Joer 1906 - 3

On a winter evening, a poor peasant woman waited for her husband, who had gone to gather firewood in the forest. He finally arrived. The man and woman returned to their gloomy home, devoid of the joyful cries of a child. This was their great sorrow and their greatest longing. A fairy, having heard their wishes, appeared to them in the guise of an old beggar woman and asked for alms. Having tested their kind hearts, she transformed the scene into a bright and sunny landscape. She summoned flowers, which gathered in her hand into a pretty bouquet. She offered it to them and then vanished. But, to their surprise, the flowers transformed into two beautiful children who brought joy and happiness with them. —Pathé catalogue supplement, August, 1906.

The 1906 version of the Kongerevue parade in Denmark.

A pulp writer dozes off at his desk and dreams himself into a melodrama of love and rivalry. What begins as a familiar tale soon veers into absurdity—complete with outrageous twists, overblown villains, and even a gunshot to the head. J. Stuart Blackton’s parody gleefully skewers the clichés of stage melodrama in one of early cinema’s most inventive comedies.

A drunken man gets into a fight with everyone he meets.

A magician charms a caterpillar and turns it into a butterfly woman. This film is a blatant remake of Georges Méliès's "La Chrysalide et le Papillon d'or" (1901).

A new skyscraper is being built in New York City, and numerous workmen are busy at hazardous jobs high above the ground. When one of the workers, Dago Pete, deliberately starts a fight, he is immediately fired. But the discharged worker soon comes up with a plan to commit a robbery and get even. His scheme could affect the lives of several others.

Two groups of young women get into a pair of horse-drawn carts, and go off for a straw ride through the snowy streets. As they pass by a group of children, the children throw snowballs at the riders, and they and other persons begin to join in the fun. Then one of the carts tips on its side, spilling some of its occupants into the snow. Everyone soon decides that they enjoy playing in the snow even more than riding.

A mattress maker briefly leaves the mattress she's mending. A drunkard leaving the café sits down on it. The woman returns and finishes her work. Then, after numerous mishaps, the mattress is delivered. Finally, it's placed in a bedroom. Shortly after, a newlywed couple arrives. But at the crucial moment, the man emerges from the mattress, disheveled, much to the bride's alarm.

Vera, daughter of a Cossack loves a young tartar who is the enemy of her father. She betrays her father to save the life of her lover, but loses her own life instead.

A wall full of advertising posters comes to life.

Immigrants and boats departing and arriving at Ellis Island.

A cowboy gets involved in the kidnapping and rescue of a pretty young girl.

Two gang members send a threatening letter to a butcher, demanding money if he did not want his shop to be destroyed and his daughter Maria kidnapped. When he is unable to meet their request, they take Maria away. The Black Hand is the earliest surviving gangster film.

A short film from Slovenia made by Karol Grossmann.

Two boys and their dog set out to play a series of practical jokes on their neighbors. After they have caused several disruptions, the police are called, and soon the boys are on the run, pursued by the police and others. In their efforts to escape, the boys receive considerable help from the resourceful dog.

Suffering from unrequited love, Max hangs himself from a tree, and ends up hanging for hours while local townspeople squabble over whose responsibility it is to rescue him.

A penniless troubadour consults witch Carabosse about his future, but offends her by paying with a bag of sand. He evades the witch's revenge, and saves the beautiful princess.

A criminal gang descends into the sewers of Paris and uses an interior exit to get their hands on a safe. They move it out of town, where they work to open it.

An old general is married to a young woman. She meets a young man and makes plans for a rendezvous. The general receives an anonymous letter about his wife which causes him to find the couple and seek vengeance.

Young lovers separate, she to a career on the stage and he to remain in the small village in which they grew up. Years pass and he is hired to be a porter for a theater company and finds her, a far different woman who does not recognize him.