Edisonia Hall
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Edisonia Hall was a generic name for exhibition halls that displayed the various inventions of Thomas Alva Edison's company. These included the phonograph, the Vitascope, the Kinetoscope and other such devices.
The Edisonia Hall opened by Mitchell Mark and Moe Mark in Buffalo, New York in the Ellicott Square Building on October 19, 1896 has the distinction of hosting Vitascope Theater (also spelled Vitascope Theatre). It is the first known dedicated, purpose-built motion picture theater in the world. The theater was referred to in newspapers of the day (Buffalo Express, Buffalo News and others) as Vitascope Theater, Vitascope Hall, and the Electrical Theater.
The majority of the first program of films were Lumiere Films obtained through Pathe Freres. In its first year of existence, more than 200,000 people visited to view motion pictures projected on a screen. The theater remained open for nearly 2 years, longer than any other known early motion picture theater.
On November 25, 2007, the Buffalo News published an article by Mark Sommer confirming the historical significance of this unique theater.[1]
[edit] References
- ^ Sommer, Mark. "Another groundbreaker for Buffalo." Buffalo News, November 25, 2007
- Ramsaye, Terry. A Million and One Nights. New York: Touchstone, Simon & Schuster, [1925] 1986
- Buffalo Express, October 19, 1886
- Sandhu, Ranjit. History of Buffalo Theaters. Unpublished manuscript, collection Buffalo and Erie County Public Library, Grosvenor Room.
- Sommer, Mark. "Another groundbreaker for Buffalo." Buffalo News, November 25, 2007.
[edit] External links
- The Historic Search for the Vitascope Theater
- Cinema Treasures Historic Listing
- History of Mitchell Mark, Edisonia Hall, Vitascope Theater with extensive references and photos
[edit] Gallery
 Entrance to Edisonia Hall in the Ellicott Square Building, Buffalo, New York, 1896 |
 An advertisement for Buffalo's Vitascope Theater from November 1897 |
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