We use Optical Character Recognition (OCR) during our scanning and processing workflow to make the content of each page searchable. You can view the automatically generated text below as well as copy and paste individual pieces of text to quote in your own work.
Text recognition is never 100% accurate. Many parts of the scanned page may not be reflected in the OCR text output, including: images, page layout, certain fonts or handwriting.
Samuel Long, Direct Examination. 1911
Q. Now, after the Kalem Company became a Patents Company licensee, did it compete with the other licensees of the Motion Picture Patents Company? A. It did.
Q. In what way? A. And the competition became very acute in the matter of engaging talent for the pictures. And in instances, competing companies would take actors and actresses away from us, and we would in turn take them from other competing companies. For instance, the Biograph Company has recently taken an actor from the Kalem Company, and we are now negotiating to get that actor back. We have taken actors from the Vitagraph Company, and the Vitagraph Company have taken them from the Kalem Company. We have taken a director from the Pathe Company. The Essanay Company has taken a director from the Kalem Company. These changes have been attended with increases in salaries. Each company is striving to obtain the best scenarios, or plays, for their productions. We recently were bidding for a play called "Leah Kleschna," and we were outbid by the Famous Players. We recently were bidding for the right to take a picture of the National baseball series, but were outbid by the Commercial Motion Picture Company. This company has also been encouraged by its success, and secured rights to photograph the Army and Navy football game the last Saturday in this month. The competition goes further than that. In the matter of the scenic work, the scenic painters Ave engage, and other theatrical properties are a matter which enters into the merit of making pictures, and each company is seeking the best of those. A few months ago a company was organized by an attorney who was interested in motion pictures. This company engaged one of our best directors, a leading woman, a leading man, the best scenic artist we had, and a property man, and this constituted the nucleus of the company, and they organized a complete, comprehensive company to produce pictures with the same talent that we were engaging. Camera operators are also in demand, and the competing companies engage them from one company to organize another company for their additional outputs.
Q. The Famous Players Film Company and the Commercial Motion Picture Company, they are unlicensed producers, arc1 they not? A. They are not licensed.