William Fox (1879-1952), was a creative businessman whose films influenced the lives of millions of people around the world.

William Fox was born in Tulchva, Hungary on January 1, 1879. His parents, Michael Fox, a machinist, and Anna Fried Fox, brought their son to the United States as an infant. He was educated in New York City schools. On his twenty-first birthday, Fox married Eva Leo; they had two daughters. After working for a few years in the garment industry, Fox started his motion picture career in 1904 by buying a nickelodeon in Brooklyn, New York, for $1,666.66. Within a few years he had organized a chain of movie theaters and a production company.

Challenged Edison

One of Fox's first critical decisions was to challenge the monopoly established by Thomas A. Edison and his associates, who sought to control the production, distribution, and exhibition of films on the basis of their possession...