The Automobile Thieves
Encyclopedia
The Automobile Thieves was a silent era black & white short film (approx. 11-minutes), crime drama, released on November 10, 1906 by The American Vitagraph Company
. It was written by Philippe Fano and Joseph Morder.
In the short film, the young couple conducts a series of robberies, followed by the big chase before they are shot and killed. The studio co-owner, director and actor, J. Stuart Blackton
's starred in the film with the debut for his 20 year old co-star actress Florence Lawrence
, who in later years grew to become the very first film star; but for this and all her movies with Vitagraph Studios, she was not given film credits and remained anonymous. All of the movie studios resisted giving credits for years in the early twentieth century because they knew if they did, the actors would gain huge public celebrity status, which would drive up their costs to retain the stars; this was happening on the big stage and they didn't want to repeat the trend in film if they could avoid it.
Vitagraph Studios
American Vitagraph was a United States movie studio, founded by J. Stuart Blackton and Albert E. Smith in 1897 in Brooklyn, New York. By 1907 it was the most prolific American film production company, producing many famous silent films. It was bought by Warner Bros...
. It was written by Philippe Fano and Joseph Morder.
In the short film, the young couple conducts a series of robberies, followed by the big chase before they are shot and killed. The studio co-owner, director and actor, J. Stuart Blackton
J. Stuart Blackton
James Stuart Blackton , usually known as J. Stuart Blackton, was an Anglo-American film producer of the Silent Era, the founder of Vitagraph Studios and among the first filmmakers to use the techniques of stop-motion and drawn animation...
's starred in the film with the debut for his 20 year old co-star actress Florence Lawrence
Florence Lawrence
Florence Lawrence was a Canadian inventor and silent film actress. She is often referred to as "The First Movie Star." When she was popular, she was known as "The Biograph Girl," "The Imp Girl," and "The Girl of a Thousand Faces." Lawrence appeared in more than 270 films for various motion...
, who in later years grew to become the very first film star; but for this and all her movies with Vitagraph Studios, she was not given film credits and remained anonymous. All of the movie studios resisted giving credits for years in the early twentieth century because they knew if they did, the actors would gain huge public celebrity status, which would drive up their costs to retain the stars; this was happening on the big stage and they didn't want to repeat the trend in film if they could avoid it.
External links
- http://www.midnightpalace.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=125
- http://www.heepo.com/Movies/1144134/The_Automobile_Thieves_(1906)