Thomas Harper Ince

Thomas H. Ince
Thomas H. Ince in 1916
Born	Thomas Harper Ince (1880-11-16)November 16, 1880 Newport, Rhode Island, United States
Died	November 19, 1924(1924-11-19) (aged 44) USS Oneida or 1051 Benedict Canyon, Beverly Hills, California
Other names	Creator of the Hollywood Studio system Father of the Western
Occupation	Studio mogul, film producer, film director, screenwriter, actor
Years active	1897–1924
Spouse(s)	Elinor Kershaw (m. 1907–1924)
Relatives	John Ince (brother) Ralph Ince (brother)

Thomas Harper Ince (November 16, 1880 – November 19, 1924) was an American silent film producer, director, screenwriter, and actor. Ince was known as the "Father of the Western" and was responsible for making over 800 films. He revolutionized the motion picture industry by creating the first major Hollywood studio facility and invented movie production by introducing the "assembly line" system of filmmaking. He was the first mogul to build his own film studio dubbed "Inceville" in Palisades Highlands. Ince was also instrumental in developing the role of the producer in motion pictures. Two of his films, The Italian (1915), for which he wrote the screenplay, and Civilization (1916), which he directed, were selected for preservation by the National Film Registry. He later partnered with D.W. Griffith and Mack Sennett to form the Triangle Motion Picture Company whose studios are the present-day site of Sony Pictures. He then built a new studio about a mile from Triangle which is now the site of Culver Studios. Ince's untimely death at the height of his career after he became severely ill aboard the private yacht of media tycoon William Randolph Hearst has caused much speculation, although the official cause of his death was heart failure.