Selznik, Lewis

Leyser Iosifovich Zheleznik was born on May 5, 1869 ^[1] in the town of Grinkishki of the Coven province , into a poor Jewish family ^{[2] [3] [4] [5]} . His parents - Joseph Zheleznik (1851-1908), the son of Shloime Zalmen from Onikst , and Lieba (Ida) Ringer ^[6] - moved to Kiev when he was a child ^[7] .

He grew up in Kiev , where he worked as a simple worker ^[8] . At the age of 18 he emigrated to the United States , changed his last name to Selznik and settled in Pittsburgh , where he created a successful jewelry business. In 1910, in New York, he opened the largest, according to him, jewelry store, but suffered bankruptcy.

Possessing enterprise and instinct, Selznik turned his attention to the nascent film industry. In 1914, he founded his own film company, World Film Company , in New Jersey. Having soon merged with Peerless Pictures Studios and The Shubert Brothers, Selznik created the film company Shubert Pictures Co., which was a success. In 1915, Sydney Alcott of Kalem Studios and director Maurice Turner of the French film studio Pathé joined the company. However, as a result of interpersonal conflicts with partners, Selznik was removed from the company by the Board of Directors.

Wanting to continue his business in the cinema, he moved in 1920 to the West Coast of the United States , to Hollywood, where he teamed up with Adolf Zucor and Jesse Laski . However, for several years his company Lewis J. Selznick Productions, Inc. experienced serious financial difficulties and went bankrupt in 1925. Selznik retired and died in Los Angeles on January 25, 1933. He was buried at Forest Lawn Cemetery in Glendale , California. ^[9]

For his contribution to the development of the film industry, Lewis Selznik has his own star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame (6412 Hollywood Boulevard). Selznik was directly involved in the film debut of Alla Nazimova , nee Leventon.

Around 1896, Lewis Selznik married Florence Sachs, they had four children: the sons Miron and David became film producers, the third son Howard (1897-1980) worked as an assistant at the movie studio of his brother Miron ^[10] ; the fourth child was daughter Ruth, who died in infancy.