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'{{Other uses}} {{Infobox person |name = George Eatsman--~~~~ |image = GeorgeEastman2.jpg |image_size = 200px |caption = |birth_date = {{Birth date|mf=yes|1854|07|12}} |birth_place = [[Waterville, New York]], U.S. |death_date = {{Death date and age|mf=yes|1932|03|14|1854|07|12}} |death_place = [[Rochester, New York]], U.S. |resting_place = Ashes buried at [[Eastman Business Park]] <small>(Kodak Park)</small> |other_names = |parents = George Washington Eastman (1815–1862) and Maria Kilbourn (1821–1907) |known_for = Photography pioneer, Founder of Eastman Kodak |occupation = Businessman, inventor, philanthropist |nationality = American |net_worth = USD $95 million at the time of his death (approximately 1/611th of US [[Gross national product|GNP]])<ref name=Wealthy100>{{Cite book | last=Klepper | first=Michael | last2=Gunther | first2=Michael | publication-date=1996 | title=The Wealthy 100: From Benjamin Franklin to Bill Gates—A Ranking of the Richest Americans, Past and Present | publisher=Carol Publishing Group | publication-place=[[Secaucus, New Jersey]] | page=xiii | isbn=978-0-8065-1800-8 | oclc=33818143 | postscript={{inconsistent citations}}}}</ref> |footnotes = }} '''George Eastman ''' (July 12, 1854 &ndash; March 14, 1932) was an American innovator and entrepreneur who founded the [[Eastman Kodak]] Company and popularized the use of [[roll film]], helping to bring [[photography]] to the mainstream. Roll film was also the basis for the invention of [[film stock|motion picture film]] in 1888 by the world's first film-makers [[Eadweard Muybridge]] and [[Louis Le Prince]], and a few years later by their followers [[Léon Bouly]], [[Thomas Edison]], the [[Lumière Brothers]], and [[Georges Méliès]]. He was a major [[philanthropist]], establishing the [[Eastman School of Music]], and schools of dentistry and medicine at the [[University of Rochester]] and in London; contributing to [[Rochester Institute of Technology|RIT]] and the construction of [[Massachusetts Institute of Technology|MIT]]'s second campus on the Charles River; and donating to [[Tuskegee University|Tuskegee]] and [[Hampton University|Hampton]] universities. In addition, he provided funds for clinics in London and other European cities to serve low-income residents. In his final two years, Eastman was in intense pain caused by a disorder affecting his spine. On March 14, 1932, Eastman shot himself in the heart, leaving a note which read, "To my friends: my work is done. Why wait?"<ref name=PBSGeorge>Lindsay, David [http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/eastman/sfeature/finalshot.html "George Eastman: The Final Shot"]. ''[[American Experience]]''. [[PBS]]. Retrieved August 30, 2013.</ref> The [[George Eastman House]], now operated as the [[International Museum of Photography and Film]], has been designated a [[National Historic Landmark]]. ==Early life== [[File:George Eastman patent no 388,850.png|thumb|left|upright|U.S. patent no. 388,850, issued to George Eastman, September 4, 1888]] Eastman was born in [[Waterville, New York]]<ref>{{cite book|last=McNellis|first=David|title=Reflections on Big Spring: A History of Pittsford, NY, and the Genesee River Valley|date=201|publisher=AuthorHouse|page=147|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=CONJjFMvLZYC&pg=PA147&dq=George+Eastman+waterville+ny&hl=en&sa=X&ei=Ip0cU_vOH4nB2wXs2IAQ&ved=0CD0Q6AEwAw#v=onepage&q=George%20Eastman%20waterville%20ny&f=false}}</ref> to George Washington Eastman and Maria Eastman (née Kilbourn), the youngest child, at the 10-acre farm which his parents bought in 1849. He had two older sisters, Ellen Maria and Katie.<ref name="Brayer2006">{{Cite book | url=http://books.google.com/books/about/George_Eastman.html?id=HJdn-qdFlCUC | first=Elizabeth | last=Brayer | title=George Eastman: A Biography | year=1996 | publisher=Johns Hopkins University Press |isbn=0-8018-5263-3}} (University of Rochester Press, 2006 reprint: ISBN 1-580-46247-2. pp.12-19)</ref> He was largely self-educated, although he attended a private school in Rochester after the age of eight.<ref name="Brayer2006"/> His father had started a business school, the Eastman Commercial College in the early 1840s in [[Rochester, New York]], described as one of the first "boomtowns" in the United States, with a rapid growth in industry.<ref name="Brayer2006"/> As his father's health started deteriorating, the family gave up the farm and moved to Rochester in 1860.<ref name="Brayer2006"/> His father died of a brain disorder in May 1862. To survive and afford George's schooling, his mother took in boarders.<ref name="Brayer2006"/> Maria's second daughter, Katie, had contracted polio when young and died in late 1870 when George was 16 years old. The young George left school early and started working. As George Eastman began to experience success with his photography business, he vowed to repay his mother for the hardships she had endured in raising him.<ref name=PBSMaria>{{cite web |title=Maria Eastman article |publisher=PBS |url=http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/eastman/peopleevents/pande03.html |accessdate=2012-08-05}}</ref> In 1884, Eastman patented the first film in roll form to prove practicable; he had been tinkering at home to develop it. In 1888, he perfected the Kodak camera, the first camera designed specifically for roll film. In 1892, he established the Eastman Kodak Company, in Rochester, New York. It was one of the first firms to mass-produce standardized photography equipment. The company also manufactured the flexible transparent film, devised by Eastman in 1889, which proved vital to the subsequent development of the motion picture industry. He started his philanthropy early, sharing the income from his business to establish educational and health institutions. Notable among his contributions were a $625,000 gift in 1901 (equivalent to ${{formatprice|{{Inflation|US|625000|1901|r=2}}}} in present day terms{{Inflation-fn|US}}) to the Mechanics Institute, now [[Rochester Institute of Technology]]; and a major gift in the early 1900s to the [[Massachusetts Institute of Technology]], which enabled the construction of buildings on its second campus by the [[Charles River]].<ref name="Ford"/> MIT opened this campus in 1916.<ref name="Campus">{{cite web |url=http://web.mit.edu/facts/campus.html |title=MIT Facts: The Campus |publisher=MIT |accessdate=2010-09-08 |year=2010}}</ref> ==Personal life== George Eastman never married, although he carried on a long [[platonic relationship]] with Josephine Dickman, a trained singer and the wife of business associate George Dickman, and he became especially close to her after the death of his mother, Maria Eastman, in 1907. He was also an avid traveler and had a passion for playing the piano. <ref>{{cite web |title=George Eastman article |url=http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/eastman/peopleevents/pande02.html |publisher=PBS |accessdate=2012-08-05}}</ref> His mother, Maria, was his main family for the majority of his life, and her death was particularly crushing to George. Almost pathologically concerned with decorum, he found himself unable for the first time to control his emotions in the presence of friends. "When my mother died I cried all day", he explained later. "I could not have stopped to save my life". Due to his mother's hesitancy and refusal to take his gifts, George Eastman could never do enough for his mother during her lifetime. Thus, after she was gone, George opened the Eastman Theater in Rochester on September 4, 1922, among its features was a chamber-music hall dedicated to her memory: the Kilbourn Theater. And long after that, a rose cutting from her childhood home still flowered on the grounds of the Eastman House.<ref name=PBSMaria/> ==Later years== [[File:George Eastman 7.jpg|thumb|200px|George Eastman, 1917]] Eastman was associated with the Kodak company in an administrative and an executive capacity until his death; he contributed much to the development of its notable research facilities. In 1911, he founded the Eastman Trust and Savings Bank. While discouraging the formation of unions at his manufacturing plant, he established paternal systems of support for his employees. He was one of the outstanding philanthropists of his time, donating more than $100 million to various projects in Rochester; Cambridge, Massachusetts; at two [[historically black college]]s in the South; and in several European cities.<ref name="Ford">{{cite book |first=Carin T. |last=Ford |year=2004 |title=George Eastman: The Kodak Camera Man | publisher=Enslow Publishers, INC}}</ref> In 1918, he endowed the establishment of the [[Eastman School of Music]] at the [[University of Rochester]], and in 1921 a school of medicine and dentistry there. In 1925, Eastman gave up his daily management of Kodak to become treasurer. He concentrated on philanthropic activities, to which he had already donated substantial sums. For example, he donated funds to establish the [[Eastman Dental Dispensary]] in 1916. He was one of the major philanthropists of his time, ranking only slightly behind [[Andrew Carnegie]], [[John D. Rockefeller]], and a few others, but did not seek publicity for his activities. He concentrated on institution-building and causes that could help people's health. From 1926 until his death, Eastman donated $22,050 per year to the [[American Eugenics Society]].<ref>{{cite book |last= Spiro|first=Jonathan |date=December 15, 2009|title=Defending the Master Race: Conservation, Eugenics, and the Legacy of Madison Grant |url=http://books.google.com/books?id=H7lRrCIcsncC&pg=PA353&lpg=PA353&dq=george+Eastman+American+Eugenics+Society&source=bl&ots=YWau05uCGG&sig=czBd9OxIxEsWBDOFXFliZkCWclE&hl=en&sa=X&ei=lWurU8C3OeaO8gHU5oEY&ved=0CEUQ6AEwBQ#v=onepage&q=george%20Eastman%20American%20Eugenics%20Society&f=false |location= |publisher=[[UPNE]] |page=353 |isbn=9781584658108 |accessdate=June 25, 2014 }}</ref> George Eastman donated £200,000 in 1926 to fund a dental clinic in London, UK after being approached by the Chairman of the Royal Free Hospital, Lord Riddell. This was in addition to donations of £50,000 each from Lord Riddell and the Royal Free honorary treasurer. On 20 November 1931, the Eastman Dental Clinic opened in front of Neville Chamberlain and the American Ambassador. The clinic was incorporated into the Royal Free Hospital and was committed to providing dental care for disadvantaged children from central London.<ref>{{citation |url=http://books.google.com/books?id=YKlUuwX8xCEC&pg=PA83 |title=Walking London's medical history |author=Nick Black}}</ref> ==Infirmity and suicide== [[File:GeorgeEastmanMonumentEastSide.JPG|thumb|Memorial at [[:en:Eastman Kodak|Kodak Park]] in Rochester. Eastman's ashes lie beneath the [[Creole marble|Georgia marble]] monument.]] In his final two years, Eastman was in intense pain caused by a disorder affecting his [[Spine (anatomy)|spine]]. He had trouble standing, and his walk became a slow shuffle. Today, it might be diagnosed as a form of [[degenerative disease]] such as [[Disc herniation|disc herniations]] from trauma or age causing either painful [[nerve root]] compressions, or perhaps a type of [[lumbar spinal stenosis]], a narrowing of the [[spinal canal]] caused by [[calcification]] in the vertebrae. Since his mother suffered the final two years of her life in a wheelchair,<ref name=PBSMaria/> she also may have had a spine condition but that is unknown—only her [[uterine cancer]] and successful surgery is documented in her health history.<ref>{{Cite book |title=George Eastman, A Biography | first=Elizabeth | last=Brayer | publisher=University Rochester Press | year=2006 | url=http://books.google.com/books?id=HJdn-qdFlCUC&pg=PA429 | page=429 | isbn=978-1-580-46247-1 | accessdate=2013-01-14}}</ref> If she did have a musculoskeletal disorder, perhaps George Eastman's spine condition may have been due to a [[congenital disease]], such as [[ankylosing spondylitis]], degenerative disc disease, or a variant of [[Ehlers–Danlos syndrome|Ehlers–Danlos]] collagen disorder—conditions known to be inheritable but usually presenting earlier in age. Eastman grew increasingly depressed due to his pain, reduced ability to function, and also since he witnessed his mother's suffering from pain. On March 14, 1932, Eastman committed suicide with a single gunshot through the heart, leaving a note which read, "My work is done – Why wait? GE."<ref name=PBSGeorge/> His funeral was held at St. Paul's Episcopal Church in Rochester; he was buried on the grounds of the company he founded at [[Kodak Park]] in Rochester, New York. ==Legacy== [[File:Eastmanistitutet 2008f.jpg|200px|right]] During his lifetime Eastman donated $100 million to various organizations but most of the money went to the [[University of Rochester]] and to the [[Massachusetts Institute of Technology]] (under the alias "Mr. Smith").<ref>The Philanthropy Roundtable Hall of Fame, [http://www.philanthropyroundtable.org/almanac/hall_of_fame/george_eastman George Eastman] </ref><ref>{{cite book |first=Carin T. |last=Ford |year=2004 |title=George Eastman: The Kodak Camera Man |publisher=Enslow Publishers, Inc}}</ref> The [[Rochester Institute of Technology]] has a building dedicated to Eastman, in recognition of his support and substantial donations. In recognition of his donation to MIT, the university installed a [[:File:George Eastman plaque.jpg|plaque of Eastman]]. (Students rub their noses on the plaque for good luck.) Eastman also made substantial gifts to the [[Tuskegee Institute]] and the [[Hampton Institute]]. Upon his death, his entire estate went to the University of Rochester, where his name can be found on the Eastman Quadrangle of the River Campus. The auditorium at Mississippi State Universities Dave C. Swalm School of Chemical Engineering is named for Eastman in recognition of his inspiration to Swalm. His former home at 900 East Avenue in Rochester, New York was opened as the [[George Eastman House International Museum of Photography and Film]] in 1949. It has been designated a [[National Historic Landmark]]. In 1915, Eastman founded a bureau of municipal research in Rochester "to get things done for the community" and to serve as an "independent, non-partisan agency for keeping citizens informed." Called the [[Center for Governmental Research]], the agency continues to carry out that mission.<ref>{{cite web |title=About CGR |publisher=Center for Governmental Research Inc. (CGR) |url=http://www.cgr.org/about.aspx |accessdate=2011-09-01}}</ref> Eastman had a very astute business sense. He focused his company on making film when competition heated up in the camera industry. By providing quality and affordable film to every camera manufacturer, Kodak managed to turn its competitors into ''de facto'' business partners. In 1926, George Eastman was approached by [[Lord Riddell]], the Chairman of [[Royal Free Hospital]], to fund a dental clinic in London. He agreed to give £200,000, which was matched by £50,000 each from [[Lord Riddell]] and [[Sir Albert Levy]], the Royal Free's honorary treasurer.<ref>[http://www.urmc.rochester.edu/libraries/bibby/history/london.cfm Eastman Institute for Oral Health]</ref> The [[Eastman Dental Clinic]] was opened on November 20, 1931, by the American Ambassador in the presence of [[Neville Chamberlain]]. The building, which resembled the Rochester Dispensary, was totally integrated into the [[Royal Free Hospital]] and included three wards for oral, [[otolaryngology]] and cleft lip and palate surgery. It was dedicated to providing dental care for children from the poor districts of central London.<ref>[http://www.eastman.ucl.ac.uk/about/inside_instit/history_edi/index.html History of the Eastman Dental Institute]</ref> In a similar manner, Eastman went on to establish dental clinics in [[Rome]], [[Paris]], [[Brussels]], and [[Stockholm]].<ref>[http://urmc.rochester.edu/dentistry/education/library/history/european-clinics.cfm Eastman's European Dental Clinics]</ref> ==Patents== *{{US patent|226503}} "Method and Apparatus for Coating Plates", filed September 1879, issued April 1880. *{{US patent|306470}} "Photographic Film", filed May 10, 1884, issued October 14, 1884. *{{US patent|306594}} "Photographic Film", filed March 7, 1884, issued October 14, 1884. *{{US patent|317049}} (with William H. Walker) "Roll Holder for Photographic Films", filed August 1884, issued May 1885. *{{US patent|388850}} "Camera", filed March, 1888, issued September, 1888. *Eastman licensed, then purchased {{US patent|248179}} "Photographic Apparatus" ([[roll film]] holder), filed June 21, 1881, issued October 11, 1881 to David H. Houston. ==Honors and commemorations== On July 12, 1954 the U.S. Post Office issued a 3-cent [[commemorative stamp]] marking the 100th anniversary of George Eastman's birth, which was first issued in Rochester, New York.<ref>{{cite web |title=George Eastman Issue |publisher=Smithsonian National Postal Museum |accessdate=July 3, 2014 |url=http://arago.si.edu/index.asp?con=1&cmd=1&tid=2029246}}</ref> <center> {| |[[File:George Eastman stamp 3c 1954 issue.JPG|thumb|<center>George Eastman<br>commemorative issue, 1954</center>]] |&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; |[[File:First Day Cover Full Envelope.JPG|thumb|right|300px|A First Day Cover Honoring George Eastman 1954.]] |} </center> In the fall of 2009, a statue of Eastman was erected on the Eastman Quad of the University of Rochester. ==Other== It is an often-repeated urban myth that photographer and musician Linda Eastman, (later the wife of [[Beatle]] Sir [[Paul McCartney]]), was related to the George Eastman family, but this is not true.<ref name="YoungLinda">{{cite web |url=http://geocities.com/helenwheels_99/pup.html |title=When I Was A Pup |accessdate=9 June 2011 |archiveurl = http://web.archive.org/web/20091022062105/http://geocities.com/helenwheels_99/pup.html |archivedate =22 October 2009}}</ref> ==See also== {{Portal|Biography}} *[[Eastmaninstitutet]] *[[George Eastman House]] *[[UCL Eastman Dental Institute]] ==References== {{reflist|2}} ==Further reading== *{{Cite book | first=Carl W. | last=Ackerman | title=George Eastman: Founder of Kodak and the Photography Business | year=1930 | publisher=Beard Books | isbn=1-893-12299-9}} ==External links== {{Commons category}} <!-- for current and future use if material is uploaded --> {{EB1922 Poster|Eastman, George|George Eastman}} *[http://www.library.rochester.edu/index.cfm?page=864 George Eastman archive] at the University of Rochester *{{Find a Grave|2184}} *[http://legacy.eastmanhouse.org/ George Eastman: His Life, Legacy, and Estate], George Eastman House *[http://www.eastmanhouse.org/ The George Eastman House] *[http://www.ucl.ac.uk/eastman UCL Eastman Dental Institute], London, UK *[http://www.urmc.rochester.edu/dentistry Eastman Institute for Oral Health], University of Rochester, NY *[http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/eastman/sfeature/finalshot.html George Eastman: The Final Shot, by David Lindsay] <br/><!--this break is to put visual space between the last information and the following template if needed--> {{s-start}} {{s-bus}} {{s-new|office}} {{s-ttl|title=Treasurer of [[Eastman Kodak]]|years=1884–1921}} {{s-aft|after=}} |- {{s-vac|last=[[Henry A. Strong]]}} {{s-ttl|title=President of [[Eastman Kodak]]|years=1921 – April 7, 1925}} {{s-aft|after=William G. Stuber}} {{s-ach}} {{s-bef|before=[[Raymond Poincaré]]}} {{s-ttl|title=[[List of People on the Cover of Time Magazine: 1920s|Cover of Time Magazine]] |years=March 31, 1924}} {{s-aft|after=[[George V of the United Kingdom|George V]]}} {{end}} {{Authority control|VIAF=32805674}} {{Persondata <!-- Metadata: see [[Wikipedia:Persondata]]. --> | NAME = Eastman, George | ALTERNATIVE NAMES = | SHORT DESCRIPTION = American businessman | DATE OF BIRTH = July 12, 1854 | PLACE OF BIRTH = Waterville, New York, U.S. | DATE OF DEATH = March 14, 1932 | PLACE OF DEATH = Rochester, New York, U.S. }} {{DEFAULTSORT:Eastman, George}} [[Category:1854 births]] [[Category:1932 deaths]] [[Category:American company founders]] [[Category:American inventors]] [[Category:American philanthropists]] [[Category:Businesspeople who committed suicide]] [[Category:Inventors who committed suicide]] [[Category:Eastman Kodak people]] [[Category:People from Rochester, New York]] [[Category:Pioneers of photography]] [[Category:Suicides by firearm in New York]] [[Category:American businesspeople]] [[Category:People from Waterville, New York]]'