including MGM, to study sound effects for motion pictures. It was Roy who made
the decision that sound should be a part of the actual film, and not recorded
on a disc, as it was for “The Jazz Singer”. It is the industry standard today. Paramount
looked to him as the man who would help them enter the new era of talking
pictures. Another duty given to Roy was to test the voices of all of
Paramount’s stars to see if they could be cast in talking films. This further
inflated his ego, as he had been given the power to decide if a star should
remain in their contract to Paramount. Even the fate of Paramount’s most famous
star, Mary Pickford, was in his hands. He decided to keep her on.
In 1928 Roy was
promoted to Director, and began work on a film called “Interference”. Jesse L.
Lasky later joked in his autobiography that “No Interference” would have been a
better title, as Roy would not allow any studio executives on the set, which
was guarded by a policeman. This appeared to be over the top, but a closed set
was necessary for Roy to be able to control sound recording. People coming and
going on a movie set could disrupt the process. However, Roy would not even
allow executives on the set, and his arrogant personality was starting to make
him enemies. Roy truly believed that the work he was doing was revolutionary
and would change the world. In the August 15, 1928 issue of Sound Waves magazine, Roy expounded on
his ideas regarding sound and film:
In a few years I expect to
see a central projection plant in theatre areas… and when science has
accomplished all these things it will further be on the road to accomplishing
that for which religious sects and human welfare agencies have striven for
hundreds of years - the universal brotherhood of mankind, for within the
limitless possibilities of this scientific art lies an unbounded field for the
mutual exchange of art ideals. Ideals such as only the mechanics of the screen
can successfully propound. I think two or three common languages (certainly not
Esperanto) will become universal because of this…[vii]
If Roy was arrogant and
controlling, it may have stemmed from his beliefs that the work he was doing
was too important for anyone to interfere with, since it could very well bring
about world peace. He also demanded an exorbitant rate of pay, telling
Paramount that he should make what would be $46,000 a week in 2012 dollars,
after he had already received a significant raise after “Wings”, making over $1
million a year. These demands combined with his personality caused studio
executives to become disenchanted with him. By 1929, there were other
technicians in Hollywood that knew the sound game, and Roy was becoming less of
an Oracle.
William C. deMille,
Cecil’s brother, was appointed by Jesse Lasky to assist Roy on “Interference”. Roy
was thrilled to have William, a successful director, reporting to him. However,
the plan was to usurp Roy: once William learned Roy’s techniques, the studio
would have no need for him. Roy may have impressed Jesse Lasky, Cecil B. DeMille,
Adolph Zukor and the other Paramount executives for a time, but he wasn’t ever
accepted into their inner circle. William C. deMille was part of Hollywood
royalty. The founders and builders of Hollywood, including Samuel Goldwyn, who for
a time was Lasky’s brother-in-law and managed his first production company, had
deep roots and similar backgrounds. Cecil, William and Jesse had known each
other since they were kids and Samuel Goldwyn (then Goldfish) was a glove
salesman. They had built Paramount and Hollywood together. Roy had only been in
town for a few years, and by 1929, his bosses were tired of him. “Interference”
was a flop, and not popular with audiences, although technically it was
considered a very well-made film.
1929 was the year of
the first Academy Awards, held at the Hotel Roosevelt in Hollywood. Roy was
slated to receive one for his work on “Wings”. He had been one of the 36 people
who formed the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, which still exists
today. “Oscars”, then called Awards of Merit, were given out to deserving
pictures. Roy was awarded an Oscar for “Engineering Effects” for “Wings”,which
also won Best Picture, the only silent film to ever win in that category other
than the past year’s winner “The Artist”. Another award for special effects
would not be given out for the next ten years. However, Roy was not at the
Hotel Roosevelt to receive his statuette, he was en route to England with his
wife, Sylvia Jewell, whom he had married in 1922. He may have been receiving an
award, but Roy had left Paramount and was looking for directing opportunities
in England. His troubles with the studio had culminated in their refusing to
give him the salary he wanted, and his former position being filled by William
deMille. He had been cast out. Roy went from making $32,000 a week to being
unemployed.
Unable to make
anything happen in England, Roy and Sylvia returned to Hollywood, where Roy
attempted to find work as a director with another studio. By 1931, Roy was
receiving offers from different studios to finish directing some of their
films. He had started working for RKO in 1930, directing pictures and working
on effects for that studio, but it appeared to be short-lived. Roy could not
continue to make money as a director, and by 1940, he had been unemployed for
quite some time, according to the census. He was described as an
“inventor-technician” for the motion picture industry, but he did not have any
work. Had Roy become blacklisted as a result of his demanding and overdramatic
behavior at Paramount? Had a similar scenario happened at RKO?
Whatever the case,
it does not appear that any major studio wanted to work with him. Dejected, Roy
gave up his dream of being an important director and started his own company,
Pomeroy Laboratories, located at 7554 Melrose Avenue. He and Sylvia lived in a
bungalow at 1626 Crescent Heights Boulevard in Los Angeles, which was a short
drive away from the Laboratory.
On September 3rd,
1947, Roy was found dead in his laboratory at age 55. He had taken an overdose
of Seconal, a prescribed sleeping pill. The cause of death was undetermined,
but it appeared that the once-famous director and special effects technician
had committed suicide.
Sylvia was unable to
tell the coroner any information about Roy’s parents, and their names are
listed as “unknown” on Roy’s death certificate. Was she simply too distraught
to remember, or was that part of Roy’s life a mystery to her? How much did
Sylvia know about Roy’s past, and why didn’t she know his mother’s name - a
person Roy had lived with and supported almost up to the year he had married
his wife? It is possible that there was quite a bit about Roy’s past that she,
nor any of his Hollywood acquaintances were aware of.
There is also the question
of what has happened to Roy’s Oscar. In 2008, the APHGA was contacted by the
Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences regarding Roy’s Oscar statuette,
which they wanted for an exhibit, and could not locate. They were hoping that
perhaps we could find out where it was, or if someone in Roy’s family had it.
Roy and Sylvia had no children, and as far as we can tell, there are no living
descendants. After over 5 years of work, APGHA researcher Patricia Cusick
Whipple did uncover the details of Roy’s fascinating life. The location of Roy
Pomeroy’s Oscar, however, the first ever given for
special effects, remains a mystery.
Perhaps there are answers to some of above
questions in part two of this story, coming next month: did Roy really commit
suicide? Who was the mysterious Russian prince whom Roy met right before he
left for Hollywood? Learn about Roy’s eccentric mother and father, and his
adventuresome life leading up to his Hollywood years!
Links:
The Hippodrome:
The Jazz Singer:
Jesse L. Lasky:
More on Adolph
Zukor:
Cecil B. DeMilles’
1923 “The Ten Commandments” set: ruins still visible in California desert:
[i]The Correspondence of James McNeill Whistler,
University of Glasgow G12 8QQ, UK
[iii]Dramatic
Mirror and Theatre World.
New York City, New York County, New York, 14 May 1921
[iv]Pawlak, Debra Ann. Bringing up Oscar: The Story of the Men and
Women Who Founded the Academy. New York: Pegasus, 2011. Print.
[v]Slide, Anthony. Silent Topics: Essays on Undocumented Areas of Silent Film. Lanham,
MD: Scarecrow, 2005. 79.
[vi]"Roy J. Pomeroy, Lasky's
Famed Wizard, Tells Sound Possibilities." Sound Waves 15 Aug. 1928: 4.
