Notable Films: 1900 - 1912
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- DirectorRobert W. Paul
- DirectorJames WilliamsonStarsMr. JamesMr. LepardFlorence WilliamsonThe titles tell us this film is based on an incident in the Boxer Rebellion. A man tries to defend a woman and a large house against Chinese attackers. They attack with swords, guns, and paddles. He's over-matched. What will become of the mission, its defenders, and its occupants?
- DirectorGeorge Albert SmithAn elderly gentleman in a silk hat sits on a stool in front of a store on the main street of town. He has a telescope that he focuses on the ankle of a young woman who is a short distance away. Her husband catches the gent looking. What will the two men now do?
- DirectorCecil M. HepworthA fat policeman finds a crippled beggar is a fraud, and chases him.
- DirectorJ. Stuart BlacktonStarsJ. Stuart BlacktonA cartoonist defies reality when he draws objects that become three-dimensional after he lifts them off his sketch pad.
- DirectorCecil M. HepworthStarsCecil M. HepworthHenry LawleyAs two couples enjoy their evening promenade in a nice but rickety open motor car, without notice, an explosion blows the vehicle to smithereens.
- DirectorGeorges MélièsStarsGeorges MélièsAs if by magic, a weary traveller trying to undress, is foiled by his mutinous clothes as they teleport and multiply before his eyes, refusing to stay on the clothing rack.
- DirectorGeorge Albert SmithStarsHarold SmithA boy looks through glasses at various objects, seen magnified.
- DirectorGeorges MélièsStarsGeorges MélièsA man wishing to catch a train, and having left himself none too much time to do so, rises from his couch and proceeds to don his garments. These, however, change in a most fearful manner, trousers becoming a coat, a coat a waistcoat, etc., etc. After a manful struggle he comes to the conclusion that his clothes are one too many for him, and goes back to bed again, to think the matter over.
- DirectorCecil M. HepworthStarsMay ClarkCecil M. HepworthIn one glorious point-of-view shot, a vehicle dashes full-speed into an ill-starred passer-by.
- DirectorGeorges MélièsStarsBleuette BernonJeanne CalvièreJehanne d'AlcyA divinely inspired peasant woman becomes an army captain for France and then is martyred after she is captured.
- DirectorEdwin S. PorterStarsFred OttNothing new, but an old thing done over again and done well. Some one has attempted to describe a kiss as "something made of nothing," but this is not one of that kind, but one of those old fashioned "home made" kind that sets the whole audience into merriment and motion, and has always proven a popular subject. It is very fine photographically and an exhibit is not complete without it.
- DirectorGeorge Albert SmithStarsLaura BayleyTom GreenA man dreams he is flirting with an attractive young lady, then he wakes up in bed next to his wife.
- DirectorGabriel VeyreA black and white short in which a moving rear facing camera documents people running towards it on the street.
- DirectorMax SkladanowskyStarsMax BüttnerEugen Skladanowsky
- DirectorGeorges MélièsStarsGeorges MélièsA band-leader assembles an orchestra by mystifying means.
- DirectorArthur MarvinStarsAnonymousSherlock Holmes enters his drawing room to find it being burgled, but on confronting the villain is surprised when the latter disappears. Holmes initially attempts to ignore the event by lighting a cigar, but upon the thief's reappearance, Holmes tries to reclaim the sack of stolen goods, drawing a pistol from his dressing gown pocket and firing it at the intruder, who disappears. After Holmes recovers his property, the bag vanishes from his hand into that of the thief, who promptly disappears through a window. At this point the movie ends abruptly with Holmes looking "baffled".
- DirectorGeorges MélièsStarsGeorges Méliès
- DirectorJames WilliamsonStarsSam DaltonA man, objecting to being filmed, comes closer and closer to the camera lens until his mouth is all we see. Then he opens wide and swallows camera and cinematographer. He steps back, chews, and grins.
- DirectorGeorges MélièsStarsGeorges MélièsJehanne d'AlcyBleuette BernonA young woman becomes the eighth wife of the wealthy Bluebeard, whose first seven wives have died under mysterious circumstances.
- DirectorRobert W. PaulA satire on the way that audiences unaccustomed to the cinema didn't know how to react to the moving images on a screen - in this film, an unsophisticated (and stereotypical) country yokel is alternately baffled and terrified, in the latter case by the apparent approach of a steam train
- DirectorFerdinand ZeccaA well-dressed middle-aged man is enjoying a drink at a table with a pretty young woman. He flirts with her, and she seems not to mind his attentions. But is it all too good to be true?
- DirectorGeorges MélièsStarsGeorges MélièsIn this trickery extravaganza, Excelsior, the wizard of illusion, pulls out a handkerchief from his pocket, and after that, everything is possible in his rare and spectacular show.
- DirectorJames WilliamsonFirefighters ring for help, and here comes the ladder cart; they hitch a horse to it. A second horse-drawn truck joins the first, and they head down the street to a house fire. Inside a man sleeps, he awakes amidst flames and throws himself back on the bed. In comes a firefighter, hosing down the blaze. He carries out the victim, down a ladder to safety. Other firefighters enter the house to save belongings, and out comes one with a baby. The saved man rejoices, but it's not over yet. Another resident appears upstairs. He jumps.
- StarsBessie GordonMinnie GordonThe scene is a theatre stage with a painted panorama of French garden, with a central alley between lawns, with a couple of marble steps and balcony in front, and a line of trees in the background. Two young women step in front of this scenario, one in black, and the other in white knee-length skirts and sleeveless shirts. Both are curly blondes, keeping their hair in place by means of ribbons. They have 8-ounce boxing gloves (228 grams) well tied to their wrists. They box each other in fast, intuitive action, with not much protection. Most punches end on the opponent's leather clad fists, but several reach their bare arms, and they exchange at least 20 punches to head and chest, at close quarter and with considerable power, showing that both sisters had reasonable training in boxing, and were not afraid of taking punches themselves. The girl in black seems to dominate most of the 1m30s round, though near the end the girl in white does a courageous comeback # not enough to win, if points were awarded. The fight, or the film copy from which the tape was extracted, ends suddenly, after a solid head punch by the black skirted girl # but it's not enough to down her similarly strong opponent.
- DirectorFerdinand ZeccaStarsJean LiézerBretteauFerdinand ZeccaA burglar is arrested for a murder. He is condemned to death. Before his execution the murderer dreams of his past, of how he was a bank clerk, then turned to crime. The criminal is then taken out of his cell, and a moment later is executed.
- DirectorEdwin S. PorterStarsCarrie NationReenactment of Carrie Nation's saloon smashing in Wichita.
- DirectorGeorges MélièsStarsGeorges MélièsA chemist carries out a bizarre experiment with his own head.
- DirectorWalter R. BoothStarsDaniel SmithIt's Christmas Eve. The miser Scrooge and his assistant Bob Cratchit finish their work in the office and go home. When Scrooge is going to open his front door, he sees the face of Marley's ghost in the door knocker. Inside he takes on his night dress, eats his supper, and falls asleep at the table. Marly's ghost shows Scrooge a vision of himself at a Christmas in the past. Then the ghost escorts him to the present Christmas, and the homes and families of Bob Cratchit and Fred, where Scrooge sees Bob and Fred drink to him in his absence. At last the ghost shows Scrooge the Christmas that might be. Here Scrooge has to face his own grave and the death of Tiny Tim. Confronted with this Scrooge regrets his callousness and egoism.
- DirectorFrederick S. ArmitageTime-lapse photography is used to show the manual dismantling and demolition of New York's Star Theatre over a period of about 30 days.
- DirectorJames WilliamsonStarsSam DaltonA hungry vagabond snatches a wrapped leg of lamb and jumps into a large wooden barrel to hide. Will he get away scot-free?
- DirectorGeorge S. FlemingEdwin S. PorterStarsA.C. AbadieFlorence GeorgieA winner and sure to please. In front of one of the largest newspaper offices is a hot air shaft through which immense volumes of air are forced by a blower. Ladies in crossing this shaft often have their clothes slightly disarranged. A young man is escorting a young lady and talking very earnestly. They walk slowly along until they stand directly over the air shaft. The young lady's skirts are suddenly raised to an almost unreasonable height, greatly to her horror and much to the amusement of the newsboys, bootblacks, and passersby.
- DirectorEdwin S. PorterA baker's assistant throws a handful of dough at a rat. The dough sticks to the side of a barrel and the assistant proceeds to sculpt the dough into various faces and shapes. There is some experimental use of stop motion.
- DirectorGeorge S. FlemingEdwin S. PorterStarsJames H. WhiteThomas WhitePorter's sequential continuity editing links several shots to form a narrative of the famous fairy tale story of Jack and his magic beanstalk. Borrowing on cinematographic methods reminiscent of 'Georges Melies', Porter uses animation, double exposure, and trick photography to illustrate the fairy's apparitions, Jack's dream, and the fast growing beanstalk.
- DirectorFerdinand ZeccaAn early adaptation of the Ali Baba tale.
- DirectorGeorges MélièsCharles UrbanStarsPaul MélièsA re-enactment using actors of the recent coronation of Britain's King Edward VII.
- DirectorGeorges MélièsStarsGeorges MélièsVictor AndréBleuette BernonA group of astronomers go on an expedition to the Moon.
- DirectorGeorges MélièsStarsGeorges MélièsGulliver washes ashore on Lilliput, the inhabitants of which are no more than six inches tall. He later travels to Brobdingnag, a country populated by giants.
- DirectorJames WilliamsonA poor young girl tries to sell matches in a snowstorm. After being robbed by bullies, she lights matches which illuminate visions of a far happier Christmas than the one she faces.
- One of the most realistic train pictures ever offered. Taken on the Auburn division of the Lehigh Valley Railroad, and shows one of the company's largest rotary snowplows, propelled by three powerful engines, plowing through an immense drift of snow.
- DirectorCecil M. HepworthPercy StowStarsMay ClarkCecil M. HepworthBlairThis is the first movie version of the famous story. Alice dozes in a garden, awakened by a dithering white rabbit in waistcoat with pocket watch. She follows him down a hole and finds herself in a hall of many doors.
- DirectorPeter ElfeltStarsFrancesca NathansenVictor BetzonichA fragment of this lost film exists, showing a woman being led to her execution.
- DirectorRobert W. PaulStarsAlfred CollinsA stationary camera looks on as two dapper gents play a game of chess. One drinks and smokes, and when he looks away, his opponent moves two pieces. A fight ensues, first with the squirting of a seltzer bottle, then with fisticuffs. The combatants wrestle each other to the floor and continue the fight out of the camera's view, hidden by the table. The waiter arrives to haul both of them out.
- DirectorFrank S. MottershawA thief jumps a fence and removes the shutter from a house. He enters, but a lad who's witnessed the crime runs off to hail the coppers.
- DirectorFranklyn BarrettA Martian visits a selfish man in order to make him change his ways.
- DirectorWilliam HaggarStarsSid GriffithsWill Haggar Jr.Walter HaggarThree hunters surprise two poachers in the act. The hunters take umbrage and give chase over fences and through fields. The hunters fire away, but the poachers have guns as well, and a fight ensues with casualties for the hunters. Two cops appear and so do dogs as the chase continues. Will the poachers escape, or will they, like the game they were after, be trapped?
- DirectorEdwin S. PorterStarsCarl GoliathTopsyThe execution of Topsy, a female elephant, in a publicity stunt advertising the opening of Luna Park on Coney Island. Topsy was originally owned by Forepaugh Circus where she killed a drunken spectator who burned the tip of her trunk with a cigar. She was sold to Sea Lion Park in 1902 which was then sold to new owners who turned it into Luna Park. After they decided they could no longer handle her, the owners of Luna Park announced they would hang Topsy, leading to an outcry by the ASPCA. The owners then decided they would electrocute the elephant, with a backup plan of feeding her cyanide-laced carrots and strangling her with a cable.
- DirectorWalter R. BoothRobert W. PaulA man and a woman talk beside a street near a corner where a cop stands. Just as a horse-drawn cart rounds the corner, the man backs off the sidewalk saying good-by to his companion. The horse and cart flatten him and continue on, out of the camera's stationary range. The cop runs after the cab, the woman dashes to the body. The cop brings back the driver; is the victim dead?
- DirectorGeorges MélièsStarsGeorges MélièsMarguerite ThévenardBleuette BernonIn this spectacular free adaptation of the popular theatre play "La Biche au Bois", the valiant Prince Bel-Azor pursues a baleful old witch to her impregnable castle, to save the beautiful young Princess Azurine.
- DirectorEdwin S. PorterStarsGilbert M. 'Broncho Billy' AndersonA.C. AbadieGeorge BarnesA group of bandits stage a brazen train hold-up, only to find a determined posse hot on their heels.
- DirectorGeorges MélièsStarsGeorges MélièsTwo demons throw helpless captives into a boiling cauldron, and then try to summon forth their spirits.
- DirectorGeorges MélièsStarsGeorges MélièsA traveler is shown to a room in an inn. After a brief dispute with the hostess and a porter, he is left to himself. But strange things begin to happen in his room, and before long he has created a disturbance that has everyone running to his room to find out what is going on.
- DirectorLucien NonguetFerdinand ZeccaStarsMadame MoreauMonsieur MoreauThe story of Jesus Christ from the proclamation of his Nativity to his crucifixion. Impressive scenes and dynamism of the actors prelude to the Italian colossal movies of the silent period.
- DirectorGeorge S. FlemingEdwin S. PorterStarsEdwin S. PorterVivian VaughanArthur WhiteA fireman rushes into a carriage to rescue a woman from a house fire. He breaks the windowpanes and carries the woman to safety; after dangerous and uncertain moments he also saves the woman's son.
- DirectorGeorges MélièsStarsZizi PapillonIn this brief "trick film" two clowns assemble an enormous magic lantern which first projects moving images, then emits dancing girls.
- DirectorGeorge Albert SmithStarsLaura BayleySmith casts his wife as a sluttish housewife who is mutilated by lighting her oven with paraffin.
- DirectorGeorges MélièsStarsGeorges MélièsThe scene takes place in front of a barrack, where a young soldier is on duty --most laughable and comical.
- DirectorGeorges MélièsStarsGeorges MélièsThe leader of a marching band demonstrates an unusual way of writing music.
- DirectorWilliam K.L. DicksonStarsJoseph JeffersonA compilation of eight earlier films, also from 1896, that chronicle the adventure of Rip van Winkle. Rip encounters dwarf-like mountain-dwellers, gets drunk with them and awakes after twenty years, having significantly aged.
- DirectorAlf CollinsMansion; father's car seen from lover's car; vice versa; church, ring; father arrives too late.
- DirectorGeorge Albert SmithA girl gives a spoonful of medicine to a kitten.
- DirectorJack FrawleyA gang of criminals plans and executes the robbery of a bank in Philadelphia. However, the police are alerted and a chase through the city's streets ensues.
- DirectorAlf CollinsA lord flirts with a dancer and causes trouble backstage at the 'Camberwell Theatre'.
- DirectorRobert W. PaulA barmaid plies a swell with smiles and with cherries from a box that's just been delivered. When she refuses a cherry to a roughly-dressed tradesman who runs a tab at the bar, he pays off his debt in a huff, using all his week's pay. He then storms penniless and without provisions into his ill-furnished house where his wife and two children, ill-clad and ill-fed, cower. Is there any hope for him and for his family? If he does realize how low he's sunk, what help is there to lift him up? Will the family ever know the taste of cherries?
- DirectorAlf CollinsSavage dogs chase a crippled woman and she belabours husband.
- DirectorGeorges MélièsStarsGeorges MélièsAs we are treated with a rare appearance from a true master of the miraculous Asian thaumaturgy, a fine display of multiplication commences, and a serene young geisha completes the enchantment. What does the Chinese conjurer have in mind?
- DirectorGeorges MélièsStarsGeorges MélièsA cook has his hands full with three mischievous devils, who pop in and out of his kitchen.
- A man runs out the stage door of a burlesque theater, followed by billowing smoke. Firefighters run up. One places a ladder up to a second-story window beside the door, and he helps several women wearing burlesque costumes to climb down. On the other side of the door, a firefighter coaxes a woman out of a window. Two fire fighters enter the building and emerge soon after carrying a woman who has collapsed, overcome by smoke.
- Almost 200 women file by a device on the wall from which they take their time checks. A man runs half-way across the screen at the end of the film.
- DirectorGeorges MélièsStarsGeorges MélièsFernande AlbanyJehanne d'AlcyUsing every known means of transportation, several savants from the Geographic Society undertake a journey through the Alps to the Sun which finishes under the sea.
- DirectorGeorges MélièsStarsGeorges MélièsThe king of France receives a marvelous fan. The fan opens to reveal plain lace. This lace becomes pictures of women which then come to life an move in unison as their clothing changes.
- DirectorA.E. WeedA woman stands in front of a building, a chair to her left, dressed in black, full skirt, quarter sleeves, and a scooped bodice. Her hair is piled high. She bows slightly, and, with castanets, begins to dance. She twirls (showing petticoats and dark-stockinged legs). She dips, swirls, then shimmies and shakes her hips, working the castanets continuously. Half way through the dance she stops and, with her teeth, picks up the chair by the top of its back and swings it above her head, balancing it in her teeth as she resumes dancing. She reclines, the chair still above her, never touching it with her hands, until, after a Dervish's twirls, finishes, bows, and exits.
- Facing a stationary camera, sitting at a desk, a man works busily. Posters of burlesque queens are on the wall behind him. A single woman, followed later by later two others, comes into the office seeking a job. The manager hands each a box with a costume in it and points to dressing rooms. Each of the women has a different reaction when she discovers the nature of her costume, and the busy manager has a distinct response to each of the women as well.
- Collection of 21 American short silent films. The films were taken from April 18, 1904 to May 16, 1904 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and document various Westinghouse manufacturing plants.
- DirectorJ. Stuart BlacktonStarsGilbert M. 'Broncho Billy' AndersonH. Kyrle BellewPaul PanzerThe millionaire's child is kidnapped. Sherlock Holmes after many thrilling adventures and narrow escapes rescues the child.
- A very large woman, wearing a shift, stands beside a bed and tries to put on a corset. After failing to get it around her, she calls her husband in. He stands behind her holding the corset and reaches around her so she can grasp and begin to tie it in front. He tightens the laces in back. She's done, and he's done in, collapsing onto the bed as she laughs and laughs at him.
- StarsElizabeth Hepworth
- DirectorGeorges MélièsStarsGeorges MélièsA traveler at an inn is harassed by a mischievous devil in his room.
- DirectorJames WilliamsonThe adventures of an inattentive man. He's at his kitchen table, reading. A woman brings his hat and points to the clock. He continues reading and pours coffee into his hat. He leaves, still reading, trips over a servant who's on her hands and knees cleaning the walk. He walks through jump-roping girls, runs into a mule, walks into the only other person on an empty street, and then walks into the path of a steamroller. Two cyclists approach his flattened body. Out come their air pumps, and soon our genial hero has set off again, nose in his book.
- DirectorEdwin S. PorterStarsAline BoydPhineas NairsJane StewartA well-dressed woman steals several items from a department store. Meanwhile, a poor woman with two small children steals a loaf of bread out of desperation, and she is quickly caught and arrested. In court, what penalty will each face?
- DirectorEdwin S. PorterIt's December 24th, and 'Santa Claus' is busy feeding his reindeer and finishing up the toys that he will soon deliver. Meanwhile, the children in a large family hang their stockings over the fireplace, and then are put to bed. But the restless children cannot sleep, and they soon start a lively pillow fight. Back at his workshop, Santa loads up everything and begins his journey.
- DirectorLewin FitzhamonA young couple are having a picnic with a chaperone who is determined to keep them separated. When she falls asleep, they see their chance to be together. They do this with the help of a trick that makes use of a nearby hedge.
- DirectorFiloteo AlberiniStarsUbaldo Maria Del ColleCarlo RosaspinaThe Italian army captures Rome after refusal to surrender this unifying Italy.
- DirectorLewin FitzhamonCecil M. HepworthStarsBlairMay ClarkBarbara HepworthA dog leads its master to his kidnapped baby.
- DirectorAlbert CapellaniStarsGeorges VinterPaul CapellaniLiane de PougyThe legend of Aladdin and his magic lamp: Aladdin finds a magic lamp which brings him wealth, luxury, and marriage to a princess. But his rival, an evil magician, steals the lamp for himself. Aladdin must regain the lamp or lose everything.