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 #:
000327
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 21, 2023
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Cross examination by Mr. Grosvenor: Q. Where did yon get these films yon displayed in East St. Louis? A. Of the General Film Company on (J rand and Olive, it is on Olive off of Grand. Q. They are shipped from St. Louis, Missouri, over to that theatre in East St. Lonis, Illinois? A. No, sir, my boy — I have a film boy who comes over every morning and gets the program, gets the films. Q. And they are taken from St. Louis, Missouri, over to East St. Louis, Illinois? A. Yes, sir. Q. And then, the next day when you are through with them you send them back? A. That same night after the performance my boy brings them back to the exchange. Q. You get all your films in that way? A. Yes, sir. At 11:45 o'clock A. M., the hearing was adjourned until 2 o'clock P. M., to be resumed at the Planters' Hotel, St. Louis, Mo. St. Louis, Missouri, January 9, 1914. The hen rings were resumed pursuant to adjournment at 2:00 o'clock P. M., January 9, 1914, at the Planters' Hotel, St. Louis, Mo. The appearances were the same as at the morning session. Thereupon, JACOB WARNER, the next witness produced by defendants, of lawful age, being first duly sworn by the Examiner, deposed as follows : Direct examination by Mr. KiNGSLEY: Q. Where do yon live, Mr. Warner? A. 4910 Laclede Avenue, St. Lonis, Missouri. Q. How long have you lived in St. Lonis? A. Off and on for about thirty years. Q. In what business are yon engaged? A. Tlie moving picture business, at the present time, the theatrical luisi ness. Q. Are you an exhibitor of motion pictures? A. Yes, sir.