Though I only intend on presenting content relating to American history, there will be exceptions on rare occasions, this post being one of them.
This footage, titled “Roundhay Garden Scene”, is the earliest footage known to exist, lasting only 2 seconds but looped for this post. It was recorded October 14, 1888 in Yorkshire, England. The ‘actors’ were instructed to walk around in circles and/or laugh to themselves.
Alice in Wonderland is a timeless story. Written in 1865, it is still as popular now as it was then, and has been adapted multiple times through the years for both the large and small screen. This 9-minute film from 1903, restored by BFI National Archive, is the very first film adaptation of the classic story.
This 44-second film, restored by BFI National Archive, is considered one of the earliest comedies. Filmed in 1897, “The X-Ray Fiend” demonstrates the early use of splicing footage to create special effects.
Some of the most popular and successful movies today are animated. “Humorous Phases of Funny Faces”, from 1906, is considered the first animated film.
“Fred Ott’s Sneeze”, originally titled “The Record of a Sneeze”, was filmed at Edison Studios in West Orange, New Jersey on January 7, 1894. It has the distinction of being the first film ever to be copyrighted in the United States, though the copyright has expired and the film is now in the public domain.
“Fred Ott’s Sneeze” features one of Thomas Edison’s laboratory assistants, Fred Ott, taking a pinch of snuff and then sneezing. It was filmed for publicity purposes, in which the individual frames making up the film were to accompany an article in Harper’s Weekly promoting Edison’s Kinetoscope, an early motion picture device in which images were viewed through a peephole. The Kinetoscope contained individual frames which were mounted on blades of a spinning paddle. When the paddle spun quickly, it turned the frames into fluid motion, much like a flip book. Though the Kinetoscope had been around since the 1870s, Edison was working on improving it by installing a phonograph cylinder in order to sync audio with films.
Fred Ott was the joker among Edison’s assistants. When a reporter from Harper’s Weekly approached Edison about the article, the reporter requested that Edison film “some nice looking person” sneezing to illustrate how the Kinetoscope works. As previously mentioned, the series of individual film frames would accompany the article.
There were other assistants more physically attractive than Fred Ott who were preferred as the sneezer, but Ott, being the joker he was, was the assistant most willing to play the part. It is said there were multiple takes, as Ott wanted to actually sneeze but was unable to make himself do so and as a result settled on a fake sneeze.
Below are both the Kinetoscope film and the individual frames published in Harper’s Weekly. The audio to the film has been lost but is said to have contained the sound of Fred Ott sneezing, followed by the voice of another responding “Bless you, Mr. Ott!”
The science fiction movie genre can be traced back to 1902 with “Le Voyage Dans La Lune”, or “A Trip to the Moon” as per the working American title; it is considered to be the first science fiction film.
“A Trip to the Moon” was filmed in France, where it debuted on September 1, 1902. It made its American debut a month later, on October 4. Many people may unknowingly have already seen a still shot from the film, most likely the image of a space capsule landing in the Man in the Moon’s eye. This image alone is considered one of the most iconic in cinema history (it appears about 6 minutes into this 13-minute film).
The plot of this film revolves around a group of astronomers taking a trip to the moon, where they find themselves battling moon creatures. The special effects used in the film were some of the best at the time.
“A Trip to the Moon” is considered one of the first blockbuster films. At the time of its release, theaters in New York City, Washington DC, Cleveland, Detroit, New Orleans, and Kansas City reported on its great success.
The music heard in this film is not original but was added much later. An original score for the film was written in 1903 but at some point in time was lost.
