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 000585 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 4
Leaf #:
000585
Language:
English
Collection:
Government & Law and Early Cinema
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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Edward Auger, Reckons Examination. 2135 Q. And of Kalem? A. One print of each release. <2 And Kleine? A. They release a special, of which we lake one print also. Q. And of Melies? A. The only one we do not buy. Q. When did you quit buying Melies? A. I could not give you the exact date; as much as I can remember, it was last June. Q. And how long have you been manager there? A. I believe it is exactly since the beginning of February of this year. Q. During that period, have you been buying the outputs of these manufacturers in the proportions in which you are buying them now? A. As much as I can remember. Q. Why did you stop ordering prints from Melies? A. They were complaining, the exhibitors were complaining of the fact that these particular films were highly educational, and were describing methods of acting in the South seas, and also scenics, and educational films, generally Q. Did the exhibitors complain that they were not popular with their audiences? A. It is so, yes. Q. And was that the reason you stopped ordering them? A. That was the reason why I stopped. Whereupon, at 5 : 50 o'clock P. M., on this Wednesday, the 10th day of December, 1913, the hearings are adjourned until 10:30 o'clock A. M., on Thursday, December 11th, 1913, to be resumed at the Hotel Manhattan, New York City.