Frederick Harrison Burlingham (January 18, 1877â€"June 9, 1924) was an
American journalist, explorer, cinematographer, and producer of
numerous travelogues in the silent era. His most notable works are his
films depicting Alpine landscapes and his mountain-climbing
expeditions in Europe between 1913 and 1918, his explorations of
Borneo in 1920, and his excursions to various sites in the United
States and Canada in the early 1920s. He was also an accomplished
still photographer and book author, publishing in 1914 How to Become
an Alpinist, which is illustrated with his photographs. Burlingham
initially produced films while working in London for the British and
Colonial Kinematograph Company, but he later developed his films
independently and released them under contract with licensed
distributors.Born in Baltimore, Maryland in 1877, Frederick was the
second of four children of William and Lillian (née Brooks)
Burlingham.[b] The federal census of 1880 documents that the
Burlinghams were still living that year in Baltimore, where
Frederick's father worked as a mechanic or, as identified in that
record, a "Pump maker". Frederick's first jobs were as a grocery boy
and a bookkeeper, and his musical talent as a pianist earned him a
scholarship to Peabody Institute, a prestigious conservatory in
Baltimore.By the late 1890s, Burlingham began to focus on a career in
journalism, which afforded him opportunities to write and, more
importantly, to travel. He relocated to New York City, where he worked
for the Evening Post, Commercial Advertiser, the American, and The
Evening World. Then, following brief stints as a reporter and editor
with other newspapers in Virginia and West Virginia, he sailed to
London in 1904.[c] There he obtained jobs with news outlets before
moving to Paris, where he continued his career in journalism and where
by 1909 he was described by some citizens in the French capital as "A
'Back-to-Nature' Tramp". Finally, after years of working for an array
of newspapers, Burlingham in 1912 turned away from traditional print
media and decided to study cinematography, to use the motion-picture
camera to record his travels and to share his experiences with
audiences in a far more visual, dynamic way.
American journalist, explorer, cinematographer, and producer of
numerous travelogues in the silent era. His most notable works are his
films depicting Alpine landscapes and his mountain-climbing
expeditions in Europe between 1913 and 1918, his explorations of
Borneo in 1920, and his excursions to various sites in the United
States and Canada in the early 1920s. He was also an accomplished
still photographer and book author, publishing in 1914 How to Become
an Alpinist, which is illustrated with his photographs. Burlingham
initially produced films while working in London for the British and
Colonial Kinematograph Company, but he later developed his films
independently and released them under contract with licensed
distributors.Born in Baltimore, Maryland in 1877, Frederick was the
second of four children of William and Lillian (née Brooks)
Burlingham.[b] The federal census of 1880 documents that the
Burlinghams were still living that year in Baltimore, where
Frederick's father worked as a mechanic or, as identified in that
record, a "Pump maker". Frederick's first jobs were as a grocery boy
and a bookkeeper, and his musical talent as a pianist earned him a
scholarship to Peabody Institute, a prestigious conservatory in
Baltimore.By the late 1890s, Burlingham began to focus on a career in
journalism, which afforded him opportunities to write and, more
importantly, to travel. He relocated to New York City, where he worked
for the Evening Post, Commercial Advertiser, the American, and The
Evening World. Then, following brief stints as a reporter and editor
with other newspapers in Virginia and West Virginia, he sailed to
London in 1904.[c] There he obtained jobs with news outlets before
moving to Paris, where he continued his career in journalism and where
by 1909 he was described by some citizens in the French capital as "A
'Back-to-Nature' Tramp". Finally, after years of working for an array
of newspapers, Burlingham in 1912 turned away from traditional print
media and decided to study cinematography, to use the motion-picture
camera to record his travels and to share his experiences with
audiences in a far more visual, dynamic way.
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