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Description
George Allan Hancock was born on 26 July 1875, the heir to the Hancock family's extensive Los Angeles land holdings, including Rancho La Brea. Hancock expanded the family fortunes through oil exploration on the Rancho beginning in 1901, and continued to increase those fortunes for the next two decades. In 1920, he founded the California Bank. By the middle of the 1920's he also had significant holdings in railroads and communications. In addition to his business skills, Hancock was an accomplished cellist and an avid sailor. He formed the Hancock Ensemble, later associated with the Foundation, and captained many of the Foundation's early scientific expeditions, including those to the Galapagos Islands. In 1934, as a result of an early Foundation expedition, he became involved in a tabloid sensation concerning Germans living in a "Garden of Eden" nudist colony on Galapagos. There were several mysterious murders in the colony, and Hancock was said to have "rescued" the companion of one of the victims. Hancock also served on the University of Southern California's Board of Regents, and in 1937 was granted an honorary doctoral degree in Business Administration by the University. Very soon thereafter Hancock initiated plans to establish a Foundation for Oceanography at USC. The Allan Hancock Foundation continued the work begun by USC's Venice Marine Station and Professor Albert Ulrey. In turn, it was ultimately superseded in the 1990's by the Catalina Station.
Type
moving image
Format
Original Silent Color 16mm film
Extent
1 Reel of 1
Identifier
calasus_000054
Subject
Deserts
Time Period
1942
Place
Palm Springs (Calif.) California, Southern
Provenance
University of Southern California, USC Libraries, Special Collections California Revealed is supported by the U.S. Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act, administered in California by the State Librarian.
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