Los Angeles County
Biographies
THE LIFE STORY OF WALTER T. McGINLEY
Written by John Steven McGroarty
It would be
difficult to convince the average small boy that the late Walter T. McGinley is
not
But Walter
T. McGinley managed a circus, above and beyond which there is no greater
glory. He knew Jumbo personally and
called the dog-faced man by this first name.
He owned horses that actually won races and was one of the first men to
operate a chain of movie theatres. The
fact that in later life he became the head of a powerful oil corporation
bearing his name, is in the eyes of the young
And there will be many grown-ups who will agree with the small boy, for everybody loves a circus, a show and a horse race, and Walter T. McGinley, during the last half century, was internationally renowned in the entertainment and sporting world. The famous Lucky Baldwin drew to his side a character almost as picturesque as himself when he brought Mr. McGinley, as friend and guest to the celebrated ranch at Sierra Madre. Later, as manager of the Baldwin Stocker estate, Mr. McGinley’s varied talents proved of inestimable value. Always behind his unique gift of showmanship there lay a keen business instinct that made his every enterprise miraculously profitable.
Just how
Walter McGinley acquired his adoration for the nomadic life under the “big
tops” is obscure. Certainly nothing in
his immediate antecedents presaged the path he was to follow. He was born in
Nothing of showman about his father John W. McGinley. He was a railroader; a master mechanic for the Lehigh Valley Railroad. He loved the line and the beautiful valley it traversed. He probably never dreamed that young Walter would not follow in his footsteps. How could he guess, when he took the lad to see his first circus that the lure of the sawdust ring was already in his veins.
He sent Walter to the parochial and public schools in Mauch Chunk and was highly gratified to discover that the boy evinced a marked aptitude for business and a leaning toward law.
It was the Barnum and Bailey Circus that captured young Walter. But he made a name for himself just the same, for before many years had elapsed, he was recognized as one of the foremost legal adjusters in the business and his services were in constant demand. During his circus career he was identified with almost everyone one of the major organizations; Barnum and Bailey; Forepaugh; Ringling Bros.; Wallace-Hagenbach; Walter Mains; Sells-Floto and others.
He visited
nearly every city and town in the
Then came the new form of entertainment, the Motion Picture. Both press and public were inclined to scoff. No real theatre would run them and the pioneer exhibitor was content to rent a vacant store or small hall and considered himself lucky if he could get ten cents a ticket.
But Walter
T. McGinley had at least some dim inkling of the future of the cinema. Also, he had faith in his own lucky star and
a confidence that is only born of success.
He was among the earliest to recognize the possibilities in pictures and
established one of the first chains of movie theatres in
The show
business and the sporting world are closely allied. Both contain their elements of drama and the
man who is thrilled by the flying trapeze is sure to enjoy a good horse
race. Walter McGinley was no
exception. He loved fast horses and
pedigreed dogs, and, in addition to his various business enterprises, found
time to build up a highly creditable racing stable. For many years the McGinley colors won
distinction on the American, English and European turf. His fondness for dogs finally centered in
Llewellyn English setters and at one time he possessed one of the finest
kennels in
Mr.
McGinley’s high place in the sporting and show worlds brought him into intimate
contact with m any famous characters of the period. Two of his closest friends where the late
Tammany Bosses Richard Crocker and Big Tim Sullivan, and the trio often
foregathered on Crocker’s celebrated estate in
Another
fast friend was
There are
some men who seem to have been predestined to make money. Walter T. McGinley was one of this ilk. When the discovery of new fields gave added
impetus to
His uncanny ability to grasp the working details of unfamiliar enterprises enabled him to speedily master the intricacies of oil. He personally guided the activities of his petroleum venture and was the successful developer of thirty-six wells which yielded a prodigious income.
Walter T. McGinley was a true sportsman. He placed his hunches and baked his judgment in cash. He accepted his gains modestly and took his losses “on the chin.” Behind a gruff exterior beat a heart attuned to the sufferings of others. That was his life secret and few recipients of his bounty knew to thank and he never told. It is estimated that his charities exceeded several millions of dollars and yet few of his munificent bequests were attended with publicity. For a man who spent nearly all his life in the show business, Mr. McGinley was unusually shy of the limelight.
Walter T. McGinley passed away September 18, 1932, just two months prior to his sixty-third birthday and the e of carrying on the mammoth oil company, a legion of minor interest and a surprisingly long list of benevolences, has been assumed by Charles E. McGinley, his “right hand man” for many years.
Transcribed
By: Michele Y. Larsen on October 3, 2012.
Source: California
of the South Vol. V,
by John Steven McGroarty, Pages 285-288,
Clarke Publ., Chicago, Los Angeles,
Indianapolis. 1933.
© 2012 Michele
Y. Larsen.
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BIOGRAPHIES