William K.L. Dickson Movies

"A glove contest between trained cats. A very comical and amusing subject, and is sure to create a great laugh." (by Edison Films)

William K.L. Dickson plays the violin while two men dance. This is the oldest surviving sound film where sound is recorded on the phonograph.

Eugen Sandow, who claims to be the strongest man in the world, appears in the Edison Company's film studio.

Three men hammer on an anvil and pass a bottle of beer around. Notable for being the first film in which a scene is being acted out.

This fight consists of six rounds, each round on a film 150 feet long. It's an actual contest between James J. Corbett, former champion of the world,...

Close shot of 4.7" naval gun pointing to the left with group of British naval ratings standing around it. The gun fires and the men run up to reload,...

Windmills along the River Zaan.

A series of short black and white films from director William K.L. Dickson which chronicle the adventures of Rip Van Winkle.

A man (Thomas Edison's assistant) takes a pinch of snuff and sneezes. This is one of the earliest Thomas Edison films and was the second motion...

Queen Vilhelmina greeting the crowds after the coronation.

“This view was taken upon Mr. McKinley's lawn at his home in Canton, Ohio. Mr. McKinley appears walking across the lawn in company with his...

The Glenroy Brothers perform a portion of their vaudeville act, "The Comic View of Boxing: The Tramp & the Athlete", which depicts a boxer with a...

Several members of European Royalty, including the Duke and Duchess of York, and Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh, seated round a tea-table in the grounds...

Based on Shakespeare's play, Act V, Scene vii: King John is in torment, and his supporters fear that his end is near. As he writhes in agony, he is...

Filmmaker WKL Dickson, one-time right hand man to Thomas Edison, the 'Wizard of Menlo Park', here captures an even greater eminence, Pope Leo XIII....

Black hooded pallbearers carry a coffin in a funeral procession in front of onlookers.

Sandow and Peerless Annabelle were the first performers filmed by the new American Mutoscope Co. Annabelle reprised her Butterfly Dance and several...

One of the pictures to be seen in the machine, for example, was that of a blacksmith shop in which two men were working, one shoeing a horse, the...

Film by W.K.L. Dickson; Rounding a bend in the track, we behold Windsor Castle.

A group of monks in procession carrying a large crucifix in Vatican City, 1898.