In the District Court of the United States, for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, the United States of America, petitioner, vs. Motion Picture Patents Company, et al., defendants (1913)

Record Details:

Title:
In the District Court of the United States, for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, the United States of America, petitioner, vs. Motion Picture Patents Company, et al., defendants
Date:
1913
Publisher:
New York, Appeal Printing Co.
Volume:
In the District Court of the United States, for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, the United States of America, petitioner, vs. Motion Picture Patents Company, et al., defendants : record volume 2
Leaf #:
00055
Language:
English
Collection:
Early Cinema and Government & Law
Format:
Periodicals
Contributor:
The Museum of Modern Art Library, New York
Sponsor:
Media History Digital Library
Coordinator:
Media History Digital Library
Description:
These seven volumes contain the testimonies and supporting documents from the U.S. District Court's antitrust lawsuit against the Motion Picture Patents Company (MPPC). Formed in 1908, the MPPC (sometimes referred to asœ"the Edison Trust" or just "the Trust") sought to control the American film industry through pooling patents and demanding that producers and exhibitors acquire licenses to those patents. Independent producers and exhibitors, who refused to license the patents, argued that the MPPC was an unlawful monopoly. In 1912 and 1913, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania heard testimonies from both MPPC members, such as Siegmund Lubin, and "Independents" who later became Hollywood moguls, such as William Fox. Ultimately, in 1915, the case reached the U.S. Supreme Court, which found the MPPC in violation of the Sherman Antitrust Act and spelled the end for the already weakening MPPC. -- Eric Hoyt, 2012
Date Added:
June 13, 2024
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William Fox, Direct Examination. 673 license, and that the same will terminate at eight o'clock A. M. on Monday the fourth day of December, Nineteen Hundred and Eleven, unless sooner terminated by this Company for any breach of the conditions of said license. Yours truly, MOTION PICTURE PATENTS COMPANY By H. N. Marvin, Vice President HNM/ACL. X-32 By Mr, Grosvenor: Q. Is that the notice with respect to which you have testified? A. Yes, sir. Q. You may state whether or not that notice was received on or about the date stated in the letter, November 14th, 1911? A. It was. The same evening. Q. Did you receive it by mail? A. I think it was delivered by messenger. Q. Between this date, November 14th, 1911, and the interviews in September with Waters and Kennedy, with respect to which you have testified, had you seen Mr. Kennedy again in connection with the sale of your business? A. I did. Q. Was that after the receipt of this notice or before the notice was received? A. After the receipt of the notice. Q. Well, then, perhaps you had better read that question that I put before, and see if you answered that properly? The stenographer repeats the question as follows : "Q. Between this date, November 14th, 1911, and the interviews in September with Waters and Kennedy, with respect to which you have testified, had you seen Mr. Kennedy again in connection with the sale of your business?" A. You mean between September and November 14th? Q. Yes. A. No, I did not.