Alexander Pantages

Alexander Pantages (Greek: Περικλῆς Ἀλέξανδρος Πανταζῆς, Periklis Alexandros Padazis; 1867 – February 17, 1936) was a Greek American vaudeville impresario and early motion picture producer. He created a large and powerful circuit of theatres across the Western United States and Canada.

At the height of his empire, Pantages owned or operated 84 theatres across the United States and Canada. In 1929, he was accused of raping a 17-year-old dancer named Eunice Alice Pringle. He was found guilty but acquitted on appeal. The negative publicity led to the selling of his operations and he permanently ceased being a force in exhibition or vaudeville. He is largely forgotten today in historical accounts of the early development of motion pictures. He died in February 1936.