Collection Items
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ArticleLife of Thomas Alva Edison One of the most famous and prolific inventors of all time, Thomas Alva Edison exerted a tremendous influence on modern life, contributing inventions such as the incandescent light bulb, the phonograph, and the motion picture camera, as well as improving the telegraph and telephone. In his 84 years, he acquired an astounding 1,093 patents. Aside from being an inventor, Edison also managed to become… -
Film, VideoEdison kinetoscopic record of a sneeze, January 7, 1894
Sneeze | Fred Ott's sneeze | Ott's sneeze | Kinetoscopic record of a sneeze "Considered to be the first motion picture given legal status by copyright acceptance. The forty-five frames it contains were sent in for copyright as a still picture. The action consists of a man, Fred Ott, sneezing. Application for copyright was filed by William K. Laurie Dickson, Edison's assistant and supervisor of the new motion picture project. The frames were rephotographed from the still picture…- Contributor: Heise, William - Hendricks (Gordon) Collection (Library of Congress) - Paper Print Collection (Library of Congress) - Thomas A. Edison, Inc - Dickson, W. K.-L. (William Kennedy-Laurie)
- Date: 1894
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Film, VideoA day with Thomas A. Edison Documentary recording the 74-year-old Edison's collaborations with his staff, conversations with industrial leaders, and supervision of the factory's production line. The majority of the film chronicles Edison's trip to the incandescent light bulb factory and details its manufacturing process.- Contributor: General Electric Company - Edison Collection (Library of Congress) - Bray Studios
- Date: 1922
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ArticleEarly Edison Experiements with Sight and Sound Frames from early experimental attempt to create sound motion pictures by the Edison Manufacturing Company. W.K.L. Dickson plays the violin in front of a horn connected to a cylinder recording machine. From the inception of motion pictures, various inventors attempted to unite sight and sound through "talking" motion pictures. The Edison Company is known to have experimented with this as early as the fall…- Date: 1894
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ArticleHistory of Edison Sound Recordings "I was never so taken aback in my life--I was always afraid of things that worked the first time."- Date: 1877
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ArticleHistory of Edison Motion Pictures "I am experimenting upon an instrument which does for the eye what the phonograph does for the ear, which is the recording and reproduction of things in motion ...."- Date: 1877
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ArticleTimeline The following timeline focuses on major events in Thomas A. Edison''s personal life and on his motion picture and phonograph inventions. For a more detailed of Edison''s life and work, please consult the Thomas A. Edison Papers website at Rutgers University External.
- Date: 1847
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Film, VideoThe stenographer's friend, or, What was accomplished by an Edison business phonograph
What was accomplished by an Edison business phonograph It's a busy day at the office, and the stenographer is exhausted from trying to keep up with the demands on her skills. Even when she stays late, she cannot catch up with all of the work. But then a man comes into the office to demonstrate the many advantages of the Edison System, his company's new business phonograph.- Contributor: Edison Collection (Library of Congress) - Thomas A. Edison, Inc
- Date: 1910
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ArticleSelected Bibliography General Biographies Baldwin, Neil. Edison: Inventing the Century. New York: Hyperion, 1995. Conot, Robert. Thomas A. Edison: A Streak of Luck. New York: Da Capo Press, Inc., 1979. Dyer, Frank Lewis, and Thomas C. Martin, Edison, His Life and Inventions. New York: Harper & Brothers, 1910. Jehl, Francis. Menlo Park Reminiscences. New York: Dover Publications, 1990. Josephson,
- Date: 1928
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ArticleHistory of the Edison Disc Phonograph Photograph of Thomas A. Edison listening to the New Edison Diamond Disc Phonograph. Advertisement in The Gramophone, December 1923. Cylinders peaked in popularity around 1905. After this, discs and disc players, most notably the Victrolas, began to dominate the market. Columbia Records, an Edison competitor, had stopped marketing cylinders in 1912. The Edison Company had been fully devoted to cylinder phonographs, but, concerned with…
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ArticleBiography Inventor Thomas Alva Edison profoundly influenced modern life through inventions such as the incandescent light bulb, the phonograph, and the motion picture camera. During his lifetime, he acquired 1,093 patents, and marketed many of his inventions to the public.- Date: 1847
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ArticleOrigins of Motion Pictures An overview of Thomas A. Edison's involvement in motion pictures detailing the development of the Kinetoscope, the films of the Edison Manufacturing Company, and the company's ultimate decline is given here. This essay relies heavily on the research and writings of film historians Charles Musser, David Robinson, and Eileen Bowser. More detailed information can be found in their books listed in the Bibliography, as…
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ArticleDecline of the Edison Company Advertisement for the Edison Kinetoscope. The Moving Picture News, March 29, 1913, p. 6. Despite its arrangement with the Motion Picture Patents Company, however, Edison films could not keep pace with the quality of competitors' films in terms of the advances made in narration. As a result Porter was taken away from his position of cameraman and made studio head, and later a consultant.…
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CollectionInventing Entertainment: The Early Motion Pictures and Sound Recordings of the Edison Companies This site features 341 motion pictures, 81 disc sound recordings, and other related materials, such as photographs and original magazine articles. Cylinder sound recordings will be added to this site in the near future. In addition, histories are given of Edison's involvement with motion pictures and sound recordings, as well as a special page focusing on the life of the great inventor. Prolific inventor…
- Date: 1847
Collection Items: View 430 Items
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Film, Video[Dickson greeting]
Variant LC title: Early Edison camera tests Experimental film made with the Edison-Dickson-Heise experimental horizontal-feed kinetograph camera and viewer, using 3/4-inch wide film.- Contributor: Heise, William - Dickson, W. K.-L. (William Kennedy-Laurie) - Edison Collection (Library of Congress) - Thomas A. Edison, Inc
- Date: 1891
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Film, Video[Men boxing]
Variant LC title: Early Edison camera tests Experimental film made with the Edison-Dickson-Heise experimental horizontal-feed kinetograph camera and viewer, using 3/4-inch wide film.- Contributor: Heise, William - Dickson, W. K.-L. (William Kennedy-Laurie) - Edison Collection (Library of Congress) - Thomas A. Edison, Inc
- Date: 1891
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ArticleHistory of the Cylinder Phonograph Phonograph Catalog/Advertisement: "I want a phonograph in every home...". The phonograph was developed as a result of Thomas Edison's work on two other inventions, the telegraph and the telephone. In 1877, Edison was working on a machine that would transcribe telegraphic messages through indentations on paper tape, which could later be sent over the telegraph repeatedly. This development led Edison to speculate that a…
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Film, Video[Newark athlete. No. 1]
Variant title in Edison motion pictures 1890-1900: Club swinger, no. 1 | Variant title in Edison motion pictures 1890-1900: Indian club swinger | Variant LC title: Early Edison camera tests | Variant LC title: Newark athlete Experimental film made with the Edison-Dickson-Heise experimental horizontal-feed kinetograph camera and viewer, using 3/4-inch wide film.- Contributor: Heise, William - Dickson, W. K.-L. (William Kennedy-Laurie) - Edison Collection (Library of Congress) - Thomas A. Edison, Inc
- Date: 1891
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Film, VideoDischarging a Whitehead torpedo
Title in Edison films catalog: Discharging a torpedo | Variant title in Edison motion pictures 1890-1900: Discharging Whitehead torpedo "Taken on board the U.S. torpedo boat "Morris." It shows the crew loading a Whitehead torpedo into the tube and then discharging it. The torpedo can be seen running along the surface of the water for a distance of over half a mile. 75 feet"--Edison films catalog.- Contributor: Paper Print Collection (Library of Congress) - Niver (Kemp) Collection (Library of Congress) - White, James H. (James Henry) - Thomas A. Edison, Inc
- Date: 1900
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Film, VideoBuffalo stockyards
Title in Edison films catalog: Buffalo stock yards "A long line of horses, mules and ponies are led, driven and ridden into the yards, where they are sold and distributed"--Edison films catalog.- Contributor: Heise, William - White, James H. (James Henry) - Paper Print Collection (Library of Congress) - Thomas A. Edison, Inc
- Date: 1897
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Film, VideoSioux ghost dance
Title from Edison films catalog: Ghost dance "One of the most peculiar customs of the Sioux Tribe is here shown, the dancers being genuine Sioux Indians, in full war paint and war costumes. 40 feet"--Edison films catalog.- Contributor: Heise, William - Dickson, W. K.-L. (William Kennedy-Laurie) - Hendricks (Gordon) Collection (Library of Congress) - Thomas A. Edison, Inc
- Date: 1894
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Film, VideoMay Irwin kiss
Title in Edison films catalog: Kiss | Kiss From Maguire & Baucus catalogue: An osculatory performance by May Irwin and John Rice. The most popular subject ever shown. From Edison films catalog: By May Irwin and John Rice. They get ready to kiss, begin to kiss, and kiss and kiss and kiss in a way that brings down the house every time. 50 feet. $7.50.- Contributor: Heise, William - Hendricks (Gordon) Collection (Library of Congress) - Rice, John C. - Irwin, May - Thomas A. Edison, Inc - McNally, John J.
- Date: 1896
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Film, VideoCapsize of lifeboat
Title in Edison films catalog, no. 94: Capsize of life boat | Title in Edison films catalog, no. 105: Capsize of a lifeboat "Daily practise [sic] of life boat crew, showing boat being upset purposely by the men. As these boats are self-righting and self-bailing, the scene is particularly interesting. 50 feet"--Edison films catalog. "Pacific Coast Life Saving Service series: These subjects are illustrative of the work performed by the Life Saving Corps of the United States Government, and show the methods in vogue at one of…- Contributor: White, James H. (James Henry) - United States. Life-Saving Service - Paper Print Collection (Library of Congress) - Blechynden, Frederick - Thomas A. Edison, Inc - Fort Point Life-Saving Station (U.S.) - United States. Revenue-Cutter Service
- Date: 1897
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Film, VideoWash day in Mexico
Title in Edison films catalog: Washday in Mexico "Mexican International R. R. Series: the interesting views catalogued below were photographed by our artists, while enjoying the special privileges extended to Mr. Edison's party. Under a broad and intelligent management, the Mexican International is increasing its tourist business every year. The pictures show what a quaint and wonderful foreign country lies at the very gateway of our southern frontier"--Edison films catalog. "In front…- Contributor: Paper Print Collection (Library of Congress) - White, James H. (James Henry) - Blechynden, Frederick - Thomas A. Edison, Inc
- Date: 1898