May Irwin Kiss
SUMMARY Scene from the New York stage comedy, The widow Jones, in which Irwin and Rice starred. According to Edison film historian C. Musser, the actors staged their kiss for the camera at the request of the New York world newspaper, and the resulting film was the most popular Edison Vitascope film in 1896. From Maguire & Baucus catalogue: An osculatory performance by May Irwin and John Rice. The most popular subject ever shown. From Edison films catalog: By May Irwin and John Rice. They get ready to kiss, begin to kiss, and kiss and kiss and kiss in a way that brings down the house every time. 50 feet. $7.50. OTHER TITLES Title in Edison films catalog: Kiss CREATED/PUBLISHED United States : Edison Manufacturing Co., 1896. NOTES Copyright: no reg. May Irwin (Beatrice Byke), John C. Rice (Billy Bilke). Camera, William Heise. Filmed April 1896, in Edison's Black Maria studio. Received: 5-13-1994; viewing print; preservation; Hendricks (Gordon) Collection. SUBJECTS Kissing--Drama. Courtship--Drama. Widows--Sexual behavior--Drama. Romance Comedy RELATED NAMES Irwin, May, 1862-1938, cast. Rice, John C., cast. Heise, William, camera. Thomas A. Edison, Inc. Hendricks (Gordon) Collection (Library of Congress) RELATED TITLES World (New York, N.Y. : 1860-1931). DIGITAL ID edmp.4038 hdl.loc.gov/loc.mbrsmi/edmp.4038
