Vintage Horror Films! 1902! Uncle Josh
By today's standards, these are just silly, but they're still fun to watch. There's a 3rd "Uncle Josh" film I found, but it's not a "ghost story." These two short silent films go together and show poor Uncle Josh being tormented - first by a ghost, then by some ghoul or devil. These are also good examples of early special effects.
I cleaned up the very rough video the best I could and added some spooky music. Summaries from the LOC and source music are below. I hope you enjoy! Please like, share, subscribe and all that! It really helps!
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Uncle Josh in a spook hotel
Summary
"The landlord enters with his rural guest. After examining the bed and other things in the room, Josh takes a seat beside the landlord, who tells him that there is a rumor that a ghost appears in that room every night at 12 o'clock. The ghost then appears mysteriously and hits Josh a slap on the cheek. Thinking it was the landlord who hit him Josh gets up and knocks the landlord off the chair. After a little row, Josh and the landlord again sit down and the ghost again appears and hits the landlord on the cheek. The landlord, thinking it was Josh, gets up and knocks him off the chair. Each one accuses the other of striking him. Josh discovers that his companion is really the ghost, and in great fright he grabs his things and rushes out of the room, followed by the ghost. 80 feet"--Edison films catalog.
Contributor Names
Thomas A. Edison, Inc.
Paper Print Collection (Library of Congress)
Niver (Kemp) Collection (Library of Congress)
Created / Published
United States : Edison Manufacturing Co., 1900.
Notes
The AFI catalog, film beginnings, 1893-1910 lists Edwin S. Porter as the cameraman, but also notes that the film "may be a foreign production, possibly Méliès or Paul". No credits, source or location are given in Musser's Edison motion pictures 1890-1900.
Filmed ca. March 1900.
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Uncle Josh's nightmare
Summary
"On a set of a man's bedroom, a woman can be seen helping a middle-aged man to retire. As soon as he falls asleep, an apparition appears at the edge of the room. The man begins to grapple with the vision and feels reasonably certain he has it in his power because he exerts a great deal of energy and gets it tied in a sheet. He then puts it in a trunk, only to have it reappear outside the trunk. The ghost appears and disappears throughout the film, as do articles of furniture, annoying the man who had been trying to sleep"--Early motion pictures.
Contributor Names
Thomas A. Edison, Inc.
Paper Print Collection (Library of Congress)
Created / Published
United States : Edison Manufacturing Co., 1900.
Subject Headings
Nightmares
Hallucinations and illusions
Notes
Niver's Early motion pictures says the cameraman is Edwin S. Porter, and the actor is Charles "Daddy" Manley, but does not give a source for that information. According to Musser's Edison motion pictures 1890-1900, this film was "made by the same production company as The magician, An animated luncheon and other films copyrighted on 28 February 1900", which were "all made by the same producer whose identity has yet to be established", not by Edison or its affiliated filmmakers. Musser does not give any credits for this film.
Probably filmed around March, 1900.
Summary
"On a set of a man's bedroom, a woman can be seen helping a middle-aged man to retire. As soon as he falls asleep, an apparition appears at the edge of the room. The man begins to grapple with the vision and feels reasonably certain he has it in his power because he exerts a great deal of energy and gets it tied in a sheet. He then puts it in a trunk, only to have it reappear outside the trunk. The ghost appears and disappears throughout the film, as do articles of furniture, annoying the man who had been trying to sleep"--Early motion pictures.
Contributor Names
Thomas A. Edison, Inc.
Paper Print Collection (Library of Congress)
Created / Published
United States : Edison Manufacturing Co., 1900.
Subject Headings
Nightmares
Hallucinations and illusions
Notes
D6366 U.S. Copyright Office
Copyright: Thomas A. Edison; 21Mar1900; D6366.
Duration: 2:27 at 16 fps.
Niver's Early motion pictures says the cameraman is Edwin S. Porter, and the actor is Charles "Daddy" Manley, but does not give a source for that information. According to Musser's Edison motion pictures 1890-1900, this film was "made by the same production company as The magician, An animated luncheon and other films copyrighted on 28 February 1900", which were "all made by the same producer whose identity has yet to be established", not by Edison or its affiliated filmmakers. Musser does not give any credits for this film.
Probably filmed around March, 1900.
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Music - CC & PD
Dawn of the Apocalypse
Written by Rafael Krux.
Halloween Theme 1
Written by Alexander Nakarada.