John Brunton (scenic artist)

Scottish scenic artist

John Brunton
Portrait of John Brunton, published in 1909.
Born	John Brunton (1849-05-15)15 May 1849 Edinburgh, Scotland
Died	22 July 1909(1909-07-22) (aged 60) Darlinghurst, New South Wales, Australia
Occupation(s)	theatre scenic artist; artist
Spouse(s)	(1) Sarah Hotchkis (2) Cecily Christina Neilsen

John Brunton (15 May 1849 – 22 July 1909) was a Scottish scenic artist who worked in theatres in Britain and Australia. Brunton was brought to Australia in 1886 by the theatrical partnership of Williamson, Garner and Musgrove. From about the mid-1890s he worked on productions by Bland Holt, known for his spectacular touring productions of melodramas and pantomimes. Brunton died in July 1909 in Sydney. He was the father of the popular actress, Dorothy Brunton.

Biography

Early years

John Brunton was born on 15 May 1849 in Edinburgh, the son of John and Margaret Brunton. He was educated at the Royal High School in the Holyrood area of Edinburgh (north of The Canongate). As a boy Brunton "showed such a passionate inclination towards drawing and painting, that his father prudently allowed him to suit his own tastes in choosing a profession".

In about 1862 Brunton, aged thirteen years, was articled to William Glover as an apprentice scenic painter. Glover was a leading scenic artist, based in Glasgow. Brunton spent seven years with Glover in Glasgow, "learning every detail of his profession, and becoming a great favourite with Glover". As well as his artistic skills, William Glover "was an enthusiastic devotee" of both fencing and boxing and instilled a love of these sports onto his young protégé ("who proved no dullard"). As Brunton progressed at fencing "the two scene painters – master and pupil – to show their skill to an admiring world, gave the famous broadsword combat in Rob Roy in public during a revival of that play". This appearance was such a success that soon afterwards they played the Corsican Brothers at a benefit performance, "when the great duel scene was made their special effort". This proved so popular that Glover and Brunton "played the piece for a fortnight – more for devilment and pleasure than for profit". Glover had a custom whereby each year he took his apprentices "to some selected spot in the Western Highlands, where they encamped for a few weeks, living a delightfully Bohemian existence".

Brunton also studied painting under Sam Bough. Bough worked as a scene painter with William Glover in the mid-1860s at the Theatre Royal in Dunlop Street, Glasgow.

In 1867 Brunton, aged eighteen, probably had a relationship with an actress of about the same age named Georgina Duncan. In October 1867, in the Blythswood area of Glasgow, Duncan gave birth to a daughter, born out of wedlock. The child was named Carolina and raised by her mother with the surname Brunton. When Carolina Brunton married in March 1888, aged 21, she recorded her father's details as "John Brunton, Scenic Artist, Deceased".

Scenic artist

After his seven-year apprenticeship with Glover, Brunton was engaged as a scenic artist for twelve months at the Theatre Royal in Plymouth, county Devon. He painted scenery for a pantomime performed at Christmas 1869 and early in 1870.

During this period John Brunton married Sarah Hotchkis, a young woman he had met in Glasgow. The couple were married in April 1870 at Plymouth. John and Sarah Brunton had three children: Robert (born in about 1872 in Scotland), Frederick (born in 1878 in Liverpool) and Jessie (born in 1881 in Liverpool). The youngest child, Jessie, died as an infant in May 1882.

After a year in Plymouth, Brunton returned to Edinburgh during 1870 to work at the Theatre Royal in Broughton Street, managed by Charles Wyndham. The principal scenic artist at the Edinburgh Theatre Royal was William Gordon, father of George Gordon (a scenic artist who Brunton would later work with in Australia). Brunton remained at Edinburgh for about four years.

In about 1876 Brunton took up a position at the Royal Alexandra Theatre in Liverpool. He remained in Liverpool for nine years, a period Brunton later described "as the happiest time in his life". As well as painting scenery "for the usual dramatic pieces and the yearly pantomime (nine in all)", he also produced work for a number of Shakespearian productions. At his scene-painting studio in Liverpool, Brunton maintained a social space which his friends and acquaintances kept "well supplied with cigars and light refreshments of a spiritous kind". Part of the room was set up as "a shooting gallery". Another fixture of the room was a couple of trapezes, where the company engaged in "an amusement they termed the 'Battle of the Trapeze', another invention of the wily Brunton".

At the time of the 1881 census John and Sarah Brunton and their children were living at 73 Crown Street in Liverpool.

During his period in Liverpool, Brunton probably maintained links with the Theatre Royal in Edinburgh. He produced the scenery for J. M. Campbell's drama Through My Heart First, performed at the Edinburgh Theatre Royal from about March 1884. A critic for the Edinburgh Courant newspaper commented on the scenery in the play (which was described as "most effective"): "So conscious were the audience of this that at the commencement of each act the artist was called for".

By 1885 or earlier Brunton had formed a relationship with Cecily Christina Neilsen (known as 'Cissy'), who had been a Shakespearean actress in Edinburgh. By the time Brunton and Cecily Neilsen departed for Australia in April 1886, Cecily was heavily-pregnant and gave birth a fortnight after the steamer left London. Brunton's wife Sarah and their two remaining children continued to live in Britain, so the implication is that Brunton deserted his wife and family. Sarah Brunton lived until January 1910 and there is no record of a divorce (nor is there a record of any marriage between Brunton and Cecily Neilsen). Upon arriving in Australia, Cecily was assumed to be "Mrs. John Brunton".

During his residency in Liverpool Brunton exhibited "a collection of his pictures" at Agnew's Art Gallery in London, for which he received favourable reviews. In 1886 one of his paintings was hung in the Royal Academy.

In 1886 the Australian theatrical production partnership of Williamson, Garner and Musgrove, based in Melbourne, engaged Brunton to travel to Australia to work for the partnership as a scenic artist. Australian newspaper reports anticipating Brunton's arrival described him as "an artist of distinction". In March 1886, prior to his departure for Australia, Brunton exhibited a collection of his paintings, comprising landscapes and seascapes, at the Liverpool Art Gallery. In a review of the exhibition a critic writing in the theatrical trade journal, The Era, described Brunton's work as possessing "a fanciful imagination and an ardent love of nature" supported by "solid technical acquirements gained in the best school".

A farewell gathering in Brunton's honour was held by the Liverpool Press Club on 1 April 1886, followed by another at the Grand Hotel.

To Australia

Brunton and the heavily-pregnant Cecily left London for Australia on 15 April 1886 aboard the R.M.S. Garonne, a mail steamer of the Orient Steam Navigation Company line. The steamer reached Port Said on April 29 where Cecily gave birth to a son (which the couple named John). "Mr. and Mrs. John Brunton" and their infant son arrived in Melbourne on 30 May 1886.

The initial engagement of Brunton by Messrs. Williamson, Garner and Musgrove was to take the place of George Gordon during Gordon's "temporary absence". In late-April 1886 the scenic artist, George Gordon returned to England for a five-month period, "partly for the sake of his health, which has suffered by his indefatigable industry and application; and partly to regain touch of the progress of pictorial art in Europe".

With Williamson, Garner and Musgrove

In early October 1886 the "nautical opera" Billee Taylor made its Australian premiere at the Theatre Royal in Sydney (which included in the cast the newly-arrived English comedian William Elton in the role of 'Ben Barnacle'). The operetta featured scenery by John Brunton as backdrop for each of its two acts: (Act I) a "village on Southampton water" ("the blue waters rippling on the sands, the mountains in the distance, and the cottage homes stretching away to the right") and (Act II) a view of Portsmouth harbour ("with stately ships at rest, the massive batteries in front").

On 27 December 1886 Williamson, Garner and Musgrove's production of Robinson Crusoe, written and arranged by Alfred Maltby, opened at the Theatre Royal in Melbourne. According to advertisements, the pantomime was "gorgeously illustrated with magnificent scenery" by Brunton, who had been employed "upon this work for upwards of six months". Advertisements for Robinson Crusoe during January 1887 attributed the scenery for the pantomime to both Brunton and John Hennings, a fellow scenic artist.

During 1887 Brunton was involved in the following theatrical productions:

Harbour Lights in April 1887 at the New Princess Theatre in Melbourne (with George Gordon).
Gilbert and Sullivan's musical satire Princess Ida, or Castle Adamant at the New Princess Theatre in Melbourne from August 1887; Brunton designed and painted the following scenery: Pavilions in King Hildebrand's Palace (Act I); Gardens of Castle Adamant (Act II); Courtyard of Castle Adamant (Act III).
La Mascotte at the Theatre Royal in Sydney in November 1887.
The pantomime Jack the Giant-killer, and Little Bo-Peep; or Harlequin King Arthur, and the Enchanted Sheep at Melbourne's Theatre Royal in late-December 1887 (with George Gordon and J. Peake).
At Sydney's Theatre Royal Brunton and Hennings' scenes featured in the Robinson Crusoe pantomime from December 1887. A reviewer wrote of the production that "the various incidents and places are illustrated by pictures of great beauty".

In February 1888 the celebrated English actor Charles Warner arrived in Australia under engagement by Williamson, Garner and Musgrove. The scenic paintings undertaken by Brunton during 1888 included backdrops for the following productions featuring Warner in major roles:

Drink, a play by Charles Reade (based on Émile Zola's novel, L'Assommoir) – performed at Melbourne's Theatre Royal from late-February 1888, Adelaide's Theatre Royal in June 1888 and at Sydney's Theatre Royal from late-July 1888 (with scenery by both Brunton and George Gordon).
Holcroft's comedy, The Road to Ruin, starring the English actor Charles Warner; scenery by both George Gordon and John Brunton.
Tom Taylor's play The Fool's Revenge at the Princess Theatre, Melbourne, in April 1888.
Lord Lytton's The Lady of Lyons, performed at Melbourne's Princess Theatre in April and May 1888 and the Theatre Royal in Sydney in August 1888. Brunton's scene in the second act was described as "representing the garden of a French mansion laid out in the Italian style, with terraces, an ornamental sheet of water, formal parterres, and an avenue of trees opening out into a park beyond".

In May 1888 Brunton contributed a painting to the autumn exhibition of the Victorian Society of Artists. His painting, On the Fife Coast, Evening, was described as depicting "a rocky headland... against a rift in a stormy and twilight sky", painted "with a free and vigorous hand".

In March 1890 the theatrical partnership of Williamson, Garner and Musgrove was dissolved. Williamson and Garner retained management of the Princess Theatre and Theatre Royal in Melbourne and George Musgrove assumed management of the Theatre Royal in Sydney.

With Williamson and Garner

After the dissolution of the Williamson, Garner and Musgrove partnership, Brunton's services were initially retained by Williamson and Garner.

One of the feature productions brought to Australia in 1890 was Gilbert and Sullivan's The Gondoliers, first performed in Melbourne's Princess Theatre in late-October. Scenery for the production was supplemented by "specially printed" scenes and designs "forwarded from the Savoy Theatre, London". In preparing the scenery for The Gondoliers, Brunton was assisted by Phil Goatcher, a scenic artist who had returned to Australia from America under contract by Williamson.

The spectacular and popular pantomimes were an important showpiece for the theatrical scene painter. Williamson, Garner and Co.'s production of Aladdin was performed in Melbourne at the Theatre Royal during January and February 1891, starring the popular British actress Jennie Lee in the lead role. The scenery painted by John Brunton for the production was:

Act 1: "Scene 1 – The Pyramids and the Sphinx. Scene 2 – The Market Place of Pekin. Scene 3 – On the Road to the Cave. Scene 4 – The Blasted Cedar. Scene 5 – The Cave of Jewels".
Act 2: "Scene 1 – The Widder's 'Umble Cot. Scene 2 – Gardens of the Emperor's Palace".
Act 3: "Scene 1 – Aladdin's Palace. The Willow Pattern Plate... Scene 2 – The Spot where the Palace Stood. Scene 3 – The Palace by the Beach".

A key scene in the pantomime Aladdin was the "Transformation Scene" which featured a "series of beautiful allegorical pictures" inspired by Wagner's Der Ring des Nibelungen, "poetically treated and painted" by Brunton and his staff of assistants.

Other Williamson, Garner & Co. productions during 1891, featuring Brunton's scenic designs, included Moths (adapted from a novel by Ouida) and Bridget O'Brien, Esq. (a "Musical-Farcical Comedy" written by Frederick Lyster and John F. Sheridan).

Freelance work

By 1892 Brunton began to work for a number of theatrical entrepreneurs in addition to J. C. Williamson. Brunton painted new scenery for the George Rignold's production of the burlesque Randolph the Reckless at the Theatre Royal in Melbourne in March 1892. The following month his scenery featured in Rignold's "spectacular burlesque", Dick Whittington and His Cat, at Her Majesty's Theatre in Sydney. In May 1892 Brunton provided the scenery for Rignold's production of Little Jack Sheppard at the same theatre.

In late-May 1892 scenery by both Brunton and George Gordon was featured in George Musgrove's production of the musical burlesque, Faust Up to Date, at Melbourne's Opera House. Later in the year Brunton and Gordon's scenery was used for Musgrove's production of Carmen Up to Data at the Princess Theatre in Melbourne.

During the end-of-year pantomime season Brunton's scenery appeared in several different productions. His scenery for Aladdin (probably the paintings from Williamson and Garner's production a year earlier) were used in Adelaide for the pantomime produced by Wybert Reeve at the Theatre Royal, which premiered on Boxing Day 1892. The play also included new scenery by Charles Marques. In Melbourne new scenery by Brunton was featured in the pantomime for the 1892-3 holiday season, Babes in the Wood, Bold Robin Hood and his Foresters Good, presented at the Theatre Royal by George Coppin in collaboration with Bland Holt. Extravagant claims for made for Brunton's work for the production: "The talented scenic artist, Mr. John Brunton, has completely thrown all his previous works into the shade by the poetical imagination, artistic designs, and magnificent effects he has displayed upon the present occasion". Scenes from the play included "a view of Sherwood Forest, an old English village in its neighbourhood, and Windsor Castle".

Brunton prepared "glorious scenery" for a new drama by George Darrell and his company, The Double Event (subtitled A Tale of the Melbourne Cup), which premiered at Melbourne's Theatre Royal in April 1893. The play featured a spectacular scene in which twenty thoroughbred horses and their jockeys appeared. The Double Event was staged in Sydney in late-July 1893 at Her Majesty's Theatre, this time under the management of George Rignold. One of Brunton's scenes, depicting training stables with a house and garden in the foreground, "was received with an enthusiasm which was not appeased until the painter, Mr. John Brunton, had bowed his acknowledgements". The reviewer attributed the success of the painting to "the beauty of a distant view, framed by the foliage of the trees into a charming medallion of sapphire sea surrounding a green islet, above which rose a stately mansion". Another scene, in the last act of The Double Event, depicted the gardens of Mayfield House at Potts Point, beyond which was disclosed "a distant view of the harbour by night, with the lights of Fort Macquarie and the oceangoing steamers gleaming above the water, and the dark shores beyond bluely outlined beneath the moon-lit sky". For this painting also, "well-merited applause was forthcoming". Brunton's work on The Double Event was assisted by Alfred Clint.

In September 1894 Brunton was elected as a new member of the Art Society of New South Wales.

With Bland Holt

Caricature of John Brunton (published in The Gadfly, 3 June 1908).

Caricature of John Brunton by Will Dyson (The Bulletin, 5 August 1909).

From the mid- to late-1890s John Brunton increasingly worked for Bland Holt, the theatrical manager known for his spectacular touring productions of melodramas and pantomimes. In September 1896 it was reported that Brunton had been engaged by Holt at the Theatre Royal in Sydney, to replace W. B. Spong who was expected to depart for England early in 1897. Alfred Clint was to replace Brunton during George Rignold's season at the Theatre Royal in Melbourne. In the latter months of 1896 Brunton worked with Spong on the Bland Holt's productions, For England and In Sight of St. Paul's.

During 1897 Brunton's scenic paintings featured in Holt's touring productions such as The Cotton King, The Union Jack and The Prodigal Daughter. Bland Holt productions in 1898 which incorporated Brunton's scenic designs included A Life of Pleasure, Straight From the Heart and Sporting Life. Holt's production of Woman and Wine at Melbourne's Theatre Royal in April 1899 featured "Wonder-Compelling Tableaux" by John Brunton, the scenes consisting of "a French Racecourse", "The Boulevard Cafe", "The Japanese Ball", "The Paris Flower Market", "The Blind Man's Vision" and "The Trial at Le Palais de Justice".

In December 1902 the Bland Holt Company presented The Breaking of the Drought at the Lyceum Theatre in Sydney, written by the English playwright Arthur Shirley. The reviewer for the Sydney Morning Herald described Brunton's scenic effects as "admirable". From the second act the play featured scenes of Sydney and "the audience cheered loudly as the curtain rose on each new place". The Daily Telegraph reviewer was critical of Brunton's depiction of an "out-back station homestead" in Act 1, which more closely resembled "a suburban cottage". However, the reviewer was more complimentary of some of Brunton's other scenes in the play: "the interior of Gilbert Galloway's 'flat' in Sydney", "the baths at Little Coogee, which are animated by a crowd of bathers of both sexes" and "the coffee-stall scene at Paddy's Market".

In April 1908 Brunton's daughter Dorothy made her stage debut, aged seventeen years, as a flower girl in Bland Holt's production of The White Heather at the Theatre Royal in Adelaide. Following her debut in The White Heather, Brunton was cast in a series of productions presented by Bland Holt's Dramatic Company at the Theatre Royal in Adelaide.

After their eight week season in Adelaide the Bland Holt Company played a short season in Broken Hill in June 1908. Brunton took the opportunity to visit the Broken Hill Proprietary Company's silver and lead mine and other mines "along the line of lode". A local newspaper report of his visit remarked that he was "keenly alive to the artistic value of the huge weather-stained and dust-begrimed piles of surface buildings which lend a picturesque aspect to the line of mines". Brunton "made copious notes for reference when working up mining scenery for future dramas". From Broken Hill the company travelled to Perth in Western Australia, where, on 11 July 1908, they staged The Breaking of the Drought in His Majesty's Theatre.

In April 1909 the Bland Holt Company began a season in Brisbane, opening with The Great Millionaire at His Majesty's Theatre, which featured "beautiful examples of the scene painter's art by Mr. John Brunton".

In late-May 1909 it was reported that Brunton "had been hard at work on the Australian landscapes which are to be used in 'The Great Rescue'". By June 1909 the Bland Holt Dramatic Company had returned to Sydney. The Great Rescue opened at the Theatre Royal in early June 1909, with scenery by Brunton illustrating "Northern Queensland and the Wombat mine".

Death

John Brunton died "from heart failure" (described as an "unexpected decease") on 22 July 1909 at his home, 'Roslyn Gardens', in Darlinghurst. He was buried at the Waverley Cemetery. At the time of his death Brunton was working on the scenes for The Sins of Society, an upcoming production by Bland Holt.

On 12 August 1909 Dorothy Brunton participated in a grand theatrical event commemorating her late father. 'The Brunton Memorial Matinee', Bland Holt's production at the Theatre Royal in aid of the John Brunton Memorial Fund, was an event involving "over two hundred" performers from a number of theatrical companies. In September 1909 Dorothy was performing the role of the gypsy fortune teller in Sydney performances of The Flood Tide, with the production using the scenery created by her late father.

In late August 1909 over one hundred paintings by the late John Brunton were exhibited in the rooms of The Pianola Company in George Street, Sydney. An admission of one shilling was charged for the week-long exhibition, for the benefit of the John Brunton Memorial Fund.

Sarah Brunton (recorded in the Scottish Probate Index as "Sarah Hotchkiss or Brunton") died on 9 January 1910 at Glasgow. She had been living at 331 Gairbraid Street in the Maryhill area, north of the city centre. The widow's estate was valued at £16.2s.1d.

In May 1910 it was reported that "a number of oil-paintings and water-colour drawings" by the late John Brunton had been hung in the foyer of Her Majesty's Theatre in Melbourne. The works were available for sale, with the proceeds "for the benefit of his widow" (Cecily Brunton).

Family structure and interactions

John Brunton had a complicated family structure. He is known to have fathered seven children by three different women:

As a young man Brunton's relationship with a young actress, Georgina Duncan, resulted in a daughter, born out of wedlock in October 1867. The daughter, named Caroline, was raised with the surname Brunton.
Brunton married Sarah Hotchkis in April 1870 at Plymouth and the couple had three children: Robert Argyle (born in about 1872 in Scotland), Frederick James (born in 1878 in Liverpool) and Jessie (born in 1881 in Liverpool; died as an infant in May 1882). Robert and Frederick were raised by their mother after about 1885 when Brunton began a relationship with the actress Cecily Neilsen and the couple relocated to Australia. Like his father, the eldest son Robert Brunton worked as a theatrical scenic artist. He travelled to America and became involved in the nascent film-making industry in Los Angeles, eventually owning and managing Robert Brunton Studios, a successful venture for the leasing of facilities to motion picture companies that did not possess their own studios. Brunton's wife Sarah died in January 1910 in Glasgow (less than six months after Brunton's death in Sydney).
Brunton formed a relationship with the actress Cecily Christina ('Cissy') Neilsen by about 1885 and the couple lived as husband and wife after their immigration to Australia in 1886. There were three children from the union: John ('Jack'), born at Port Said in late-April 1886 aboard the R.M.S. Garonne, James (born in 1888 in Carlton, Victoria) and Christine Dorothy Brunton (born in October 1890 in Carlton). As a young man Jack Brunton travelled extensively, spending periods of time in England, West Africa, Mexico and the United States. In America he found a job travelling with motion pictures along the Pacific Coast and to Alaska. After his return to Australia he owned and operated two picture theatres in Melbourne. In 1916 Jack Brunton enlisted in the A.I.F. The youngest child, popularly known as Dorothy or Dot Brunton, had a successful career in Australia and England as a singer and actress in musical comedy roles. 'Cissy' Brunton was a constant companion and mentor to her daughter, particularly during the early part of her career. Cecily ('Cissy') Brunton died on 22 June 1933 in Sydney.

After their father died in 1909 there was interaction between certain of the Brunton half-siblings, based to a large extent on common interests in the film industry. By the early 1920s Jack Brunton was working for his half-brother Robert Brunton as "the producing manager" for his film studios business. In November 1921 Dorothy Brunton and her mother travelled to California and met up with Dorothy's half-brother Robert at his studio complex in Los Angeles (as well as Dorothy's brother Jack). At the time Robert was in the process of selling the Brunton Studios. In February 1922 Dorothy and Robert Brunton travelled to Italy, while Cissy Brunton returned to Sydney. The Brunton half-siblings toured Europe, visiting Italy, France, Switzerland, Germany "and other countries in a leisurely way". After arriving in London they "followed this by motoring in their own car all over England and Scotland". Robert Brunton died in March 1923 in London of a cerebral haemorrhage (after two weeks' illness), aged 51 years.

Notes

A. Sarah Paterson Hotchkis was born on 5 January 1853 at Glasgow in Scotland, the daughter of John Hotchkis (or Hotchkies) and Sarah (née Paterson). Her father's occupation was recorded as an "iron turner".

B. Robert Brunton Studios was purchased by a New York-based syndicate headed by Joseph Schenck, a leading independent producer of motion pictures. The Schenck syndicate renamed the studio complex United Studios, which was placed under the management of Michael C. Levee (who had previously been Brunton's vice-president and treasurer). In 1926 Paramount Pictures purchased the United Studios complex and extensively rebuilt the facilities to form Paramount Studios.

References

NSW death registration: John Brunton; reg. no.: 7819/1909; reg. district: Sydney.
^ Mr. John Brunton, Table Talk (Melbourne), 20 September 1889, pages 5-6.
^ D. H. Souter (1909), John Brunton: Scenic Artist and Painter, Art and Architecture, Vol. 6 No. 4 (July - August 1909), pages 103-108.
The Theatre Royal, Dunlop Street, Glasgow, Arthur Lloyd.co.uk: The Music Hall and Theatre History Site website; accessed 9 January 2023.
^ Carolina Brunton Duncan, born 16 October 1867 at Blythswood, Glasgow, Lanark, Scotland; mother: Georgina Duncan (Scotland: Births and Baptisms, 1564-1950; Salt Lake City, Utah: FamilySearch, 2013).
^ Family records, Ancestry.com.
^ 1871 Scotland Census: Household of Elizabeth Gillespie (Georgina Duncan's maternal grandmother), 127 South Wellington Street, Hutchesontown, Glasgow; Parish: Glasgow Govan; ED: 7; Page: 16; Line: 7; Roll: CSSCT1871_140.
^ Marriage registration (16 March 1888): John L. J. Brough & Carolina Brunton; No. 654/22; Rutherglen district (South Lanarkshire, Scotland).
^ Civil Registration Marriage Index, Marriages registered from April to June 1870, page 113.
^ 1881 England Census: Registration district: West Derby, Lancashire; Class: RG11; Piece: 3704; Folio: 119; Page: 9; GSU roll: 1341887.
^ Liverpool Record Office, Liverpool Cemetery Registers: Reference: 352 Cem 2/2/5; cemetery: Necropolis (Low Hill).
The Theatre Royal, Broughton Street, Top of Leith Walk, Edinburgh, Scotland, Arthur Lloyd.co.uk: The Music Hall and Theatre History Site website; accessed 13 January 2023.
^ Judy Leech (10 February 2018), 'JCW: A Scenic Tour', Theatre Heritage Australia Inc. website; accessed 14 December 2022.
The Royal Alexandra Theatre and Opera House, Liverpool ( 1867), Arthur Lloyd.co.uk: The Music Hall and Theatre History Site website; accessed 13 January 2023.
^ Mr. John Brunton, the scenic artist..., The Lorgnette (Melbourne), 5 June 1886, page 4.
Theatre Royal - Through My Heart First (advertisement), Edinburgh Courant, 21 March 1884, page 1.
^ Mrs. C. Brunton, Sydney Morning Herald, 23 June 1933, page 15.
^ By 1891 Sarah Brunton was living with her younger sister in Scotland at Inverkip, county Renfrewshire. In the 1891 census her husband John is recorded as "not in residence" (1891 Scotland Census: Parish: Inverkip; ED: 2; Page: 26; Line: 15; Roll: CSSCT1891_184).
^ Shipping Intelligence. The Argus (Melbourne), 31 May 1886, page 4.
^ Since the advent of George Gordon..., South Australian Advertiser (Adelaide), 12 May 1886, page 5.
World War I service record: "Brunton John : SERN 24462 : POB Port Said Egypt : POE Prahan VIC : NOK (wife) Brunton Mary". National Archives of Australia. B2455. 3133080. Retrieved 12 December 2022.
Mr. John Brunton, scenic artist.... The Argus (Melbourne), 31 May 1886, page 5.
Mr. Gordon's Benefit, The Argus (Melbourne), 19 February 1886, page 6; By the mail steamer Iberia..., The Argus, 3 May 1886, page 7.
Theatre Royal, Sydney Mail and New South Wales Advertiser, 9 October 1886, page 746.
Amusements: Theatre Royal, Sydney Morning Herald, 11 October 1886, page 8; Theatre Royal (advertisement), Sydney Morning Herald, 14 October 1886, page 2.
Theatre Royal Pantomime (advertisement), The Age (Melbourne), 21 December 1886, page 8.
Theatre Royal, The Lorgnette (Melbourne), 25 January 1887, page 1.
The Princess's Theatre, The Argus (Melbourne), 12 April 1887, page 6.
New Princess Theatre, The Lorgnette (Melbourne), 19 August 1887, page 3.
Amusements, Daily Telegraph (Sydney), 26 November 1887, page 5.
The Theatre Royal Pantomime, The Argus (Melbourne), 27 December 1887, page 6.
The Theatres: Theatre Royal, Sydney Mail and New South Wales Advertiser, 31 December 1887, page 1373.
Theatre Royal: Drink (advertisement), The Argus (Melbourne), 25 February 1888, page 20; Mr. Charles Warner and "Coupeau", South Australian Register (Adelaide), 23 June 1888, page 6; Amusements: Theatre Royal, Sydney Morning Herald, 30 July 1888, page 8.
The Road to Ruin (advertisement), The Lorgnette (Melbourne), 17 March 1888, page 1.
Princess's Theatre: "The Fool's Revenge", The Argus (Melbourne), 16 April 1888, page 8.
Princess's Theatre, The Argus (Melbourne), 30 April 1888, page 8; Amusements: Theatre Royal. - "The Lady of Lyons", Sydney Morning Herald, 14 August 1888, page 5.
Exhibition of the Victorian Society of Artists, The Argus (Melbourne), 30 April 1888, page 11.
To-night's performance at the Theatre Royal..., Sydney Morning Herald, 8 March 1890, page 7.
Examples include: Theatre Royal: Formosa (advertisement), The Lorgette (Melbourne), 2 August 1890, page 7; New Princess Theatre: La Mascotte (advertisement), The Lorgette, 18 October 1890, page 7.
New Princess Theatre: The Gondoliers (advertisement), The Lorgette, 25 October 1890, page 7.
Anita Calloway. "Phil Goatcher". Design and Art of Australia Online. Retrieved 18 January 2021.
Theatre Royal: Aladdin (advertisement), The Lorgnette (Melbourne), 1 February 1891, page 7.
Theatre Royal: Moths (advertisement), The Lorgette (Melbourne), 4 March 1891, page 7; Theatre Royal: Bridget O'Brien, Esq. (advertisement), The Lorgette, 3 May 1891, page 7.
Victoria Theatre: La Mascotte (advertisement), Newcastle Morning Herald and Miners' Advocate, 4 February 1892, page 1.
Theatre Royal: "Randolph the Reckless", The Argus (Melbourne), 14 March 1892, page 7.
Her Majesty's Theatre: Dick Whittington and His Cat (advertisement), Sydney Morning Herald, 29 April 1892, page 2; Her Majesty's Theatre: Little Jack Sheppard (advertisement), Referee (Sydney), 18 May 1892, page 4.
Opera House: London Gaiety Burlesque Season (advertisement), The Herald (Melbourne), 28 May 1892, page 2; Princesses' Theatre: Carmen up to Data (advertisement), The Argus (Melbourne), 9 November 1892, page 8.
Theatre Royal: Aladdin (advertisement), South Australian Register (Adelaide), 24 December 1892, page 8.
Theatre Royal: The Babes in the Wood (advertisement), The Argus (Melbourne), 17 December 1892, page 16; Theatre Royal: The Babes in the Wood (advertisement), The Argus, 31 December 1892, page 12.
"Robin Hood" has been chosen..., The Australasian (Melbourne), 17 December 1892, page 23.
Theatres and Entertainments, The Argus (Melbourne), 1 April 1893, page 10; Theatre Royal: The Double Event (advertisement), The Argus, 15 April 1893, page 16.
Amusements: "The Double Event", Sydney Morning Herald, 1 August 1893, page 6.
Amusements: Her Majesty's Theatre, Sydney Morning Herald, 29 July 1893, page 7.
Meetings: Art Society of New South Wales, Sydney Morning Herald, 15 September 1894, page 10.
Dennis Shoesmith (1972). "Holt, Joseph Thomas (Bland) (1851–1942)". Australian Dictionary of Biography. National Centre of Biography. Retrieved 18 November 2022.
On and Off Stage, Table Talk (Melbourne), 4 September 1896, page 6.
Theatre Royal, Evening News (Sydney), 26 September 1896, page 4; Theatre Royal, Sydney Morning Herald, 31 October 1896, page 12.
Theatre Royal" "The Cotton King", The Herald (Melbourne), 19 July 1897, page 3.
Opera House: The Union Jack (advertisement), Brisbane Courier, 17 August 1897, page 2; https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/3656535 Opera House: The Prodigal Daughter (advertisement)], Brisbane Courier, 20 August 1897, page 2.
Theatre Royal: A Life of Pleasure (advertisement), Evening News (Sydney), 11 May 1898, page 2; Theatre Royal: Straight From the Heart (advertisement), Sydney Morning Herald, 3 June 1898, page 2; Theatre Royal: Sporting Life (advertisement), The Herald (Melbourne), 12 November 1898, page 2.
Theatre Royal, Melbourne: Woman and Wine (advertisement), Critic (Adelaide), 22 April 1899, page 9.
Lyceum Theatre: "The Breaking of the Drought", Sydney Morning Herald, 27 December 1902, page 8.
Lyceum Theatre: "The Breaking of the Drought", Daily Telegraph (Sydney), 27 December 1902, page 10.
Amusements: Theatre Royal: "The White Heather", The Register (Adelaide), 20 April 1908, page 6.
Amusements: Theatre Royal: "One of the Best", Evening Journal (Adelaide), 5 May 1908, page 2; Amusements: "The Great Millionaire", The Register (Adelaide), 11 May 1908, page 7; Amusements: Theatre Royal, The Advertiser (Adelaide), 18 May 1908, page 9; Amusements: Theatre Royal, The Express and Telegraph (Adelaide), 26 May 1908, page 3; The Stage: Adelaide Theatres, Gadfly (Adelaide), 27 May 1908, page 9; Amusements: Theatre Royal, The Advertiser (Adelaide), 1 June 1908, page 9; Amusements: Theatre Royal, The Advertiser (Adelaide), 8 June 1908, page 8.
Theatrical Notes, Barrier Miner (Broken Hill), 20 June 1908, page 6.
Entertainments: His Majesty's Theatre: "The Breaking of the Drought", The West Australian (Perth), 13 July 1908, page 3.
Bland Holt Season and His Majesty's Theatre: Return of Bland Holt, The Telegraph (Brisbane), 30 March 1909, page 8.
Sydney Shows: For some weeks Mr. John Brunton..., Punch (Melbourne), 27 May 1909, page 33.
Royal – "The Great Rescue", Referee (Sydney), 9 June 1909, page 12.
Amusements: The Theatres, Sydney Morning Herald, 2 June 1909, page 12.
Death of John Brunton, Evening News (Sydney), 23 July 1909, page 12.
^ Death of Mr. John Brunton, Referee (Sydney), 28 July 1909, page 15.
Funeral of John Brunton, Sunday Sun (Sydney), 25 July 1909, page 3.
The John Brunton Memorial Fund (advertisement), Sydney Morning Herald, 7 August 1909, page 2; The Brunton Memorial Fund, Sydney Morning Herald, 12 August 1909, page 8.
Bland Holt's Sensations, Sunday Sun (Sydney), 5 September 1909, page 3.
John Brunton Memorial Fund (advertisement), Daily Telegraph (Sydney), 20 August 1909, page 2.
^ Brunton, Sarah Hotchkiss or, Scotland, National Probate Index (Calendar of Confirmations and Inventories), 1910, page 81.
John Brunton's Pictures, The Argus (Melbourne), 26 May 1910, page 8.
^ The Brunton Studios in Los Angeles, Covering 65 Acres, Table Talk (Melbourne), 15 September 1921, page 39.
Footlights and Screen, The Herald (Melbourne), 7 January 1922, page 16.
Famous Arctic Explorer, The Prahran Telegraph, 8 March 1913, page 6.
Mrs. Brunton Dies, Daily Telegraph (Sydney), 23 June 1933, page 9.
^ At Brunton, Camera (Los Angeles), 26 November 1921, page 17.
Dorothy Brunton: Returns to Sydney, Sydney Morning Herald, 20 February 1924, page 13.
Miss Dorothy Brunton: Tour Through Europe, Daily Telegraph (Sydney), 1 March 1922, page 6.
Death registration (January–March 1923): Robert A. Brunton, aged 51 years, Marylebone district, London; General Register Office, United Kingdom: Volume: 1a; Page: 617.
Pictures and People, Motion Picture News (New York), March–April 1923 (3 March 1923), Vol. XXVII No. 9, page 1378.
Joseph Schenck Takes Over Brunton Studios, The Billboard, 26 November 1921, page 97.
Brunton's is Now United Studios, Inc; Michael C. Levee Becomes President, Moving Picture World (New York), 26 November 1921, page 400.
Who Said Hard Times? (advertisement), Exhibitors Herald (Chicago), 24 December 1921, page 120.
Lindsay Blake (21 June 2022), 'Paramount Pictures Stars at the Forefront of 'The Offer', Dirt website, Penske Media Corporation; accessed 21 October 2023.

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