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 6
Leaf #:
000266
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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3272 Harry N. Marvin, Direct Examination. Q. You have heretofore testified (p. 1254, Vol. Ill of the record) that the Eastman Company was the source of supply of the unexposed photographic film stock used by the licensed manufacturers of motion pictures. Please now state whether or not that unexposed film stock referred to was useful for any other purpose. A. It was not useful for any other purpose, and I have never heard of its having been used for any other purpose. Q. What were the standard dimensions, if any, of motion picture films in use, say in January, 1908, before the organization of the Motion Picture Patents Company? A. Those films are of indefinite length, and approximately 1% inches in width. They possessed a row of perforations on each side of the film, having a clear space between the rows of perforations of approximately one inch available for picture purposes. Q. When you speak of approximately, how much of a variation do you intend to convey by that language? A. A variation possibly of a few hundredths of an inch, such as might occur in variations in the slitting machine, by means of which this film is slit up into strips. Q. State whether or not these films of standard dimensions had or had not the characteristics of the film described heretofore in your testimony this morning? A. Yes, all of the films to which I have referred this morning had the standard dimensions I have described. Q. How long had those standard dimensions been established and who established them? A. Those standard dimensions were established by Edison along about 1891 or 1892, and they have not been varied from that time to the present. Mr. Ghosvenor: That is 22 years ago? The Witness : Yes. By Mr. Church : Q. Do or do not the same standard dimensions prevail today? A. They do. Q. Did any of the ten licensed manufacturers of motion picture films ever put out motion picture films of other than