Who established Black Maria, the world’s first motion picture studio?
Walt Disney
Thomas Edison
Charlie Chaplin
Louis B. Mayer
Fact: In the late 19th century, Thomas Edison invented a motion picture camera called the Kinetoscope. Naturally, he needed a place to film, so he built a studio, now considered the world’s first movie studio, behind his West Orange, New Jersey laboratory. Edison named it Black Maria after the police wagons of the era, since its dark tar paper exterior gave it a similar look. Ingeniously designed, the building featured a retractable roof and was mounted on a rotating platform so it could follow the sun and capture the best possible natural light for filming.
Correct Answer: Thomas Edison