Top of page

Film, Video Cake walk Title in American Mutoscope & Biograph picture catalogue, Nov. 1902 [MI], p. 12: Coon cake walk / Title in Biograph photo catalog, v. 1 [MI]: Darkey cake walk / Cakewalk

Digital viewing copy

About this Item

Title

  • Cake walk

Other Title

  • Title in American Mutoscope & Biograph picture catalogue, Nov. 1902 [MI], p. 12: Coon cake walk
  • Title in Biograph photo catalog, v. 1 [MI]: Darkey cake walk
  • Cakewalk

Summary

  • Five African Americans--three men and two women--perform a cakewalk, a dance featuring fancy strutting that was named after the prize awarded in the original contests. The dancers wear rather formal attire, with the men in dark suits and black tie and the women in full-length, high-collared dark dresses; one woman carries a small American flag. As they step in place against a light background, the center male--holding up a top hat and twirling a cane--moves toward the camera and briefly performs some fancy steps. As he moves back, the man at the left end of the line does a quick twirling step and links arms with his partner. The other two dancers also pair off as the center male leads them in a strutting movement around the stage. When they return to the original line, all five step towards the camera with the center man slightly ahead of the others. The film ends just as they stop the cakewalk.
  • "An amusing cake walk, by a company of New York darkies who excel in this line of work"--American Mutoscope & Biograph picture catalogue.

Names

  • American Mutoscope and Biograph Company
  • Paper Print Collection (Library of Congress)

Created / Published

  • United States : American Mutoscope and Biograph Company, c1903.

Headings

  • -  Cakewalk (Dance)
  • -  Dance, Black--United States
  • -  African American dance

Genre

  • Filmed vaudeville acts
  • Peep shows (Motion pictures)
  • Silent films
  • Short films
  • Nonfiction films

Notes

  • -  H31674 U.S. Copyright Office
  • -  Copyright: American Mutoscope & Biograph Co.; 11May1903; H31674.
  • -  Original main title lacking.
  • -  Niver's Early motion pictures incorrectly credits the Americus Quartet as performers. Niver's credit for F.S. Armitage as cameraman cannot be confirmed in secondary sources.
  • -  Duration: 0:24 at 16 fps.
  • -  Biograph production no. 207.
  • -  Paper print shelf number (LC 0367) was changed when the paper prints were re-housed.
  • -  Additional holdings for this title may be available. Contact reference librarian.
  • -  Sometimes confused with Comedy cake walk, which LC also holds.
  • -  The AFI catalog erroneously gives copyright information and title for this film on the entry for Comedy cake walk.
  • -  Sources used: Niver, K. Early motion pictures, p. 43; AFI catalog: film beginnings, 1893-1910; American Mutoscope & Biograph picture catalogue, Nov. 1902, p. 12; Biograph photo catalog, vol. 1, no. 207, viewed online via the New Jersey Digital Highway, July 11, 2014; Biograph production logs, 1896-1899; AFI catalog: film beginnings, 1893-1910.
  • -  Filmed at the Biograph New York City studio, April-May, 1897.
  • -  Available also through the Library of Congress Web site as digital files.
  • -  Early motion pictures : the Paper Print Collection in the Library of Congress / by Kemp R. Niver. Library of Congress. 1985.
  • -  35 mm dupe neg pic renumbered: FPE 7730 to FZA 1175.
  • -  35 mm viewing print renumbered: FEC 2203 to FYA 1431.

Medium

  • viewing print 1 film reel of 1 (11 ft.) : si., b&w ; 16 mm.
  • viewing print 1 film reel of 1 (24 ft.) : si., b&w ; 35 mm.
  • dupe neg pic 1 film reel of 1 (11 ft.) : si., b&w ; 16 mm.
  • dupe neg pic 1 film reel of 1 (24 ft.) : si., b&w ; 35 mm.
  • paper pos 1 roll of 1 (ca. 25 ft.) : b&w ; 35 mm.
  • paper pos (copy 2) 1 roll of 1 (ca. 25 ft.) : b&w ; 35 mm.

Call Number/Physical Location

  • FLA 3381 (viewing print)
  • FYA 1431 (viewing print)
  • FRA 0371 (dupe neg pic)
  • FZA 1175 (dupe neg pic)
  • Box 0126M (paper pos)
  • Box 5604D (paper pos, copy 2)

Repository

  • Library of Congress Motion Picture, Broadcasting and Recorded Sound Division Washington, D.C. 20540 USA dcu

Digital Id

Library of Congress Control Number

  • 96520361

Online Format

  • image
  • video

Additional Metadata Formats

Rights & Access

The Library of Congress is not aware of any U.S. copyright or other restrictions in the vast majority of motion pictures in these collections. Absent any such restrictions, these materials are free to use and reuse.

In rare cases, copyrighted motion pictures are made available by special permission to the Library and may be used only for educational purposes. For example, the Gershwin home movies fall within this category. Rights assessment is your responsibility. No registration information exists for some titles, and reproduction of some titles may be restricted by privacy rights, publicity rights, licensing and trademarks. Additionally, some works may still be protected by copyright in the United States or some foreign countries. The written permission of the copyright owners in materials not in the public domain is required for distribution, reproduction, or other use of protected items beyond that allowed by fair use or other statutory exemptions.

Whenever possible, we provide information that we have about copyright owners and related matters in the catalog records, finding aids and other texts that accompany collections. You should consult the catalog information that accompanies each item for specific information. This catalog data provides the details known to the Library of Congress regarding the corresponding item and may assist you in making independent assessments of the legal status of these items for their desired uses. You should also consult restrictions associated with donations to the Library.

Credit Line: Library of Congress, Motion Picture, Broadcasting, and Recorded Sound Division.

More about Copyright and other Restrictions.

For guidance about compiling full citations consult Citing Primary Sources.

Cite This Item

Citations are generated automatically from bibliographic data as a convenience, and may not be complete or accurate.

Chicago citation style:

American Mutoscope And Biograph Company, and Paper Print Collection. Cake Walk. United States: American Mutoscope and Biograph Company, 1897. Video. https://www.loc.gov/item/96520361/.

APA citation style:

American Mutoscope And Biograph Company & Paper Print Collection. (1897) Cake Walk. United States: American Mutoscope and Biograph Company. [Video] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/96520361/.

MLA citation style:

American Mutoscope And Biograph Company, and Paper Print Collection. Cake Walk. United States: American Mutoscope and Biograph Company, 1897. Video. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, <www.loc.gov/item/96520361/>.