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 #:
000177
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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C. R. Junes, Direct Examination. Q. Did you answer "No?" A. I answered "No, sir." Q. What service do you use in your theatre? A. The General Film Company's. Q. By that I mean what is the character of the service? A. By that do you mean the age or character? Q. I mean the program, as well as the age. A. We usually get a comedy, and may be a Western. Q. Is it a three reel, or a four reel program? A. Five reels. Q. A five reel program? A. Yes, sir. Q. Is that an every other day program, or every day? A. Every day. Q. What is the age of it? A. From ten days, to forty days. Q. And what service were you taking from the Pittsburgh Calcium Light Company? A. In those days we were only running two reels each day, but I can't recollect how old they were. Q. Considering the quality of the seiwice, and the number of reels it contains, has the price of the service been increased? A. Not considering the increased number of reels we are using. Q. What did you pay for the two-reel service you took from the Pittsburgh Calcium Light Company? A. 'Fortyeight dollars a week. Q. And what do you pay for the five-reel service you are taking from the General Film Company? A. Seventy dollars. Q. Have you ever had a lower price than that from the General Film Company for a five-reel service at the same age? A. Not for five reels. Q. Have you ever used the independent service? A. Yes, sir. Q. Where did you use it? A. In a house I had opposite the one I now run, which I sold a few months ago. Q. How long did you have this house? A. About two and a half years. Q. What was the name of it? A. The Federal Theatre. Q. What was the seating capacity of the Federal Theatre? A. About two hundred and twenty. Q. That is situated on Fifth Avenue? A. On Federal Street. Q. On Federal Street? A. Yes, sir.