D.W. Griffith at The Biograph Company

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From The Last Drop of Water, one of the first two-reelers, produced in San Fernando desert, with Jeanie Macpherson (seated, front row)

Griffith, never happy with cold weather, starts bombarding the Biograph front office with requests to take the company to California, which had a number of young companies already producing moving pictures.

Griffith's knowledge of the California area was the convincing factor with Marvin and Kennedy. The anxious actors of the Griffith stock company waited with bated breath to see who would be picked for the trip.

The lucky ones included Frank Powell, acting on behalf of Marvin and Kennedy as Griffith's production manager.

Powell was to serve as the go-between for Griffith and Marvin as Griffith's productions grew in terms of cost as well as splendor, with large sets and more action within a scene.

Among the actors to make the trip were Mary Pickford, Marion Leonard, Linda, Mack Sennett, Arthur Johnson, Kate Bruce who looked after Mary and her younger brother, Jack Pickford, and Bobby Harron. In addition, both cameramen went along.

Those who were left behind cried over their misfortune. Jeanie MacPherson was one of those who took it hard, and Owen Moore was another who was left behind. Moore had made the miscalculation of holding out for more money, and it cost him the trip.

Time spent away from Mary would do little else but intensify his love for her. Pickford herself had tried to hold out for more money, but at train time in Grand Central Station, Griffith had another actress, GERTRUDE ROBINSON, standing by to make the trip in case Mary Pickford would not relent in her salary demands. This time, Griffith won the decisive point.

1915, D.W. Griffith directing a scene with Dorothy and W.E. Lawerance while Teddy Sampson, Mae Marsh, and Donald Crisp watch. Standing in background Andy Reid, the electrician.

Stationing the company at the ALEXANDRIA Hotel in Los Angeles, they worked out of a multiset wooden outdoor studio at Grand Avenue and Washington St. next to a railroad yard.

Rehearsal rooms were set up along with dressing rooms and areas for both props and wardrobe.

Through the open spaces of Southern California, he produced many westerns and Mexican films. His first production was THE THREAD OF DESTINY which was filmed at the San Gabriel Mission.

By small fishing villages, sea stories took shape along the Santa Monica beaches and through to the Port Los Angeles.

On location, his story, THE UNCHANGING SEA, introduced the element of motion within the frame by moving a single figure diagonally across the composition.

The shots were held for a long time, giving a slowpaced look. His repeatedly contrasting vertical figures with broad horizontal sweeps of the beach lines and sea were beautiful visual effects.

The next to last production before the company headed home would be the adaptation of Helen Hunt Jackson's RAMONA, which was filmed at Peru, California, as well as Camulos in Ventura County.

The rights were secured for a sum of one hundred dollars, an unprecedented sum in the time when scenarios were selling for a price of twenty-five dollars.