Edison Kinetophone Company certificate #2 (Early sound for motion pictures) - New Jersey 1913

Beautifully printed RARE certificate #2 from the Edison Kinetophone Company issued in 1913. This historic document was printed by Broun-Green Company and has an ornate border around it with a vignette of an eagle. This item is hand signed by the Company's President (William Maxwell) and Secretary and is over 95 years old. Cut cancelled through signatures. This is the first time we have seen an issued certificate from this company for sale.


Certificate Vignette


Edison Kinetophone Advertisement

The Edison Kinetophone Company was a short-lived company established in 1913 to exhibit Edison's kinetophone for talkie movies in the United States and Canada. The sound was made to synchronize with a motion picture projected onto a screen. A celluloid cylinder record measuring 5 1/2" in diameter was used for the phonograph. Synchronization was achieved by connecting the projector at one end of the theater and the phonograph at the other end with a long pulley.

Nineteen talking pictures were produced in 1913 by Edison, but by 1915 he Edison had abandoned sound motion pictures. Union rules stipulated that local union projectionists had to operate the Kinetophones, even though they hadn't been trained properly in its use. This led to many instances where synchronization was not achieved, causing audience dissatisfaction. The method of synchronization used was still less than perfect, and breaks in the film would cause the motion picture to get out of step with the phonograph record.