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17/7/1894: The Movies' First Lady is Banned
No sooner were the movies born than the spectre of censorship loomed large over its shoulder. In mid-March 1894, Edison’s studio shot a kinetoscope film of Carmencita, a well-known dancer at Koster & Bial’s Music Hall in New York, performing the Serpentine Dance. Carmencita was, in fact, the first woman to perform in front of a motion picture camera – and the first to be censored. On the 17th July, Senator Bradley banned the film from being shown in Newark, New Jersey because the dancer’s undergarments were clearly visible. See the movie here.
The film is typical of much of Edison’s early output in that his films were primarily designed to appeal to a male audience. In addition to work scenes and boxing matches, the female form in motion was a staple of Edison’s early work. Other examples include Trapeze (April, 1894) and Bertoldi (Table Contortion) (April 1894), and a number of films featuring the dancer Annabelle Whitford. [ADD]
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