M. Pathe
M. Pathe (M・パテー商会, M. Patē Shōkai) was a Japanese film studio active in the early years of cinema in Japan.
Background
M. Pathe was founded in 1906 by Shōkichi Umeya, a businessman who had distributed films first in Malaysia and Singapore and then in Japan.[1] He took the name "M. Pathe" from the French Pathé Frères studio even though his company had no official connection with that.[1] Umeya built a studio in Ōkubo near Shinjuku, Tokyo,[2] and released films such as ones featuring the girls Kabuki of Nakamura Kasen.[citation needed]
An ambitious man, Umeya sent cameramen to Antarctica to record Nobu Shirase's expedition, and thus create one of Japan's first feature-length documentaries.[3] He put on a high-class show, with pretty usherettes and high ticket prices,[4] while also using his money to help fund Sun Yat-sen and the Chinese Revolution.[5]
Merger
It was under Umeya's instigation that Yoshizawa Shōten, Yokota Shōkai, and Fukuhōdō merged with M. Pathe to form Nikkatsu in 1912.[3] His plan was to sever himself from M. Pathe's difficult financial straits by creating a trust that emulated the Motion Picture Patents Company.[6]
References
- ^ a b Komatsu, Hiroshi (2005). "M. Pathe". In Richard Abel (ed.). Encyclopedia of Early Cinema. Routledge. p. 404. ISBN 0-415-23440-9.
- ^ Suzuki, Sadao. "Saijō Yaso to Shinjuku (2)". Shinjuku rekishi yomoyama-banashi (in Japanese). Shinjuku Hōjinkai. Retrieved 16 May 2011.
- ^ a b Nagasaki, Hajime. "Umeya Shōkichi". Asahi Nihon rekishi jinbutsu jiten. Asahi Shinbun Shuppan. Retrieved 16 May 2011.
- ^ Anderson, Joseph L.; Donald Richie (1982). The Japanese Film: Art and Industry (expanded ed.). Princeton University Press. p. 28.
- ^ Kosaka, Ayano (2009). Kakumei o purodyūsushita Nihonjin (in Japanese). Kōdansha. ISBN 978-4-06-215883-1.
- ^ Anderson, Joseph L.; Donald Richie (1982). The Japanese Film: Art and Industry (expanded ed.). Princeton University Press. p. 30.
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