Edison wanted to see if his kinetograph — a primitive version of a movie camera — was sensitive enough to capture the smoke from Oakley’s gun. The experiment was a success, as you can see ...

In 1894, Edison initiated public film screenings in recently-opened "Kinetograph Parlors." Again, the French were working towards the same end. In 1895, Auguste and Louis Lumière introduced the ...

This new illustrated series explores some of the most iconic moments in the history of film. We begin with Thomas Edison, the inventor of the kinetograph ...