The Cavalier's Dream

The Cavalier's Dream
The Cavalier's Dream
Produced by	Vitagraph Studios
Distributed by	Edison Studios
Release date	December 1898;
Running time	1 minute
Country	United States
Language	English

The Cavalier's Dream is an 1898 American silent horror trick film. While the film is sometimes credited to director Edwin S. Porter, this is an error. According to Charles Musser, the film was likely shot by Albert E. Smith and J. Stuart Blackton in the Manhattan rooftop studio of their new Vitagraph company, then an Edison licensee.^[1]^[2]

Plot

A cavalier sits asleep at a bare table; an old witch enters, raps three times, then disappears; the cavalier sees the table spread for a sumptuous repast. Mephistopheles appears, then the old witch, who suddenly shapeshifts into a beautiful young girl. By the end of the film, the cavalier is surrounded by a dancing ring of hooded figures, who are urged on by Mephistopheles. The dancers vanish, and in the final moments, the cavalier wakes up from his dream.^[3] The changes and magical appearances are startling and instantaneous.^[4]^[5]

References

^ Vitagraph - Edison (December 1898), The Cavalier's Dream (1898), retrieved 2018-03-04
^ Musser, Charles (1991). Before the Nickelodeon: Edwin S. Porter and the Edison Manufacturing Company. University of California Press. pp. 511–512. Retrieved 1 February 2024.
^ Niver, Kemp R. (1985). Early Motion Pictures: The Paper Print Collection in the Library of Congress. Washington, D.C.: Library of Congress. pp. 50–51. Retrieved 16 February 2024.
^ The Cavalier's Dream (1898), retrieved 2018-03-04
^ "The Cavalier's Dream (1898)". Century Film Project. 2017-10-03. Archived from the original on March 4, 2018. Retrieved 2018-03-04.

External links

The Cavalier's Dream at IMDb
The Cavalier's Dream on the Internet Archive

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[1] Vitagraph - Edison (December 1898), The Cavalier's Dream (1898), retrieved 2018-03-04

[Before-2] Musser, Charles (1991). Before the Nickelodeon: Edwin S. Porter and the Edison Manufacturing Company. University of California Press. pp. 511–512. Retrieved 1 February 2024.

[3] Niver, Kemp R. (1985). Early Motion Pictures: The Paper Print Collection in the Library of Congress. Washington, D.C.: Library of Congress. pp. 50–51. Retrieved 16 February 2024.

[4] The Cavalier's Dream (1898), retrieved 2018-03-04

[5] "The Cavalier's Dream (1898)". Century Film Project. 2017-10-03. Archived from the original on March 4, 2018. Retrieved 2018-03-04.

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