Journal of Film Preservation - FIAF

Love, the Winner (Selig, 1913) with Helen
Combes, Winnifred Greenwood, Harry
Lonsdale and Emma Meffert
The Earl of Ratcliff, in America to retrieve his fallen fortunes, has an invitation to visit his college
friend, John Cosgrove. The latter’s sister, Mabel, heiress to the large fortune of her godmother, is
curious to see a live Earl at close range.
The cook and butler go on a hilarious tear the day of the Earl’s coming, so Miss Mabel takes advantage
of the situation to cook and serve the meal for his highness.
He is much impressed with the mien and intelligence of the young lady, and she in turn has her
preconceived notions of royal roues quite overthrown.
He gives up the thought of marrying for money instantly, but the idea of wedding under his station
sticks, so he concludes to leave before he gets hopelessly in love. However, he is unable to leave.
Selig (1864-1948) was an important early American film pioneer. The
company was formed on April 9, 1896, in Chicago and was originally
called the Mutoscope and Film Company. At first, the company
specialized in slapstick comedies and travel films, though they also made
industrial films, most notably for Armour and Company, the meat
packing firm, in 1901. Sued by Thomas A. Edison for patent
infringement in 1905, Selig was provided
free legal representation by Philip Armour
in return for prints of films. One outcome
of the litigation was that Selig joined with
Edison and other companies to form the
Motion Picture Patents Company in
1908. The Selig Polyscope Company
ceased film production in 1918, although
Colonel Selig continued producing into
64 Journal of Film Preservation / 58/59 / 1999
the 1930s, The Drag-Net (1936) and
Convicts at Large (1938) being the last
films credited to him.
The Selig Polyscope Company was a
large and important pioneer film
company, and apparently the first
company to shoot a narrative film in Los
Angeles (The Heart of a Race Tout, 1909).
Later that year, Selig established a
permanent studio in the Los Angeles
area. It may have been the first U.S.
company to shoot a two-reel film, Damon
and Pythias (1908), and it later made the
first true serial, The Adventures of Kathlyn
(1913-1914). The company was also
well known for its animal pictures,
using resources of the Selig Jungle Zoo,
and its Westerns, in which Tom Mix
began his film career.
The William N. Selig Collection contains
photographs and motion picture film
frame specimens from more than 525
short and feature-length films made
during the years 1904 to 1917. The