The Corbett-Fitzsimmons Fight (1897)

Directed by

Enoch J. Rector

Genre

documentary film, silent film, boxing film

Country

United States

Runtime

1h 40m

Rated

NR

Rating

5.3 of 10 from 27 voters

Elsewhere

IMDb

How it feels

This film shows a 1897 boxing match between James J. Corbett and Bob Fitzsimmons. It was shot with three cameras and originally ran over 100 minutes although only pieces survive.

historicalslow-pacedobservationalrawdatedfragmentarystaticarchival

What happens

The Corbett–Fitzsimmons Fight is an 1897 documentary film depicting the 1897 boxing match between James J. Corbett and Bob Fitzsimmons in Carson City, Nevada on March 17, 1897. Directed by Enoch J. Rector, it originally ran for more than 100 minutes, making it the longest film released to date. The technology that allowed this is known as the Latham loop. Rector claimed to have invented the device, but its invention is disputed. He used three such equipped cameras placed adjacently and filming on 63mm nitrate film. Only fragments of the film survive. The known fragments were transferred in the 1980s from a print owned by Jean A. LeRoy of New York City, the transfer done on a specially built optical printer to convert the film to 35mm film. The film was also the first to be shot in widescreen, with an aspect ratio of about 1.65:1. According to Dan Streible, The Corbett–Fitzsimmons Fight is "one of the earliest individual productions to sustain public commentary on the cinema.", while Luke McKernan declared, "it was boxing that created the cinema." As noted by Seth Abraham, the president of Time Warner Sports, it was the first motion picture to ever depict the championship prizefight. Its nationwide screenings can be regarded as the first pay-per-view media event in boxing history, for the fight produced more income in box office than in live gate receipts, it was immensely profitable and the picture served as a long-standing model for future amusement entrepreneurs. Prizefighting was illegal in 21 states and many cities and states tried to ban the film, mostly unsuccessfully. In 2012, the film was added to the National Film Registry at the Library of Congress, being deemed "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant". (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

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