J. Stuart Blackton

James Stuart Blackton was an AngloAmerican film producer, most notable for making the first silent film that included animated sequences recorded on standard picture film The Enchanted Drawing and is because of that considered the father of American animation. Both stopmotion and drawn animation techniques were used in his films. He was also a director of silent film, and the founder of Vitagraph Studios.

Blackton was born in Sheffield, Yorkshire, England. His surname was originally Blacktin, his parents being Henry Blacktin and Jessie, ne Stuart. He emigrated with his family to the USA atyears of age. He worked as a reporter and illustrator for the New York Evening World newspaper, and performed regularly on stage with conjuror Albert Smith. In 1896, Thomas Edison publicly demonstrated the Vitascope, one of the first film projectors, and Blackton was sent to interview Edison and provide drawings of how his films were made. Eager for good publicity, Edison took Blackton out to his Black Maria, the special cabin he used to do his filming, and created a film on the spot of Blackton doing a lightning portrait of Edison. The inventor did such a good job selling the art of moviemaking that he talked Blackton and partner Smith into buying a print of the new film as well as nine other films, plus a Vitascope to show them to paying audiences .

Source: Wikipedia