157:, a well-dressed African American couple exchanges several kisses. Between kisses they hold and swing each other's hands and laugh together. The chemistry in the performances is described as "palpable," conveying an "unmistakable sense of naturalness, pleasure, and amusement." A slightly longer version came to light in 2021; this version shows the couple before they embrace, and includes the "prelude before the kisses, with wooing, refusal and negotiation.” The longer version was produced at the same time and may have been produced for the international market. Research notes that alternate versions were sold and separately listed with varying lengths. The longer version is also from a perspective point further away and inverted, with the actors on opposite sides from the first version, although whether this was a mistake in production or reproduction is unknown. Scholars also perceive the longer film as more “
319:, and was housed in a barn until authorities said the films posed a risk of fire. Oral history suggests the film came to Norway when a Norwegian filmmaker wanted to assemble a projector in the early days of film and brought home film-reels from the US. News of the 2017 discovery in the United States caused the National Library of Norway to reexamine it and correct its provenance. Though scanned twice, the film still shows spots and malformations, Films at the time were often poorly produced, and those spots may always have been there. The film negative is deteriorating, held in the arctic facilities in the north of the country.
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before its rediscovery, although details concerning the film, other than its title and director, were unknown. Since almost all surviving films from that time are overtly racist, it was usually just listed as a lost race film.
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in 2017. Reviewing the technical details of the film, thereby dating it with the film stock and perforation holes, catalogs and sales material, scholars at USC and the
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and is known for departing from the prevalent and purely stereotypical presentation of racist caricature in popular culture at the time it was made. The film was a
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Field, Allyson Nadia (2021). "Archival
Rediscovery and the Production of History: Solving the Mystery of Something Good—Negro Kiss (1898)".
423:"Tracing Chicago origins of 'Something Good,' a recently discovered film clip depicting first onscreen kiss between two African-Americans"
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is a short silent film from 1898 of a couple kissing and holding hands. It is believed to depict the earliest on-screen kiss involving
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When it was produced, it was likely presented with other shorts as a comedy vignette, a take-off on the 1896 film
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dance. They may have been at the film studio to perform in a cakewalk vignette, playing the film as impromptu.
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641:"'Something Good — Negro Kiss': Solving Its Historical Mystery and How to Account for 'Lost' Black Films"
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circuit actress. The two also performed as dance partners. They were part of a group known as
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456:"Silent film of black couple's kiss discovered, added to National Film Registry"
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claims the copyright to the restored version of the film, which it published on
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539:"New version of first ever African-American screen kiss discovered in Norway"
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African-American history between emancipation and the civil rights movement
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589:"Library Of Congress Honors Groundbreaking 1898 Film Depicting Black Joy"
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film. It is one of the oldest films in the
National Library collection.
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Film
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were able to identify the film's production history. The USC
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until its rediscovery in 2017, and was added to the
American
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Four years later, in 2021, a 49-second film held in the
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This copy was included in a reel found in the town of
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Extended version of the film, found in Norway in 2021.
681:"Restored version of Something Good Negro Kiss 1898"
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511:"2018 additions to the National Film Registry"
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345:(2): 1–33.
244:Rediscovery
38:Directed by
710:1898 films
704:Categories
399:References
324:lost films
184:vaudeville
149:Production
645:IndieWire
359:236779328
260:Louisiana
145:in 2018.
139:lost film
515:CBS News
375:See also
192:cakewalk
167:The Kiss
119:Language
68:through
48:Starring
650:June 6,
572:June 6,
567:A.frame
543:Reuters
317:Leksvik
310:Lumière
199:Chicago
111:Country
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693:2018
675:IMDb
652:2022
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302:Oslo
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