Richard Brown, Barry Anthony

The Kinetoscope (eBook, ePUB)

A British History

• Format: ePub

Produktbeschreibung

The story of how the motion-picture device was developed, and its role in Victorian society and early cinema. The position of the kinetoscope in film history is central and undisputed; indicative of its importance is the detailed attention American scholars have given to examining its history. However, the Kinetoscope's development in Britain has not been well documented and much current information about it is incomplete and out of date. This book, for the first time, presents a comprehensive account of the unauthorized and often colorful development of British kinetoscopes, using many previously unpublished sources. The commercial and technical backgrounds of the kinetoscope are looked at in detail; the style and content of the earliest British films analyzed; and the device's place in the wider world of Victorian popular entertainment examined. In addition, a unique legal case is revealed and a number of previously unrecorded film pioneers are identified and discussed.

Produktdetails

• Verlag: John Libbey Publishing
• Seitenzahl: 243
• Erscheinungstermin: 22. Dezember 2021
• Englisch
• ISBN-13: 9780861969319
• Artikelnr.: 49926083

Autorenporträt

Richard Brown is author of The History of the British Mutoscope and Biograph Company and editor of the facsimile edition of W. K-L. Dickson's The Biograph in Battle: Its Story in the South African War.

Barry Anthony is author of Murder, Mayhem and Music Hall and contributor to Who's Who of Victorian Cinema; the Encyclopaedia of Early Cinema; and Directors in British and Irish Cinema: A Reference Companion.

Inhaltsangabe

Introduction: An International Perspective and Timeline
Part One [Richard Brown]
Chapter 1. Early Developments
Pre-October 1894 notices in Britain about the Kinetoscope. Exhibition of
the 'Electrical Wonder' a forerunner. Original exploitation plans by
Colonel Gouraud. The formation of the Continental Commerce Company and
their agreement with Edison for the sale of Kinetoscopes in the UK.
Chapter 2. The Arrival of the Kinetoscope in Britain
Initial reaction. Press notices on the opening of the Oxford Street shop.
The phonograph business and its background of illegality. Both the
Kinetoscope and the phonograph promoted under the 'umbrella' of Edison's
name. Leading phonograph personalities, such as J. L. Young and James Hough
become interested in the Kinetoscope business. Hough and his connection
with the Greeks and Chinnock. Plans to market 'bogus' machines. Arrival on
the scene of Robert Paul and Birt Acres.
Chapter 3. The Legal and Historical Context to the Kinetoscope in Britain
The importance of correctly understanding English intellectual property law
in interpreting the history of the Kinetoscope. Photographic copyright and
how it correctly defines the commercial relationship between Paul and
Acres. Claims made by both examined and assessed. The English patent system
and Edison's attitude to patents. English patent applications for
Kinetoscopes and Kineto-Phonographs. The Merchandise Marks Act and the law
relating to 'Passing Off'. The Kinetoscope Court Case. What it did and what
it did not do. The incomplete and inaccurate transmission of historical
information and the difficulties this has caused to film history before
April 1896. The problem of 'manipulation' in the statements of both Acres
and Paul.
Chapter 4. Marketing the Kinetoscope ritain
The commercial and operational aspects of Kinetoscope exhibition. The
economic base defined. Price behaviour. Profit and capital return periods
defined. The importance of West Yorkshire in Kinetoscope history. Cecil
Wray, and John Henry Rigg and the design innovation of his 'Baby'
Kinetoscope. Other showmen such as James Walker, J. H. Quain, Alfred Lomax
and Fred Duval. Advertising methods used.
Chapter 5. Commercial Decline and the Arrival of Projected Film
The decline in both purchase and sale price of machines quantified.
Reduction of prices by the Continental Commerce Company. The downgrading
'role' of the Kinetoscope
- from 'star' attraction to peripheral attraction at Church bazaars, etc.
Paul sells up his Earl's Court machines. The 'Time Machine' entertainment
re-examined. Acres and projected film. Early Acres and Paul demonstrations.
January to end of March 1896. Later notices. Ran in parallel with film
projection, as it had with the phonograph. Conclusions.
Part Two [Barry Anthony]
Chapter 6. The films of Paul and Acres
Looks at Paul's and Acres' environments in Hatton Garden and Barnet. Study
of British Kinetoscope films and their cultural background.
Chapter 7. A Premiere at the Nag's Head
Paul's exploitation of his Kinetoscope and relationship with the notorious
Lord Hinton. Break up of Paul/Acres partnership.
Chapter 8. Magic, Magnates and Galvanic Forces
Looks at the careers of Frederick William Trautner/Duval; Samuel Stott/Herr
Samuels; 'Professor'Alfred Jones and Alfred Henry Vidler. Also music hall's
two main business figures Hugh Moss and Oswald Stoll and their exploitation
of Kinetoscope. Discussion of changing face of entertainment. Becoming more
family orientated. Creation of large scale entertainment venues.
Chapter 9. The Kaiser's Kinetoscope
Acres filming of the Opening of Kaiser Wilhelm Canal and Sedan Day
celebrations. Potential of film as a propaganda medium.
Chapter 10. First Transatlantic Filming
Edison's cameraman Theodore Heise and his short sojourn in Europe. Harry
Short's possible filming trip to US in March 1896.
Chapter 11. The Charters Towers Kinetophone Mystery
Compares mysterious Australian Kinetophone films with known phonograph
recordings. Looks at Andrew Holland's possible connection. Also examines
the importance of celebrities/celebrity in Kinetoscope and film forever
after.
Chapter 12. A New World of Entertainment
Looks at social backgrounds of Alfred Lomax, Frederick Dalton and the
Simpson brothers and how they fitted into the wider entertainment system.
Examines holiday resorts and the Kinetoscope fitting into a world of new
technology.
Appendixes
I. The Legal Case; II. List of Kinetoscope Exhibitions in UK; III. List of
UK Kinetoscope films (including Acres' German films); IV. Newspaper Review
of the play Outcasts of London, July 1895