The Wm. Wrigley Jr. Co. provided the museum with film footage of
Wrigley touring a Toronto gum factory in 1914. This is the only film footage of
Wrigley that the 120-year-old company has in its archive. The film shows Wrigley at his best, as
he tours the factory with his signature cigar.
The only known film footage of Wrigley on Catalina Island was provided
to the museum by the Renton Family Archive. Malcolm Renton, the son of Wrigley’s right-hand man D.M.
Renton, shot thousands of hours of film on the island. The scenes were captured
on nitrate film.
Commonly used
during that time, nitrate film is extremely flammable if not properly handled
or stored, and nearly all footage has been lost. The few surviving films are entitled “Cherry Valley,” which
includes Wrigley greeting Boy Scouts at Avalon’s pier, and “A Visit to the
Catalina Mines,” a film from the mid-1920s in which Wrigley and Renton tour various
mines in the island’s interior.
These films have never before been exhibited publicly.
The
exhibition
A Democratic Dream: William
Wrigley, Jr. and Catalina Island will open at the Catalina Island Museum on
August 31 and runs through November 26, 2012.
Opening reception tonight
The Catalina Island Museum
invites you to the opening reception for
A Democratic Dream will be held from 6:00 to
9:00 p.m tonight, Friday, Aug. 31, at the Museum. Tickets are free for
members of the Museum and $10.00 for the general public. The Museum, its digital theater and
store are located on the ground floor of Avalon’s historic Casino. The Museum is open seven days a week, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. For more information call (310) 510-2414 or at its website: CatalinaMuseum.org.
