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This was one of the most romantic ot the 250 stereopticon slides tliat made up "Miss Jerry. " The lovers are William Courtenay and Blanche Bayliss cf 25 years ago. "Miss Jerry was a newspaper reporter. The "still below shows her out on a "sob" story. Note how the "sets" were made in those days.
The Grandpa of the Movies
RELEGATED to the limbo of the past is the remembrance of most of the early efforts that helped bring the art of motion pictures to the high plane it has reached today. Even now, many maintain, the possibilities of the film are only beginning to be realized, but it is interesting to look back just a quarter of a century when Dr. Alexander Black was seeing visions as he looked into what then doubtless seemed a far, far future.
On October 9, 1804, William Courtenay and Blanche Bayliss appeared as the first motion picture stars, in Dr. Black's moving stereopticon, "Miss Jerry," a tale of love, ncwspapcrdom and Wall Street.
Dr. B!ack, now a noted novelist, was a newspaper man with an interest in photography years ago. It occurred to him that ordinary stereopticon slides could l)e s ipped in and out of the then popular stereopticon lantern in such a way that they overlapped — li u r.iiiKin'j; iixm di.<-olvc into one another in a way which suggested motion. He experimented, found his idea worked, wrote the drama called "Miss Jerry" in 250 scenes, engaged actors and made it with rough — very rough sets. His second drama was called "A Capitol Romance." Grover Cleveland, then president, posed for it. Dr. Black's motion picture dramas took forty-five minutes to present. He stood beside the screen and told the story as the picture appeared. He toured the country and made a great hit. The Paramount Magazine, in a recent issue, showed Dr. Black's invention.