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)

Page scan 000591 from 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 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 3
Leaf #:
000591
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:
September 12, 2024
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Nathan Machat, Direct Examination. 181' Q. And how long is that? A. I guess that is last January, or December. I am not quite sure. Q. From whom did you obtain motion pictures before you took them from the General Film Company? A. Well, before that I have taken service from the Greater New York Film Rental Company. Q. How long were you with the Greater New York Film Rental Company? A. I think I was something like six months with them. Q. And then you went to the General Film Company? A. Yes, sir. Q. About what time did you go to the General Film Company? A. I think that must have been in 1910. Q. And before you went to the Greater New York Film Rental Company, where were you getting your film? A. Yitagraph Company. Q. From the Yitagraph Company's exchange on Nassau Street? A. Yes, sir. Q. So that during your business experience, you have obtained motion pictures from the Yitagraph Company's exchange in Nassau Street? A. Y"es, sir. Q. And the Greater New York Film Rental Company? A. Y^es, sir. Q. And since some time in 1910, from the General Film Company? A. Yes, sir. From the General Film Company. Q. What projecting machine do you use in your thetres? A. I have always used a Powers. I have used a Powers No. 5, No. 6, and using now the No. 6a. Q. In your experience as an exhibitor, have you had any difficulty arising from the fact that your competitors used conflicting programs? A. I had that experience last year when I was about to go to the Greater New York Film Rental Company to take service of them, and I finally changed my mind. Mr. Grosvenor: I object to testimony as to what he was about to do, and I submit if he testified to just what he did do, that is enough. The Witness : I had agreed to take service with the Greater New York Film Rental Company. They were trying to get me for two months in succession.