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 (1914)

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:
1914
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 5
Leaf #:
000155
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 21, 2023
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James B. Clark, Redirect Examination. 2605 talk over the selling of our exchanges, and Mr. Rowland and I made an engagement for a certain day and a certain time, and we went down. Q. The matter was first broached, then, by the General Film Company? A. Yes, sir. Q. And when you went down from New York, what did you do? A. We went to the office of the General Film Com pany at 10 Fifth Avenue, and met Mr. Kennedy. Q. What did he say? A. Well, I cannot remember exactly what he said. He wanted to know if we were ready to talk sale, and we told him we were, and he outlined the price and the terms, and so on, and we asked him for a little time to consider it. We thought it over that night, and accepted it the next day. Q. And the proposition was accepted by you as made to you by him? A. Yes. Q. You say you today own five licensed theatres? A. Yes, sir. That is, I don't own them outright. I am interested in those theatres. Q. Please give the location and size of these five theatres? A. The Oakland Theatre in Pittsburgh is 300 seats. The Cameraphone Theatre in Belleview is 600 seats. The Cameraphone Theatre on 5th Avenue in Pittsburgh is approximately 400 seats. The Arsenal Theatre on Butler Street, 724 seats. That theatre uses licensed service, but also uses independent features in connection with it. The other theatre is the Family Theatre in Braddock, Pa. About 700 seats. Q. The General Film Company today owes you for the sale of your business, that is, some of these payments running over five years, have not yet been made? A. No, sir, they have not. Q. And do you hold the notes of the General Film Company in those amounts? A. No, there is a sort of contract. Q. Are you the holder of any of the preferred stock of the General Film Company? A. Yes, sir. Redirect examination by Mr. Kixgsley: Q. You say, Mr. Clark, that some of the payments owing you by the General Film Company have not yet been made? A. Yes, sir.