William K.L. Dickson Movies

  • 1891
    Newark Athlete

    Newark Athlete

    Newark Athlete

    4.41891HD

    Experimental film fragment made with the Edison-Dickson-Heise experimental horizontal-feed kinetograph camera and viewer, using 3/4-inch wide film.

    Newark Athlete
  • 1894
    Annabelle Butterfly Dance

    Annabelle Butterfly Dance

    Annabelle Butterfly Dance

    5.41894HD

    Annabelle (Whitford) Moore performs one of her popular dances. For this performance, her costume has a pair of wings attached to her back, to suggest...

    Annabelle Butterfly Dance
  • 1894
    Edison Kinetoscopic Record of a Sneeze

    Edison Kinetoscopic Record of a Sneeze

    Edison Kinetoscopic Record of a Sneeze

    4.8861894HD

    A man (Thomas Edison's assistant) takes a pinch of snuff and sneezes. This is one of the earliest Thomas Edison films and was the second motion...

    Edison Kinetoscopic Record of a Sneeze
  • 1893
    Blacksmithing Scene

    Blacksmithing Scene

    Blacksmithing Scene

    5.541893HD

    Three men hammer on an anvil and pass a bottle of beer around. Notable for being the first film in which a scene is being acted out.

    Blacksmithing Scene
  • 1892
    Fencing

    Fencing

    Fencing

    3.41892HD

    Early Edison short showing two men fencing.

    Fencing
  • 1894
    Dickson Experimental Sound Film

    Dickson Experimental Sound Film

    Dickson Experimental Sound Film

    6.2681894HD

    William K.L. Dickson plays the violin while two men dance. This is the oldest surviving sound film where sound is recorded on the phonograph.

    Dickson Experimental Sound Film
  • 1891
    Dickson Greeting

    Dickson Greeting

    Dickson Greeting

    4.8471891HD

    William K.L. Dickson brings his hat from his one hand to the other and moves his head slightly, as a small nod toward the audience. This was the...

    Dickson Greeting
  • 1890
    Monkeyshines, No. 1

    Monkeyshines, No. 1

    Monkeyshines, No. 1

    4.91890HD

    Experimental film made to test the original cylinder format of the Kinetoscope and believed to be the first film shot in the United States. It shows...

    Monkeyshines, No. 1
  • 1894
    Carmencita

    Carmencita

    Carmencita

    5.2461894HD

    The first woman to appear in front of an Edison motion picture camera and possibly the first woman to appear in a motion picture within the United...

    Carmencita
  • 1899
    King John

    King John

    King John

    4.8541899HD

    Based on Shakespeare's play, Act V, Scene vii: King John is in torment, and his supporters fear that his end is near. As he writhes in agony, he is...

    King John
  • 1895
    Annabelle Serpentine Dance

    Annabelle Serpentine Dance

    Annabelle Serpentine Dance

    5.8751895HD

    In a long, diaphanous skirt, held out by her hands with arms extended, Broadway dancer Annabelle Moore performs. Her dance emphasizes the movement of...

    Annabelle Serpentine Dance
  • 1893
    Horse Shoeing

    Horse Shoeing

    Horse Shoeing

    2.71893HD

    One of the pictures to be seen in the machine, for example, was that of a blacksmith shop in which two men were working, one shoeing a horse, the...

    Horse Shoeing
  • 1891
    Men Boxing

    Men Boxing

    Men Boxing

    4.11891HD

    Experimental film fragment made with the Edison-Dickson-Heise experimental horizontal-feed kinetograph camera and viewer, using 3/4-inch wide film.

    Men Boxing
  • 1894
    Souvenir Strip of the Edison Kinetoscope

    Souvenir Strip of the Edison Kinetoscope

    Souvenir Strip of the Edison Kinetoscope

    4.91894HD

    Eugen Sandow, who claims to be the strongest man in the world, appears in the Edison Company's film studio.

    Souvenir Strip of the Edison Kinetoscope
  • 1894
    Fire Rescue Scene

    Fire Rescue Scene

    Fire Rescue Scene

    5.1361894HD

    "Firemen in working uniform, rubber coats, helmets, and boots. Thrilling rescue from burning building. Smoke effects are fine." - from the Edison...

    Fire Rescue Scene
  • 1890
    Monkeyshines, No. 2

    Monkeyshines, No. 2

    Monkeyshines, No. 2

    4.41890HD

    Experimental film that follows up on the results of "Monkeyshines, No. 1". Once again, an Edison company worker moves around in front of the motion...

    Monkeyshines, No. 2
  • 1894
    Luis Martinetti, Contortionist

    Luis Martinetti, Contortionist

    Luis Martinetti, Contortionist

    5.11894HD

    Luis Martinetti, a contortionist suspended from acrobatic flying rings, contorts himself for about thirty seconds. This is one of the first films...

    Luis Martinetti, Contortionist
  • 1894
    Buffalo Dance

    Buffalo Dance

    Buffalo Dance

    4.6341894HD

    Long before Hollywood started painting white men red and dressing them as 'Injuns' Edison's company was using the genuine article! Featuring for what...

    Buffalo Dance
  • 1894
    Athlete with Wand

    Athlete with Wand

    Athlete with Wand

    3.7921894HD

    An athlete demonstrating various poses.

    Athlete with Wand
  • 1896
    Sandow

    Sandow

    Sandow

    5.21896HD

    Strong-man Eugene Sandow flexes his muscles and strikes a few poses in front of a black background. This was a short film shot by William K.L....

    Sandow