1895 W.K.L. Dickson,
an associate of Thomas Edison, forms the American Mutoscope Company.
1899 American
Mutoscope Company changes its name to the American Mutoscope & Biograph
Company.
1902 Biograph films the first
western, one year before Edison Films’ The Great Train Robbery.
1903 Biograph covers the funeral
of assassinated President McKinley.
1906 Biograph shoots the first
films of the great San Francisco earthquake.
1908 Biograph hires director
D. W. Griffith.
1910 On a trip to California
to shoot In Old California, Griffith discovers Hollywood,
a nice little village with beautiful flower gardens and friendly
people. Griffith claims the city has a magical energy, and Biograph
returns on several more occasions to shoot other films here. Word
spreads about Hollywood and other film companies begin settling
here. From this humble beginning, the movie capital of the world
is born.
1912 Sisters Lillian and Dorothy
Gish are hired by Biograph and make their first film, An Unseen
Enemy.
1913 Biograph films its first
feature film, Judith of Bethulia, directed by Griffith and
starring Blanche Sweet. The film times in at almost three hours.
1914 Biograph
partners with Klaw & Erlanger to produce plays on film.
1915 Biograph
signs the first African-American producer-director, vaudevillian
Bert Williams, who is given unprecedented control over his films—and
even acts in them. His projects for Biograph include Fish and Natural
Born Gambler.
1916 The
Thomas Edison Film monopoly is broken up by the federal
government, due to violations of the Antitrust Act. Biograph
reissues all of its well-known films to theaters around the world
and ceases work on any new productions.
1929 Biograph is disbanded
because of the Depression.
1930 Blanche Sweet and her
husband, director Harold Nielan, obtain all corporate and company
documents in an effort to re-open Biograph.
1984 Blanche
Sweet gives all company items to Thomas Bond II, hoping that
Biograph can continue after almost 70 years on “hiatus.”
1986 Sweet passes away.
1991 With years of research
and restructuring behind them, Bond and his family reorganize the
company; Biograph is reincorporated in California.
1994 Biograph starts production
on its first film in more than 80 years, a feature comedy entitled Bob’s
Night Out.
1996 The Bond family is severely
injured in an auto accident. Production on Bob’s Night Out is
placed on hold indefinitely.
1999 Biograph starts its home
video division with its Little Rascals home video The Silent
Years, hosted by Bond’s father, Tommy, who played “Butch” in
the original Little Rascals.
2000 Biograph opens its video
production studio in San Diego. The studio functions as the commercial
arm of the company.
2003 Biograph opens its studio
office in Hollywood and headquarters the company there. After 93
years, Biograph comes home to the town that, it can certainly be
argued, the company got started.
Biograph goes into negotiations to open a unique commercial
studio on Hollywood Boulevard, which will
allow the public to view actual production from the street. Adjacent, the
company plans a showbiz-themed restaurant, where patrons can also view the
productions.
For the latest on Biograph, visit www.biographcompany.com.
MM
Former Nickelodeon children's show creator Dan Schneider is suing the producers of the ID docuseries…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sPEC4yfvoCw When extramarital affair website Ashley Madison was hacked in 2015, it was one of…
Getting sober? Dealing with a loved one's addiction? These inspiring movies about getting sober will…
"It is a deeply courageous thing to share something you’ve written, that is 100 or…
The Slamdance Film Festival is leaving Park City in favor of Los Angeles. The festival…
The Atlanta Film Festival has announced plans to screen a special presentation of the 1992…