September 25, 1906: Winsor McCay’s Gertie the Dinosaur astounds audiences nationwide and will blaze new trails in the art of animation. September 28, 1914: The Wonderful Wizard of Oz author L. Frank Baum’s movie company releases The Patchwork Girl of…
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This Week In Film History, 09.19.10
September 19, 1915: Vaudeville star W.C. Fields brings his famed pool-playing routine to the screen in Pool Sharks, his film debut. September 21, 1927: MGM’s iconic lion Leo uses up one of his nine lives when he survives the crash…
Read more →This Week In Film History, 09.12.10
September 18, 1909: The first feature film to be produced in the U.S., Les Miserables, is released in four separate parts between now and Nov. 27. September 14, 1919: Lon Chaney (horror movie Poll) portrays the first of his memorable…
Read more →This Week In Film History, 09.05.10
September 5, 1901: William McKinley, the first U.S. president to be captured on film, is shown at the Pan-American Expo in Buffalo, one day before his assassination. September 5, 1916: In response to the outcry over The Birth of a…
Read more →This Week In Film History, 08.29.10
September 1, 1902: A milestone in the evolution of the cinema is marked with the release of George Méliès‘ fantastic Voyage to the Moon. September 1, 1919: The first United Artists film, His Majesty, the American with Douglas Fairbanks, opens…
Read more →This Week In Film History, 08.22.10
August 28, 1912: “King of Comedy” Mack Sennett leaves Biograph and forms Keystone Film Company with two former bookies. August 27, 1917: The first feature to be directed by John Ford, the Harry Carey–Hoot Gibson western Straight Shooting, opens. August…
Read more →This Week In Film History, 08.15.10
August 18, 1925: MGM settles on the winner of a fan magazine contest to rechristen contract starlet Lucille LeSeur, and adds “Joan Crawford” to the lexicography. August 16, 1926: Up-and-coming starlet Clara Bow inks a deal with Paramount, but refuses…
Read more →This Week In Film History, 08.08.10
August 9, 1930: The Fleischer Studio’s Betty Boop sashays onto the screen (as a dog!) in the cartoon short Dizzy Dishes. August 14, 1940: Top screenwriter of Easy Living and If I Were King, Preston Sturges, makes his directorial debut…
Read more →This Week In Film History, 08.01.10
August 6, 1926: The first film released with Vitaphone sound, Warner Bros.’ Don Juan, features sound effects and an orchestral score. August 3, 1929: Groucho, Chico, Harpo and Zeppo, the Marx Brothers, make their film debuts in Paramount’s The Cocoanuts….
Read more →This Week In Film History, 07.25.10
July 28, 1928: Encouraged by the response to the few minutes of sound in The Jazz Singer, Warner Bros. releases Lights of New York, the first all-talking picture. July 31, 1928: Audiences first hear MGM mascot Leo the Lion’s mighty…
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