The Serpentine Dance enjoyed enormous popularity in its day. As well as the very personal interpretations of Little Tich (a diminutive comedy star of the English music-hall of the period) and Fregoli, we see the dance again in the typical ambiance of the cinema of attractions, the fairground and the circus. Especially admirable is the interpretation of the Chiens Savants, trained dogs who featured in many films of the time. Dance was a very frequent subject for films of the primitive cinema. These examples show the influence which the choreography of Loïe exerted upon this genre. Particularly to be noted is the confrontation in the programme between the ballet style of Ballet Libella, which represents the past, and the more modern choreography which introduces, following the changing tastes of the time, veils and scarves. An homage to the revolution which Fuller effected at the heart of dance, bringing it into the modern era.

Massimo Piovesana

In the Absence of Stars

Rescued by Rover, canonized as a milestone of cinema history for its editing, is not very original from a contents point of view. Cinema adopted an old literary motif, and especially around 1905 children are frequently being searched for in films, either because they were stolen, or because they themselves had stolen something (or been up to some other mischief).

The obvious thing to do would have been a program made up of a number of variants, like Voleurs d’enfants, Les petits voleurs, and Le chien de la petite aveugle, but a straight line between two points is often the least interesting connection.

In the cinema of 1905 there are no stars. We see heroes and protagonists who are impersonated by actors. A considerable quantity of films are dedicated to popes, presidents, and royalty, stage celebrities such as Félix Mayol and Loïe Fuller, and naturally to the family stars, the Baby and the Dog. Both are filmed extensively and repeatedly: according to Bousquet’s general index no fewer than 34 Pathé film titles begin with Chien (compared with only four cats)! In 1905, Max Linder was already working for Pathé, but the time of comedy stars had yet to begin.

Mariann Lewinsky