DID YOU KNOW…
The First Film Copyrighted in the U.S.? It Was Just a Sneeze!
Before blockbusters and Oscar winners, the very first motion picture ever copyrighted in the United States was a mere five-second clip of a man sneezing, titled "Edison Kinetoscopic Record of a Sneeze."
Filmed in 1894 by William K.L. Dickson for Thomas Edison, this iconic snippet features Edison employee Fred Ott taking a pinch of snuff and then letting out a hearty sneeze. Its primary purpose was to demonstrate the capabilities of Edison's Kinetoscope, an early motion picture device, rather than to tell a story. This simple, unscripted moment inadvertently made cinematic history, laying a foundational stone for copyright law in the nascent film industry.
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