Three jumping Tommies
Title from M/B/RS copyright descriptions, L14866: Three jumping acrobatic Tommies | Title from Film & Television catalog card: Unidentified Peters No 3: Vaudeville acts
Opening title introduces "Three jumping Tommies in their original acrobatic stunts," with "Tommies" apparently referring to the performers' British military uniform costumes of caps, shirts and ties, knickers to the knees, tights, and short boots. Cuts to a long shot of a stage with a painted backdrop of a garden with fountains. From stage right march three young men; a short boy flanked by…
Contributor:
Afi/Peters (S.E.) Collection (Library of Congress) - Spanuth, Hans A. - Commonwealth Pictures Corporation
Date:1920
Film, Video
Kruger and Ward
Title from Film & Television catalog card: Unidentified Peters No 3: Vaudeville acts
Opening title introduces "Kruger and Ward, the tall and short of it." The camera iris opens on a stage with a painted backdrop of a canyon and waterfall. Two clowns walk across the stage: a dwarf with a fake bald pate dressed in evening clothes and a top hat, and a tall, thin clown dressed as a woman. The dwarf follows the "woman" with…
Contributor:
Kruger and Ward - Afi/Peters (S.E.) Collection (Library of Congress) - Spanuth, Hans A. - Commonwealth Pictures Corporation
Date:1919
Film, Video
Toto Brothers
Unidentified Peters No 3: Vaudeville acts
Opening title identifies this as a "balancing and iron jaw novelty act." Cuts to a long shot of a stage with a carpet and dark curtains as a backdrop, in front of which stand four chairs and a table. From stage left enters a man wearing dark leotards with a single-shouldered top, a waist belt, and dark high-top shoes with a white border. From…
Contributor:
Toto Brothers - Afi/Peters (S.E.) Collection (Library of Congress) - Spanuth, Hans A. - Commonwealth Pictures Corporation
Date:1919
Film, Video
Jumbo, the trained elephant
Inventory title: Spanuth's vodvil - Zouary no. 148 | Vaudeville de-luxe: four acts | Zouary can no148
Camera iris opens from black to a smiling man standing in front of an elephant, who is seated on her haunches on a stool with her front legs raised in the air. They are apparently on a stage with a painted backdrop of a forest. The man gives the elephant a treat, who then stands as the iris closes. Another iris effect opens on…
Contributor:
Afi/Zouary (Maurice) Collection (Library of Congress) - U.S. Personal Film Company - Spanuth, Hans A. - Commonwealth Pictures Corporation
Date:1919
Film, Video
[Animal act with baboon, dog and donkey]
Inventory title: Spanuth's vodvil - Zouary no. 149 | Zouary can no. 149
Opens on a closeup of a baboon "playing" a violin, then cuts to a medium shot of the same. The baboon wears a white short-sleeved shirt with a loose bow tie and tweed pants. Cuts to a closeup of the baboon in a circular mask or iris effect, without the violin but with a collar around his neck and a striped kitten that he…
Contributor:
Afi/Zouary (Maurice) Collection (Library of Congress) - Spanuth, Hans A. - Commonwealth Pictures Corporation
Date:1919
Film, Video
Tom Tinker's pony patter
Inventory title: Spanuth's vodvil - Zouary no. 149 | Zouary can no 149
Camera iris opens to six ponies with decorated harnesses and plumed halters, standing in the center of a stage with a painted backdrop of mountains. Cuts to two ponies on a seesaw, with a moustached man in a white uniform with dark piping and a white cap holding their leads. A second trainer in a dark suit can also be seen occasionally with the…
Contributor:
Afi/Zouary (Maurice) Collection (Library of Congress) - Spanuth, Hans A. - Commonwealth Pictures Corporation
Date:1919
Film, Video
Kawana Trio
Inventory title: Spanuth's vodvil - Zouary no. 159 | Title in MAVIS: Zouary can no. 159
Opening title identifies the Kawana Trio as "artistic foot jugglers." The camera iris opens to reveal three Asians--two men and a woman--dressed in kimonos and looking down. They raise their heads and look at the camera, smiling, as the iris closes. Another iris effect opens to a stage with a dark background and a decorated, cushioned platform center stage. The men now wear white…
Contributor:
Kawana Trio - Afi/Zouary (Maurice) Collection (Library of Congress) - Spanuth, Hans A. - Commonwealth Pictures Corporation
Date:1919
Film, Video
Dancing darkey boy
In this outside scene, a small African American boy--dressed in a cap, leggings, and suit with short pants--dances on a table or other flat, raised surface. Surrounding and encouraging him with hand claps is a group of men, dressed in a variety of styles, from shirtsleeves and caps to suits and hats, with one gentleman in a formal suit and top hat. Visible in…
Contributor:
Thomas A. Edison, Inc - Paper Print Collection (Library of Congress) - Heise, William
Date:1897-01-01
Film, Video
Sandow
Variant title from Biograph production log: Sandow (no breathing)
Strong-man Eugene (Eugen) Sandow poses in a long shot on a bare stage against a black background, wearing only tight trunks and laced sandals. He begins with his arms folded against his chest, looking off screen left, then strikes a variety of poses that accentuate his muscular development. These positions include flexing his right arm with the fist to his head and face to…
Contributor:
Sandow, Eugen - American Mutoscope Company - Paper Print Collection (Library of Congress) - American Mutoscope and Biograph Company
Date:1896
Film, Video
Mr. Jack in the dressing room
Shooting title in Biograph production logs: Mr. Jack visits the dressing room | Mister Jack in the dressing room
Opens on a stage set of the interior of a theatrical dressing room. Along a bar that serves as a dressing table sit three costumed young women adjusting their hair and makeup in three mirrors hanging from the wall. Two of the women wear very short outfits that show their stockinged legs; the third woman is dressed in a ruffled dress to the knee.…
Contributor:
Niver (Kemp) Collection (Library of Congress) - American Mutoscope and Biograph Company - Paper Print Collection (Library of Congress) - Weed, A. E.
Date:1904
Film, Video
Chimmie Hicks at the races
Title from American Mutoscope & Biograph picture catalogue: Above the limit | Title from Biograph production log: Jimmy Hicks at the races
On a bare stage backed by a dark curtain, a man dressed in a three-piece suit and overcoat holds a racing program and excitedly watches a race supposedly taking place offstage. With enthusiastic jumping and other delighted pantomime, he makes it clear his horse has won the race. A second man in a suit and hat enters from stage right and pays Chimmie his…
Contributor:
Grapewin, Charles - American Mutoscope and Biograph Company - Niver (Kemp) Collection (Library of Congress) - Armitage, F. S. - Paper Print Collection (Library of Congress)
Date:1900
Film, Video
Latina, contortionist
Title in Biograph production log: Latina, contortionist-act-with-rings
A woman wearing a light-colored leotard, gathered at the waist, and tights stands against a black background. Although she is filmed in a long shot, her feet are cut off in the frame. She opens with a flourish of her arms and faces the camera. First stretching up with her arms, Latina then bends in half at the waist, steps into a metal ring…
Contributor:
Bitzer, G. W. - American Mutoscope and Biograph Company - Latina - Niver (Kemp) Collection (Library of Congress) - Paper Print Collection (Library of Congress)
Date:1905
Film, Video
Subub surprises the burglar
Variant title from Edison films catalog, no. 185: Subbubs surprises the burglar
Opens on a bedroom set, with a man in a white nightshirt asleep on a Murphy bed. The bedroom window is raised from the outside, and a man dressed in black clothes and cap enters, furtively looks around the room, and checks to see that the bed's occupant is asleep. The burglar then rummages through the clothes in a chest of drawers and, finding…
Contributor:
Thomas A. Edison, Inc - Porter, Edwin S. - Paper Print Collection (Library of Congress)
Date:1903
Film, Video
Dance, Franchonetti Sisters
Variant title from American Mutoscope & Biograph picture catalogue: Dance, Franchenette Sisters
Three young women with dark, curly hair stand on a stage with a black background and patterned carpet or tile underfoot. They wear tights, ballet shoes, and frilly dresses to the knee with multiple petticoats and ruffled drawers. They begin by raising their right legs up by their heads, and then perform a dance with a variety of kicks and leg movements, their hands…
Contributor:
Paper Print Collection (Library of Congress) - American Mutoscope and Biograph Company
Date:1903
Film, Video
Cake walk
Title in American Mutoscope & Biograph picture catalogue, Nov. 1902 [MI], p. 12: Coon cake walk | Title in Biograph photo catalog, v. 1 [MI]: Darkey cake walk | Cakewalk
Five African Americans--three men and two women--perform a cakewalk, a dance featuring fancy strutting that was named after the prize awarded in the original contests. The dancers wear rather formal attire, with the men in dark suits and black tie and the women in full-length, high-collared dark dresses; one woman carries a small American flag. As they step in place against a light background,…
Contributor:
Paper Print Collection (Library of Congress) - American Mutoscope and Biograph Company
Date:1897
Film, Video
Comedy cake walk
Comedy cakewalk
Five African Americans--three men and two women--perform an exaggerated cakewalk in fancy evening clothes. Two of the men wear formal black tie in tuxedos with tails, while the third wears a gray tux of shiny material with an extremely long overcoat and exaggerated cuffs. All have matching top hats and canes. The women wear highly decorated hats and tight-fitting, frilly dresses of only mid-calf…
Contributor:
Paper Print Collection (Library of Congress) - American Mutoscope and Biograph Company
Date:1903
Film, Video
Betsy Ross dance
Title in Biograph photo catalog, v. 5: Betsey Ross dance | Title in Biograph production log: Betsy Ross dance (Little Anita)
Opens on a bare stage with a painted backdrop of an interior theater wall and pillar. From screen right, a woman in a short, ruffled dress and sash, tights, and ballet slippers, with long, dark hair worn in curls twirls onstage and performs an enthusiastic dance. Her movements include some with an apparent ballet influence, such as pirouettes and walking on pointe. She also…
Contributor:
Little Anita - Paper Print Collection (Library of Congress) - Bitzer, G. W. - American Mutoscope and Biograph Company
Date:1903
Film, Video
A nymph of the waves
"This is a double-printing picture combining a view of Mlle. Cathrina Bartho in her celebrated "Speedway" dance, with one of the Whirlpool Rapids of Niagara Falls, the resulting effect being that the dancer appears to be gliding over the surface of the rushing waters. 25 feet"--American Mutoscope & Biograph picture catalogue. Superimposition of a woman dancing over footage of crashing waves from the rapids…
Contributor:
Bartho, Cathrina - Paper Print Collection (Library of Congress) - American Mutoscope and Biograph Company
Date:1900
Film, Video
Ameta
Shooting title in Biograph production records: Ameta the lily dance
Two large squares of white fabric completely cover a woman standing on a stage with a paneled wall as a backdrop. The fabric is supported in front and back of her by some sort of flexible poles along the top edge. The woman bends these rods and peaks out from the resulting hole, with her head and neck visible. She then performs what appears…
Contributor:
Armitage, F. S. - Paper Print Collection (Library of Congress) - American Mutoscope and Biograph Company - Ameta
Date:1903
Film, Video
Happy Hooligan
Variant title from Biograph bulletins 1896-1908: Happy Hooligan interferes
Opens on a stage set of a house exterior, complete with a door, window, and ivy on the walls. In front of the house, an organ-grinder plays as Happy Hooligan listens and claps along merrily. The Hooligan character is dressed as a tramp in a ragged and torn suit, and sports a bald pate with an incredibly tiny hat perched atop it. A middle-aged…
Contributor:
Niver (Kemp) Collection (Library of Congress) - Paper Print Collection (Library of Congress) - Bitzer, G. W. - American Mutoscope and Biograph Company
Date:1903
Film, Video
Karina
Alternate title in AFI catalog: film beginnings, 1893-1910: Karina, specialty dancer
On a bare stage with a black background stands a woman with short, curly hair, wearing a dark dress with a sleeveless top, low-cut bodice, mid-calf length skirt, and layers of petticoats. Smiling at the camera, she seductively raises her skirt to reveal the multiple white petticoats, as well as her lacy, white bloomers to the knees, white tights, and a garter on her…
Contributor:
Paper Print Collection (Library of Congress) - American Mutoscope and Biograph Company - Karina - Bonine, R. (Robert K.)
Date:1898
Film, Video
The tramp's unexpected skate
"Here is a picture that appeals to both young and old. A weary looking tramp lies asleep under the wall of a picturesque park. Two mischievous boys enter on roller skates. They take a cautious view of Weary Willie, when a bright idea enters their heads. They hold a short conference and then removing their skates, they proceed to strap them firmly to the…
Contributor:
Thomas A. Edison, Inc - Paper Print Collection (Library of Congress)
Date:1901
Film, Video
Stealing a dinner
Title in Biograph production log: Stealing a dinner by dogs
A man sits at the dinner table, with a row of dogs behind him and a black dog sitting near the table in the foreground. When the master rings a bell for service, a dog enters on her hind legs dressed in a servant's cap and apron. As she hops toward the table, however, a cat jumps upon the surface. The master tosses the…
Contributor:
Paper Print Collection (Library of Congress) - Arniotis, Leonidas - Bitzer, G. W. - American Mutoscope and Biograph Company
Date:1903
Film, Video
A wake in "Hell's Kitchen"
"This scene is laid in the parlor of a New York tenement. Two watchers at the wake are smoking and drinking, while the widow is weeping over the coffin. The attention of the three is attracted for an instant, and the supposed corpse rises up, drinks all the beer in the pitcher which is standing on a table nearby, and lies down in the…
Contributor:
Marvin, Arthur W. - Paper Print Collection (Library of Congress) - American Mutoscope and Biograph Company
Date:1903
Film, Video
A frontier flirtation
Title from Biograph bulletins, 1896-1908: Frontier flirtation, or, How the tenderfoot won out | How the tenderfoot won out
Opens on a stage with a painted backdrop of a forest or garden. On a park bench center stage sits a well-dressed woman with a dark veil obscuring her face, holding an open parasol overhead and a closed fan in her lap. A mustached cowboy enters, dressed in fringed chaps, boots, Western hat, neck kerchief, and pistol belt. When he spies the woman, he…
Contributor:
Paper Print Collection (Library of Congress) - Bitzer, G. W. - American Mutoscope and Biograph Company
Film, VideoThree jumping Tommies
Film, VideoKruger and Ward
Film, VideoToto Brothers
Film, VideoJumbo, the trained elephant
Film, Video[Animal act with baboon, dog and donkey]
Film, VideoTom Tinker's pony patter
Film, VideoKawana Trio
Film, VideoDancing darkey boy In this outside scene, a small African American boy--dressed in a cap, leggings, and suit with short pants--dances on a table or other flat, raised surface. Surrounding and encouraging him with hand claps is a group of men, dressed in a variety of styles, from shirtsleeves and caps to suits and hats, with one gentleman in a formal suit and top hat. Visible in…
Film, VideoSandow
Film, VideoMr. Jack in the dressing room
Film, VideoChimmie Hicks at the races
Film, VideoLatina, contortionist
Film, VideoSubub surprises the burglar
Film, VideoDance, Franchonetti Sisters
Film, VideoCake walk
Film, VideoComedy cake walk
Film, VideoBetsy Ross dance
Film, VideoA nymph of the waves "This is a double-printing picture combining a view of Mlle. Cathrina Bartho in her celebrated "Speedway" dance, with one of the Whirlpool Rapids of Niagara Falls, the resulting effect being that the dancer appears to be gliding over the surface of the rushing waters. 25 feet"--American Mutoscope & Biograph picture catalogue. Superimposition of a woman dancing over footage of crashing waves from the rapids…
Film, VideoAmeta
Film, VideoHappy Hooligan
Film, VideoKarina
Film, VideoThe tramp's unexpected skate "Here is a picture that appeals to both young and old. A weary looking tramp lies asleep under the wall of a picturesque park. Two mischievous boys enter on roller skates. They take a cautious view of Weary Willie, when a bright idea enters their heads. They hold a short conference and then removing their skates, they proceed to strap them firmly to the…
Film, VideoStealing a dinner
Film, VideoA wake in "Hell's Kitchen" "This scene is laid in the parlor of a New York tenement. Two watchers at the wake are smoking and drinking, while the widow is weeping over the coffin. The attention of the three is attracted for an instant, and the supposed corpse rises up, drinks all the beer in the pitcher which is standing on a table nearby, and lies down in the…
Film, VideoA frontier flirtation