Best Edison
Edwin S. Porter’s *The Great Train Robbery* (1903) is a pivotal American silent film. It demonstrated innovative techniques in cinematic storytelling, notably utilizing rapid editing to build suspense and create a sense of chaotic action. The film's impactful final shot—a close-up of a gunshot—signi...
"Blacksmith Scene" is an 1893 American short film directed by William K.L. Dickson and produced by the Edison Manufacturing Company. Filmed inside Edison's Black Maria studio in West Orange, New Jersey, it features three blacksmiths hammering an anvil and sharing a bottle of beer. The short is histo...
The Execution of Mary Stuart is an 1895 American silent historical film produced by Thomas Edison and directed by Alfred Clark. Lasting roughly 18 seconds, the short depicts the beheading of Mary, Queen of Scots. It is widely recognized by film historians as a landmark in cinema for its pioneering u...
Dickson Greeting is a brief experimental motion picture made in 1891 under the direction of William Kennedy Laurie Dickson at Thomas Edison's laboratory. It shows Dickson making a greeting gesture and was produced during work on the Kinetograph camera and Kinetoscope viewing system. The surviving fr...
*The Kiss* is an 1896 American silent film produced by Thomas Edison and directed by William Heise. Lasting approximately 18 seconds, the film features stage actors May Irwin and John C. Rice reenacting the final scene from the Broadway musical comedy *The Widow Jones*. It is historically significan...
Directed by William Heise in 1896, this American film features actors May Irwin and John Rice reenacting a kiss, gaining notoriety as the earliest on-screen kiss in cinema history.
Fred Ott's Sneeze is an 1894 American short film directed by William K.L. Dickson for Thomas Edison, notable for being the first copyrighted motion picture.
What Happened to Mary? is a 1912 American adventure film serial produced by Thomas A. Edison, Inc., notable for being one of the first episodic film serials in cinema history.
