James Garfield Ellis (February 12, 1880 Dayton, Ohio – April 1, 1966 Los Angeles) was an American violinist, silent film theater pioneer, composer, lyricist, and music publisher.
[citation needed] Sometime between January 7, 1920, and 1930, James G. Ellis married Anna G. Long (born 1876).
[3] Ellis started out as a silent film theater entrepreneur in Utah[4] Ellis had managed and controlled 3 movie theaters from 1909 to 1910, then sold them to individuals, including W.W. Hodkinson, who four years later was the founding president of Paramount Pictures.
[5][nb 1] Ellis, as the new manager of the Globe, installed a stage in late November 1909 for the inclusion of vaudeville acts for movie audiences.
[8] Ellis then moved his family from Ogden to Brigham, Utah, leaving the management of the Joie Theater to his father.
[6] In July 1909, Ellis, with at least one other partner, acquired Dreamland Theatre, located 2410 Washington Avenue,[nb 2] and renamed it the Joie Theater.
[9][10] Ellis, who had been profitable in the venture, sold his interest on December 28, 1909, to Harry Ambrose Sims (1864–1921), William Wadsworth Hodkinson (1881–1971), Albert Scowcroft (1871–1918), and Charles Alexander Ziemer (1864–1929).
[19][20][nb 5] Ellis, as a popular songwriter in Chicago from 1910 to 1920, had some minor hits that include "The Tale the Tear Drop Told" and "I Am Dreaming Of My Irish Rose".