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 000596 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 #:
000596
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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2446 Herbert C. Wales, Redirect Examination. erences. Some exhibitors prefer certain makes on account probably or possibly of the class of the picture that that company may produce, or may specialize on. Q. And is that preference based sometimes on the personality of the actors and actresses who figure in these plays? A. Yes, sir, frequently. Q. Do you find that the popularity of any given producer varies from time to time? A. Yes. Q. And is the demand of your customers, your patrons, governed by that? A. Partly. Q. Do you find that in the case of some manufacturers you order more than of others? A. Yes. Q. Are there any manufacturers whose subjects you do not take at all at times? A. One of the manufacturers. Q. And the popularity of any given producer varies from time to time, does it? A. Yes. It varies from time to time. Examination by Mr. Kingsley : Q. Is the price of motion pictures to the exhibitor governed by the age of the motion pictures? A. By the age, yes. Q. Do you find that when you have motion pictures of the same age furnished by the different producers, that the exhibitor still has a choice of the motion pictures of the certain producers? A. Yes, they have the choice. Q. Do they express preference to you from time to time? A. The majority of them do. Q. Do you make an attempt to gratify that preference? A. Always. Q. Are your orders to the producers of motion pictures based upon your judgment of what the exhibitors desire? A. Yes, based on my judgment, and based, as I say, on the demand by the exhibitor. Q. But your judgment is influenced by the expressions of preference which the exhibitors make to you from time to time? A. Exactly. Q. And by your knowledge of what audiences like, as brought to your attention through the expressions of exhibitors? A. Yes, sir. Q. How long have you been in the motion piqture business? A. Between six and seven years. Q. When you first went into the motion picture business,