Top of page

Notice
Special holiday hours in effect, December 2025 through January 2026. More information.

Film, Video Alphonse and Gaston, no. 3 Copyright title: Alphonse and Gaston 3 / Title in Biograph production logs: Alphonse & Gaston / Title in Biograph bulletins, 1896-1908: Alphonse and Gaston take a dancing lesson

Digital viewing copy

About this Item

Title

  • Alphonse and Gaston, no. 3

Other Title

  • Copyright title: Alphonse and Gaston 3
  • Title in Biograph production logs: Alphonse & Gaston
  • Title in Biograph bulletins, 1896-1908: Alphonse and Gaston take a dancing lesson

Summary

  • Opens on a set of a saloon or tavern with a long bar and pictures on the wall that include boxers, a ballerina, and a reclining female. At the end of the bar stands the bartender, reading a newspaper. Two men dressed as the clownish characters of Alphonse and Gaston enter the bar. Both have dark, bushy hair and beards and wear hats, with one dressed in a dark jacket and checkerboard pants and the other wearing a plaid jacket, dark trousers, and spats. Alphonse and Gaston order a bottle, then politely and repeatedly insist that the other should take the first drink. A cowboy dressed in fringed chaps, boots, a Western hat, and a neck kerchief enters the bar, a pistol in each hand, and laughs at the Frenchmen's antics. He begins shooting at their feet, forcing them to dance, while he and the bartender have a good laugh. As the bartender begins to spritz them from soda bottle, Alphonse and Gaston exit the bar dancing. The cowboy walks to the bar and pours himself their drink as he and the bartender continue to laugh over the incident.
  • "Alphonse and Gaston are in a Western saloon and are forced to dance by a cowboy, who urges them on by shooting at their feet. 54 feet"--Biograph bulletins.

Names

  • Weed, A. E., camera
  • American Mutoscope and Biograph Company
  • Paper Print Collection (Library of Congress)

Created / Published

  • United States : American Mutoscope and Biograph Company, 1903.

Headings

  • -  Alphonse--(Fictitious character)--Humor
  • -  Gaston--(Fictitious character)--Humor
  • -  Courtesy--Humor
  • -  Cowboys--Humor
  • -  Bartenders--Humor

Genre

  • Filmed vaudeville acts
  • Comedy films
  • Silent films
  • Short films
  • Nonfiction films

Notes

  • -  H37366 U.S. Copyright Office
  • -  Based on the comic strip characters created by Frederick Burr Opper.
  • -  Copyright: American Mutoscope & Biograph Co.; 27Oct1903; H37366.
  • -  Original main title lacking.
  • -  Duration: 0:53 at 16 fps.
  • -  Biograph production no. 2623.
  • -  Paper print shelf number (LC 1453) was changed when the paper prints were re-housed.
  • -  Additional holdings for this title may be available. Contact reference librarian.
  • -  Sources used: Copyright catalog, motion pictures, 1894-1912; Niver, K. Early motion pictures, p. 5; AFI catalog: film beginnings, 1893-1910, p. 20; Biograph production logs; Biograph photo catalog, v. 6 [MI]; Biograph bulletins 1896-1908, p. 197, p. 423; Musser, C. The emergence of cinema, p. 308.
  • -  Camera, A.E. Weed.
  • -  Filmed October 16, 1903, in the Biograph studio, New York City.
  • -  paper pos (copy 2) Received: 1903-10-27; copyright deposit; Paper Print Collection.
  • -  Early motion pictures : the Paper Print Collection in the Library of Congress / by Kemp R. Niver. Library of Congress. 1985.
  • -  Paper print roll lacking suffix.

Medium

  • viewing print 1 film reel of 1 (30 ft.) : si., b&w ; 16 mm.
  • viewing print 1 film reel of 1 (53 ft.) : si., b&w ; 35 mm.
  • dupe neg pic 1 film reel of 1 (30 ft.) : si., b&w ; 16 mm.
  • dupe neg pic 1 film reel of 1 (ca. 55 ft.) : si., b&w ; 35 mm.
  • master pos pic 1 film reel of 1 (ca. 30 ft.) : si., b&w ; 16 mm.
  • master pos pic (copy 2) 1 film reel of 1 (ca. 30 ft.) : si., b&w ; 16 mm.
  • master pos pic 1 film reel of 1 (ca. 55 ft.) : si., b&w ; 35 mm.
  • paper pos 1 roll of 1 (ca. 55 ft.) : b&w ; 35 mm.
  • paper pos (copy 2) 1 roll of 1 (ca. 55 ft.) : b&w ; 35 mm.

Call Number/Physical Location

  • FLA 4467 (viewing print)
  • FEC 2536 (viewing print)
  • FRA 1561 (dupe neg pic)
  • FPE 8565 (dupe neg pic)
  • FRB 1238 (master pos pic)
  • FRB 2907 (master pos pic, copy 2)
  • FPE 8566 (master pos pic)
  • Box 0010C (paper pos)
  • Box 5034 (paper pos, copy 2)

Source Collection

  • Niver (Kemp) Collection (Library of Congress)

Repository

  • Library of Congress Motion Picture, Broadcasting and Recorded Sound Division Washington, D.C. 20540 USA dcu

Digital Id

Library of Congress Control Number

  • 96521660

Online Format

  • image
  • video

Additional Metadata Formats

Rights & Access

The Library of Congress is not aware of any U.S. copyright or other restrictions in the vast majority of motion pictures in these collections. Absent any such restrictions, these materials are free to use and reuse.

In rare cases, copyrighted motion pictures are made available by special permission to the Library and may be used only for educational purposes. For example, the Gershwin home movies fall within this category. Rights assessment is your responsibility. No registration information exists for some titles, and reproduction of some titles may be restricted by privacy rights, publicity rights, licensing and trademarks. Additionally, some works may still be protected by copyright in the United States or some foreign countries. The written permission of the copyright owners in materials not in the public domain is required for distribution, reproduction, or other use of protected items beyond that allowed by fair use or other statutory exemptions.

Whenever possible, we provide information that we have about copyright owners and related matters in the catalog records, finding aids and other texts that accompany collections. You should consult the catalog information that accompanies each item for specific information. This catalog data provides the details known to the Library of Congress regarding the corresponding item and may assist you in making independent assessments of the legal status of these items for their desired uses. You should also consult restrictions associated with donations to the Library.

Credit Line: Library of Congress, Motion Picture, Broadcasting, and Recorded Sound Division.

More about Copyright and other Restrictions.

For guidance about compiling full citations consult Citing Primary Sources.

Cite This Item

Citations are generated automatically from bibliographic data as a convenience, and may not be complete or accurate.

Chicago citation style:

Weed, A. E., Camera, American Mutoscope And Biograph Company, and Paper Print Collection. Alphonse and Gaston, no. 3. United States: American Mutoscope and Biograph Company, 1903. Video. https://aj.sunback.homes/item/96521660/.

APA citation style:

Weed, A. E., American Mutoscope And Biograph Company & Paper Print Collection. (1903) Alphonse and Gaston, no. 3. United States: American Mutoscope and Biograph Company. [Video] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://aj.sunback.homes/item/96521660/.

MLA citation style:

Weed, A. E., Camera, American Mutoscope And Biograph Company, and Paper Print Collection. Alphonse and Gaston, no. 3. United States: American Mutoscope and Biograph Company, 1903. Video. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, <aj.sunback.homes/item/96521660/>.