Biography
Joseph M. Schenck was a Russian-born American film producer and studio executive. Born Joseph Michael Schenck on 25 December 1876 in Rybinsk, Russian Empire, he emigrated to New York City in 1892. He entered the motion picture industry after operating amusement parks with his brother Nicholas, initially in partnership with Marcus Loew.
In 1916 Schenck married actress Norma Talmadge, with whom he formed the Norma Talmadge Film Corporation the following year. He produced numerous Buster Keaton comedies, including Sherlock Jr. (1924) and The General (1926), as well as other Keaton features such as Seven Chances (1925) and Steamboat Bill, Jr. (1928). Schenck later became chairman of United Artists and, in 1933, co-founded Twentieth Century Pictures with Darryl F. Zanuck; the company merged with Fox Film Corporation in 1935, after which he served as chairman of 20th Century-Fox.
