Scope and Content Note
The papers of George Kleine (1863-1931) span the years 1886-1946, with the bulk of the material dated between 1900 and 1930. The collection consists primarily of business records including correspondence, financial and legal papers, newspaper clippings, printed matter, and miscellaneous material generated by Kleine's various financial ventures in the motion picture industry. The papers are organized into three series: Subject File , Inventories and Lists , and Distribution File .
A variety of material in the Subject File documents the early history of the motion picture industry. There are patent papers for some of the first projection equipment, legal documents from court suits, and correspondence of major producers, distributors, and exhibitors.
The extent of Kleine's involvement in the industry is evident from files on corporations that comprise a large portion of the Subject File . In addition to papers relating to companies that Kleine either owned or was associated with, such as Kleine Optical Company, Kalem Company, and United Theatre Equipment Corporation, there are papers for Eastman Kodak Company, Biograph Company, Essanay Film Manufacturing Co., and Famous Players-Lasky Corporation.
Kleine's relationship with the Thomas A. Edison enterprises is documented in a file on Edison and in correspondence with Thomas A. Edison, Inc. Kleine made extensive use of Edison's “Conquest Film” series, which was especially designed for use in schools, churches, and civic organizations. Kleine was also a member with Thomas A. Edison, Inc., and other firms in the first motion picture trust, the Motion Picture Patents Company, and its distributing arm, the General Film Company, in which Kleine served as vice president and later president. There are substantial files for this venture. The papers also document the trust's fall from power following a suit against it by the Greater New York Film Rental Company. The particulars of this suit and other legal entanglements are detailed in files on litigation and Motion Picture Patents Company litigation.
Both the Subject File and Distribution File series document Kleine's efforts to establish a non-theatrical film distribution system. His aim to provide wholesome and instructional films is evident in the titles of subject files: “better and highbrow film movements,” non-theatrical films,” “educational films,” “educational distribution to universities,” and “educational institutions.” In correspondence with William H. Dudley, chief of the Bureau of Visual Instruction of the University of Wisconsin and organizer of the National Academy of Visual Instruction, Kleine discusses his proposals for ensuring the moral content of film subjects. In the Distribution File series is evidence of his system for distributing films to schools, churches, and community organizations through state universities.
The importation of foreign films consumed a significant part of Kleine's professional interests beginning in 1903. Kleine eventually became the largest importer of foreign films in the United States and Canada. In the Subject File is correspondence with foreign film companies such as Ambrosio (Societá Anonima Ambrosio), Cines (Societá Italiana Cines), and Eclipse (Société Générale des Cinématographers). Among the foreign films featured are The Last Days of Pompeii, Julius Caesar, and the spectacular motion picture, Quo Vadis? Kleine discontinued importing films after the start of World War I, but correspondence in the 1920s with Alfred Bourget, his representative in France, reveals a continuing interest in the subject.
Other topics in the collection that reflect on the early history of the film trade include files on censorship, copyright, prize fights, and World War I.
Though brief in size, the Inventories and Lists series and Distribution File series provide an overview of the most popular or sought-after film releases for the periods covered. Together with subject files on banks, branches, distribution, finances, and historical material, they give a detailed picture of the film distribution system for which Kleine is best known.