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An open ceiling barrom set at Newhal,I, California in 1916. Left to right: George Pankey, Sid Jordan, Vic Frith, Boxx Glenn,
Joe Ryan, Banty Caldwell, Mix, unknown, Chet Ryan, Pres Frith .
the turn of the century, Selig had ridden out the first with his imade on the screen, but he was approached by
series of bitter patents fights, and iQ 1907, under the his old friend, Colonel Zack Mulhall, with an offer to
aegis of George Klein, had joined with the other major appear in Mulhall's Wild West Show. Tom accepted the
producers of the day to form the Motion Picture Patents offer, and in September and October of 1910 he played
Company, also known as General Film, but more com- the Appalachian Exposition with the show at Knoxville,
monly called "the film trust." Tennessee. ·
With this newly found security, Selig greatly ex- Back in Chicago, Colonel Selig saw THE RANGE
panded his operation. He was the first producer to estab- RIDERS, and was greatly impressed with Tom Mix'.
lish permanent studio in Florida, and the Diamond S Selig and his· studio head, Tom Nash, looked Miu 1p on
Ranch at Prescott, Arizona for the production of West- their winter trip to Florida, and asked Tom to rejoin the
erns, (the ranch name derived from the Selig trademark Selig organization. Mix agreed, and over the winter of
which consisted of an "S"/enclosed in a diamond). In 1910-1911 he appeared, largely in supporting roles, in a
addition to these permanent facilities, Selig also sent out series of jungle pictures with Kathlyn Williams, of which
travelling units to shoot pictures on location. . LOST IN THE JUNGLE and BACK TO THE
The company that Mix and his wife met at Fleming- PRIMITIVE are typical.
ton was one of these travelling units, and the month The spring of 1911 found Mi.x back in Oklahoma,
spent there resulted in a picture called THE RANGER where he briefly took the job of night marshal for the
RIDERS. Mix, it is said, was not particularly impressed town of Dewey. Summer brought out Selig's traveling
Tom Mix and company at the Selig Zoo in Los Angeles. (1916)