History Edison's Black Maria

a drawing of interior (1894)



annabelle whitford doing butterfly dance , recorded @ edison s black maria studio

the first motion pictures made in black maria deposited copyright dickson @ library of congress in august, 1893. in january 1894, edison kinetoscopic record of sneeze (aka fred ott s sneeze) 1 of first series of short films made dickson kinetoscope in edison s black maria studio fellow assistant fred ott. short film made publicity purposes, series of still photographs accompany article in harper s weekly. earliest motion picture registered copyright — composed of optical record of ott sneezing comically camera.

the first films shot @ black maria, tar-paper-covered, dark studio room retractable roof, included segments of magic shows, plays, vaudeville performances (with dancers , strongmen), acts buffalo bill s wild west show, various boxing matches , cockfights, , scantily-clad women. many of edison moving images released after 1895, however, non-fictional actualities filmed on location: views of ordinary slices of life — street scenes, activities of police or firemen, or shots of passing train.

on saturday, april 14, 1894, edison s kinetoscope began commercial operation. holland brothers opened first kinetoscope parlor @ 1155 broadway in new york city , first time, commercially exhibited movies, know them today, in amusement arcade. patrons paid 25 cents admission charge view films in 5 kinetoscope machines placed in 2 rows. 500 people became cinema s first major audience during showings of films titles such barber shop, blacksmiths, cock fight, wrestling, , trapeze. edison s film studio used supply films sensational new form of entertainment. more kinetoscope parlors opened in other cities (san francisco, atlantic city, , chicago). in 1901, first public film screened in oberlin, ohio, starting transition kinetoscope screen.

when edison built glass-enclosed rooftop movie studio in new york city, black maria closed in january 1901, , edison demolished building in 1903. u. s. national park service maintains reproduction of black maria, built in 1954 @ edison national historic site in west orange. previous reconstruction had been built , dedicated in may 1940 when mgm held world premiere of edison, man starring spencer tracy in theaters throughout oranges (west orange, east orange, south orange, , orange).

the black maria was, according staff worked there, small , uncomfortable place work. edison employees w. k. dickson , jonathan campbell coined name—it reminded them of police black marias, (police vans, known paddywagons ) of time because cramped, stuffy , similar black color. edison himself called doghouse , name never took hold.

the black maria covered in black tarpaper , had huge window in ceiling opened let in sunlight because films required tremendous amount of bright light. built on turntable window rotate toward sun throughout day, supplying natural light hundreds of edison movie productions on eight-year lifespan.

when word spread new invention, performers flocked black maria on country in order in films. these silent movies featured dancers, pugilists, magicians , vaudeville performers. appearances @ studio used publicity opportunities edison, pose performers newspaper articles.