kinetiscope

A kinetiscope is a device which allows people to view motion pictures. The kinetiscope was one of the first such devices widely developed and distributed, and while the design ultimately proved to be a failure, it clearly inspired other inventors, so it could be considered a landmark invention in the history of film. This device was invented in the laboratory of Thomas Edison, and as was conventional for inventions in his lab, the patent was taken out by Edison himself, making it challenging to determine precisely who worked on the project.

The design for the kinetiscope consisted of a closed cabinet in which the film was spooled. To operate the device, the user opened the top and peered through a small hole, and as the film was moved across a series of rollers, a back light would illuminate it, creating the illusion of a moving picture, as long as the film was rotated at the proper speed. When the kinetiscope was first shown to the public in 1894, it proved to be a big hit.

Kinetiscopes began to spring up all over the United States, commonly being found in kinetiscope parlors, which featured a row of the devices which users could operate by inserting coins into slots. In addition to short films, the kinetiscope was also used to display footage of things like sports matches, allowing people all over the United States to see events which they had not been able to attend.