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History of Animation - Origins of American Animation (1900-1921) 2-DVD Set
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"Plots? We never bothered with plots. They were just a series of gags strung together. And not very funny, I'm afraid."
- Dick Huemer's comment on early-animated films.
Long before the first animated cartoon film was made, artists had tried to suggest movement in theirs drawings and paintings. Egyptian wall paintings from 2000 BC portray a serialized account of a wrestling match between two men. Cave paintings from other parts of the world show animals having eight legs, which suggest that the animal was running. The Japanese used scrolls with a series of drawings implying movement.
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Frenchman Paul Roget, who invented the thaumatrope, achieved the first true movement of an object in a picture. His invention consisted of a disc with a string or peg attached to both sides. One side of the disc showed a bird, the other an empty cage. When the disc was twirled, the bird appeared to be inside the cage. This experiment led to the understanding of persistence of human vision and proved that the eye retains images when it is exposed to a series of pictures, one at a time.
Joseph Plateau's phenakistoscope developed in 1826 gave the necessary leg-up to other inventors. In 1860, Pierre Desvignes inserted a strip of paper containing drawings on the inside of a drum like cylinder. The drum twirled on a spindle, and the viewer gazed through slots on the drum. The figures on the inside magically came to life, endlessly looping in an acrobatic feat.
Around this time, several other American inventors such as Thomas A. Edison were bending their backs to develop a successful motion picture camera, while others were perfecting the art of producing drawings and paintings that could move. Chief among the latter was Stuart Blackton, who issued a short film in 1906 entitled Humorous Phases of Funny Faces where he drew comical faces on a blackboard, photographed them, and then erased the picture to draw another stage of the facial expression. This "stop-motion" effect astonished audiences by making drawings comes to life.
Few early-animated films carried a story line, except for Otto Meessmer's Felix the Cat and Winsor McCay's Gertie the Dinosaur. McCay produced his animated stories by making between four thousand and ten thousand separate line drawings and then filming these with a movie camera.
This historic DVD features 21 of the earliest and most hilarious animated features made between 1900 and 1921.
Some of the animated films you will see on this DVD set are:
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The enchanted drawing
Created and published in the United States by the, Edison Manufacturing Co., 1900, this humorous short depicts artist Stuart Blackton drawing a caricature on a large sheet to the lively accompaniment of a piano score composed and performed by Philip Carli. The artist then proceeds to sketch a goblet and a bottle of wine, which he actually removes from the paper on which they were drawn and pours actual wine out of the bottle into a real glass. Surprising effects quickly follow after this; and the numerous changes of expression which flit over the face in the sketch causes a vast amount of amusement and at the same time give a splendid illustration of the caricaturist's art.
Sponsor: Thomas A. Edison Inc.
Producer: J. Stuart Blackton, Albert E. Smith
Year: 1900
Length: 00:01:29
Audio: Mono
Color: Black & White
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Fun in a bakery shop
Created and published in the United States by the, Edison Manufacturing Co., 1902, this humorous short depicts a baker who discovers a mouse in the bakery. The irate baker proceeds to throw the dough at the mouse and then pummels the dough and manipulates it into several funny masks - all with mouse still trapped inside. His artistic endeavor is brought to an abrupt end when his colleagues unceremoniously dump him head first into a flour barrel. The digital file includes a piano score composed and performed by Philip Carli.
Sponsor: Thomas A. Edison Inc.
Producer: Edwin S. Porter
Year: 1902
Length: 00:01:21
Audio: Mono
Color: Black & White
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Humorous Phases of Funny Faces
An artists draws a series of funny faces which then amazingly come life and go through the motions of smiling, frowning and even smoking. The drawings include a line drawing of two faces, a man with an umbrella, a line drawing of two faces in profile, a clown, faces of "Coon and Cohen," the profile of a seated man, and a bottle of Medic. Produced by The Vita graph Co. of America on 6 April 1906, the short includes a piano score composed and performed by Philip Carli.
Sponsor: Vitagraph
Producer: J. Stuart Blackton
Year: 1906
Length: 00:03:03
Audio: Mono
Color: Black & White
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Women's styles
This is a humorous comment on women's fashions in 1915. It depicts women in various designs of dresses and captures the effect of this on the husband who cannot comprehend the absurdity of his wife wanting to keep up with the Joneses. This short is based on the newspaper comic strip by "Pop" Mormand, and includes a piano score composed and performed by Philip Carli.
Sponsor: Gaumont Company
Producer: Gaumont Company
Year: 1915
Length: 00:02:51
Audio: Mono
Color: Black & White
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Men's styles
This hilarious clip shows Pa Mormand's obsession with hats. Like the previous animated short, this one takes a dig at high society and consumer fashion. Created by the Mutual Film Corp in 1915, the film carries a lively musical score.
Sponsor: Gaumont Company
Producer: Gaumont Company
Year: 1915
Length: 00:03:37
Audio: Mono
Color: Black & White
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He Resolves not to Smoke
This funny animated clip shows how a bad dream helps a little fellow decide that smoking wasn't good for him.
Sponsor: Essanay Film Manufacturing Co.
Producer: Wallace Carlson
Year: 1915
Length: 00:05:06
Audio: Mono
Color: Black & White
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The Phable of a Busted Romance
This is a hilarious animated cartoon about a fat lady who attempts unsuccessfully to lose weight.
Sponsor: International Film Service Inc.
Producer: International Film Service Inc.
Year: 1916
Length: 00:02:02
Audio: Mono
Color: Black & White
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The Phable of the Phat Woman
This is a hilarious animated cartoon about a fat lady who attempts unsuccessfully to lose weight.
Sponsor: International Film Service Inc.
Producer: International Film Service Inc.
Year: 1916
Length: 00:02:10
Audio: Mono
Color: Black & White
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Mr. Nobody Holme -- He Buys a Jitney
This is yet another rib-tickling animated cartoon about Mr. Nobody Holme, who warms up his sluggish automobile with the assistance of a stick of dynamite.
Sponsor: International Film Service Inc.
Producer: International Film Service Inc.
Year: 1916
Length: 00:01:23
Audio: Mono
Color: Black & White
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NEVER AGAIN! The Story of a Speeder Cop
An animated cartoon about an ineffectual policeman (Officer Heeler) who quits the force after a losing battle against speeders.
Sponsor: International Film Service Inc.
Producer: International Film Service Inc.
Year: 1916
Length: 00:02:04
Audio: Mono
Color: Black & White
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Running Time:
DVD One : 00:45:16
DVD Two : 00:47:25
 EDITORIAL REVIEW:
This fascinating DVD is a rare compilation of the earliest animated films. In effect, it represents an early history of this thrilling medium of communication.
Animation came as a boon to producers who were looking for a vehicle to express their ideas in a form that defied logic and challenged imagination. Bringing inanimate objects to life on the screen would certainly make the presentation both amusing and memorable. Only in an animated film could the moon be made to talk or a cat sing a song and a can of your favorite cereals wink at you naughtily. The acrobatics that characters in an animated film could perform were well beyond the reach of live actors.
In an era when special effects were unheard of, this was a huge bonus. Humor, the key element in these animated films was often achieved by emphasizing the more bizarre or through exaggeration.
Technology has advanced far beyond anything early producers would have imagined or even hoped for. Yet we cannot forget the efforts of this adventurous lot who took movie entertainment to new heights at a time when the regular films were still trying to find a firm footing. We owe the Edison Manufacturing Co., the Vita graph Co. of America, International Film Services and the Mutual Film Corp. a huge debt for opening the doors to a fascinating medium that is so widely employed in entertainment, education and advertisement.
Amazingly, the quality of films in this DVD is superbly preserved, and the features can be enjoyed without straining your eyes. Superb musical scores by Philip Carli and catchy headers make up for the lack of recorded speech. The caricatures are superbly crafted and each clip is a work of art. Based on strong moral themes, these films carry a relevance that has not diminished in any way.
Be prepared for over an hour of amusement, historical insight and loads of laughs as you slip in this amazing DVD into your player.
CUSTOMER'S REVIEWS:
"What a delightful DVD this turned out to be. We spent a whole evening of laughter in our very home! Sometimes with a re-run of a particular clip. The kids were beside themselves with laughter. This was just what the doctor ordered, thanks you all at A2ZCDS."
Customer's Name : Paulette Heinz (Olympia, Washington)
"There are not enough words to describe this absolutely amazing and full of fun DVD. Where did you all at A2ZCDS get hold of these old films? One is totally relaxed after seeing this DVD, A great way to spend a few moments with yourself, your family or your friends."
Customer's Name : Mike Niles (Oakland, California)
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History of Animation - Origins of American Animation (1900-1921) 2-DVD Set
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General Packaging Description:
Our professionally-produced DVDs are shipped in retail Amaray style DVD cases just like you would find in a store. These beautifully packaged DVDs make great gifts and are themselves works of art. While we offer some of the best prices anywhere, we have never sacrificed quality for price.
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System requirements:
Computer: Pentium II, 300mhz, 64mb RAM, DVD-ROM, compatible video and sound card.
Player: NTSC compatible DVD player, standard TV.
Region: All players, irrespective of region
NOTE ON COMPATIBILITY: While our DVDs are designed for optimal playback for all home DVD players, it is possible that some older systems will have trouble playing our DVDs. Although rare, it is worth mentioning. If this occurs you will receive a full refund.
Given that some of these videos are extremely old and their original audio quality is not very good, we have tried to improve it to the best possible quality. However, due to their inherent quality problems, you might still have a few instances where the audio is of a slightly lower volume.
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