Thomas
Edison and the Origins of Motion Pictures is a 6 DVD collection
of 341 of the earliest films ever made.
Edison's laboratory was responsible for the invention of the Kinetograph
(a motion picture camera) and the Kinetoscope (a peep-hole motion
picture viewer). Most of this work was performed by Edison's assistant,
William Kennedy Laurie Dickson, beginning in 1888. Motion pictures
became a successful entertainment industry in less than a decade,
with single-viewer Kinetoscopes giving way to films projected for
mass audiences.
The Edison Manufacturing Co. (later known as Thomas A. Edison,
Inc.) not only built the apparatus for filming and projecting motion
pictures, but also produced films for public consumption. Most early
examples were actualities showing famous people, news events, disasters,
people at work, new modes of travel and technology, scenic views,
expositions, and other leisure activities. As actualities declined
in popularity, the company's production emphasis shifted to comedies
and dramas.
All films are silent and the total run time of this collection
is 9 hours, 58 minutes.
The collection is organized by year which allows you to view the
improvements in film technology as it occurred. The films also offer
a fascinating glimpse of what was important and attention getting
in that era as many of the films were developed to be shown to the
masses. This collection serves as a great collection films with
the technology spawned by the inventor of the motion picture.
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