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1896-1900 |
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| 1896 | ||||
| 15/1 - | Raff and Gammon negotiate with Edison to construct Thomas Armat’s Phantascope projector, which will be renamed the Edison Vitascope. [MORE] [ADD] | |||
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| 9/4 - | Colonel William N. Selig founds the Mutoscope and Film Co. (later to become Selig Polyscope) in Chicago. [MORE] | |||
| 23/4 - | Edison’s Vitascope premieres at Koster & Bial’s Music Hall. [MORE] | |||
| 11/5 - | The Lathams unveil their new improved Eidoloscope. [MORE] | |||
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| 15/6 - | Edison’s The Kiss, a re-enactment of a scene from John McNally’s hit stage play starring May Irwin and John C. Rice is released. [MORE] | |||
| 28/6 - | William T ‘Pop’ Rock and Walter J. Wainwright open the world’s first cinema at 623 Canal Street, corner of Exchange Alley in New Orleans, Louisiana. [MORE] | |||
| 14/9 - | American Mutoscope & Biograph demonstrate their Biograph to an audience for the first time at the Alvin Theater in Pittsburgh. [MORE] | |||
| 1897 | ||||
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| Jan - | The American Biograph is introduced to England by Elias Koopman. [MORE] | |||
| 17/3 - | Enoch Rector and Samuel J. Tilden film a boxing match between James Corbett and Fitzsimmons on Rector’s Veriscope in widescreen. [MORE] | |||
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| 15/5 - | Siegmund Lubin’s first film, Unveiling of the Washington Monument is released for peep-show exhibition. [MORE] | |||
| 16/5 - | The Burglar on the Roof, Vitagraph’s first fiction film, is released. [MORE] | |||
| 24/7 - | The Dingley Bill, which will result in a US embargo on the Lumieres’ Cinematograph, is passed. [MORE] | |||
| 5/8 - | Admiral Cigarette, the first filmed advertisement, is lodged for copyright at the Library of Congress. [MORE] | |||
| 31/8 - | The patent is finally issued for Edison’s Kinetoscope. [MORE] | |||
| 22/11 - | The Horitz Passion Play premieres at the Philadelphia Academy of Music. [MORE] | |||
| – The American Vitagraph Co is formed. [MORE] | ||||
| – American Mutoscope & Biograph Company’s The Haverstraw Tunnel, the first ‘Phantom Ride’ film, is released. [MORE] | ||||
| 1898 | ||||
| 15/2 - |
The sinking of the USS Maine and the ensuing Spanish-American War revive flagging interest in cinema as filmmakers film re-enactments of key incidents in response to anti-Spanish sentiment aroused by the yellow press. [MORE] |
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| Apr - |
Biograph cameraman WKL Dickson films Pope Leo XIII in the Vatican. [MORE] |
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– Edison brings legal proceedings against Vitagraph and Biograph in an attempt to secure a monopoly over the film industry. [MORE] |
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| 1899 | ||||
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3/11 - |
The World Heavyweight Championship bout marks the first fight to be filmed under artificial light. Although Biograph have the contract, Vitagraph also covertly film the match. [MORE] | |||
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| – Siegmund Lubin opens the Cineograph Theater, believed to be the first purpose-built cinema in the States. [MORE] | ||||
| Other Films of Note | ||||
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The Tramp's Dream (Siegmund Lubin) [MORE] [ADD] |
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| 1900 | ||||
| 20/1 - | Edison terminates Vitagraph’s licence in retaliation for a threatened lawsuit over disputed royalty payments [MORE] [ADD] | |||
| Nov - | William Selig incorporates Selig Polyscope [MORE] [ADD] | |||
| - Siegmund Lubin receives patents for his projectors and continues to defy Thomas Edison's legal challenges [MORE] [ADD] | ||||
| Other Films of Note | ||||
| The Enchanted Drawing (J. Stuart Blackton) [MORE] [ADD] | ||||
| Chinese Massacring Christians (James F. Frawley, Jacob Blair Smith) [MORE] [ADD] | ||||