Edison: The Father of Invention is a documentary film which premiered on US television (PBS) in 2015.
It is an episode of the long-running program American Experience.
Here is some basic information about this film:
** Produced by Amanda Pollak and Michelle Ferrari
** Written and directed by Michelle Ferrari
** Narrated by Michael Murphy
** Run time: 93 minutes
This is the story of Thomas Alva Edison whose name is closely connected with the word “invention.” Hence the subtitle of the film.
Most episodes in this series run for ca. 53 minutes. In US television this is considered 1 hour, because commercials will fill up the remaining seven minutes. But this episode is almost twice as long. It runs for ca. 93 minutes (perhaps because there is so much to say about him and so much primary material to document the story). In US television this is considered 2 hours.
This film follows Edison’s life from the beginning in 1847 until the end in 1931. He was born into a family that was relatively poor. During his life he became rich and famous. When he died in 1931, he was one of the most famous persons in the US.
While the main focus is on his inventions and his public life, the film also covers his private life. He was married two times and had six children.
Several persons are interviewed in the film.
Here are the names of the participants listed in the order of appearance:
** Nathan Myhrvold, inventor and entrepreneur
** Nancy Koehn, historian
** Randall Stross, biographer
** Robert Rosenberg, Thomas Edison Papers, Rutgers University
** Lisa Gitelman, historian
** John Staudenmaier, historian
** Neil Baldwin, biographer
** Paul Israel, Thomas Edison Papers, Rutgers University
** Leonard DeGraaf, National Park Service
** Ernest Freeberg, historian
** Jill Jonnes, writer
The story of his life
Edison was an inventor. But invention was not a hobby pursued in his free time. It was his job. For Edison, invention was a business. He built a laboratory in Menlo Park and hired people who would work for him, helping him turn his ideas into inventions.
Whenever he made a new invention, he got a patent for it, and in some cases also started a mass production of the invention. This was how he became rich and famous.
His best-known inventions – the phonograph, the electric light bulb, and the Kinetoscope – are presented in great detail in this film.
We follow the process from an idea to an invention of a prototype and further to a product that is mass produced.
In this way the film documents the impact Edison had in the US and in the whole world.
During the final years of his life, Edison retired to his home in Fort Myers, Florida, and lived the life of a celebrity. He became friends with car-maker Henry Ford, who was another celebrity.
Together, Edison and Ford would sometimes go on a road trip. Journalists would visit Edison and ask for his opinion about contemporary topics, even though they were far beyond his expertise.
[For details about this part of his life, see Edison and Ford in Florida by Mike Cosden, Brent Newman & Chris Pendleton (2015).]
The producers of the film show great respect for Edison, which is only fair given his importance, but not everything that is said about him in this film is positive. There are some critical words as well.
Edison had a dark side: he neglected his family; he had a falling-out with his best friend Ezra Gilliland; and he waged a dirty propaganda war against his rival George Westinghouse.
Edison had a high opinion about himself and a low opinion about his rivals. Randall Stross, says:
“Edison did not have a generous nature, and he was most unwilling to say to a rival: ‘Well done’.”
This account of Edison’s life is documented with old stills and moving pictures as well as quotations from private letters.
Since this is a double-feature, there is time to dwell on many details and many aspects of his life. The producers have done a lot of work on this film. They have been very thorough. The participants are well-chosen. In short, there is much to like here.
The flaws
But the film is not without flaws. Some important facts about Edison are not mentioned and it is significant that the facts which have been excluded are all connected with the dark side of the famous inventor:
** The American inventor George Westinghouse is mentioned, but only briefly.
** The European inventor Nikola Tesla is not mentioned at all.
** The World’s Fair, aka the Columbian Exposition, held in Chicago in 1983, is not mentioned.
While we are told that Edison had more than a thousand patents in his name, more than any other person, we are not told how he managed to accomplish this feat. Here are some significant facts which have been excluded:
# 1. Westinghouse was in favour of Alternate Current, known as AC, while Edison was in favour of Direct Current, known as DC. When faced with competition from Westinghouse, Edison did not try to prove that his system was better, instead he claimed the system of his rival was dangerous.
This is why he invented the electric chair. This is why he used AC for this invention, claiming AC was deadly. He tried to scare the public, so they would shy away from using AC, even though it was the better choice, as we all know today.
Edison had been right so many times before. He could not admit he was wrong on this occasion. It was not only his idea that was wrong. It was much worse than that.
His investment in a power station and an electric network in New York City was wrong as well. This was a bitter pill to swallow. He did not like it.
# 2. Tesla came to the US in 1884. At first, he worked for Edison, but things did not go well, because they did not see eye to eye. Tesla was in favour of AC, like Westinghouse, while Edison insisted that DC was the only way to go.
At one point Edison gave Tesla a difficult task. He promised to pay him 15,000 dollars if he could do it. Tesla did the task, but when he wanted to collect the reward, Edison refused to pay and said:
“You do not understand the American sense of humor.”
In other words, there was no prize-money, it was just a joke. Tesla was shocked and deeply disappointed. He walked out and never came back, which is easy to understand.
# 3. The competition between Westinghouse and Edison - between AC and DC - culminated in an event that is a famous chapter in American history: the World's Fair, held in Chicago in 1893.
During the exposition all buildings would be illuminated with electric light, that would turn night into day, but who was going to provide the electricity for the show?
Edison made a bid that was relatively high, around one
million dollars, because he wished to cover his expenses and to make a profit as well. Westinghouse made a bid
that was much lower, around half a million dollars, because he did not demand
an immediate profit; he merely wanted to promote the name of his company;
profit would follow later, he thought. He was right. He got the contract.
Edison was upset. Like a child, he tried to sabotage his rival’s project by declaring that Westinghouse was not allowed to use light bulbs made by Edison's company for the illumination.
Westinghouse had to modify their light bulbs just so
much that they could be considered another type.
The exposition was a big success in general and a big success for Westinghouse.
This event signaled the end of DC and the victory of AC.
# 4. Edison had more patents than Westinghouse. How did he do it? Both men surrounded themselves with experts, but treated them in different ways.
When an engineer who worked for Westinghouse made an invention that could be patented, the patent would be made in the name of the inventor, i.e. the engineer. In Edison’s company things were different.
When an engineer who worked for Edison made an invention that could be patented, the patent would be made in Edison's name. That is why Edison was able to get more than a thousand patents in his name.
As you can see, the facts which have been excluded are quite important, because they show us how Edison worked and how he responded when he did not get his way.
He did not play fair in his competition with Westinghouse and he was not honest with Tesla. He was a sore loser. When he lost the bid for the World’s Fair of 1893, he tried to sabotage his rival.
He exploited the people who worked for him. When they made an invention, he would take the credit, and once he had the patent, he would also take the money generated by the invention.
It is remarkable that all the facts which have been excluded are connected with the dark side of Edison. It is not as if the producers avoid this topic completely.
As mentioned above, they do cover the dark side with several examples, but perhaps they were afraid of being too negative and too critical towards “the wizard of Menlo Park.”
This film is about Edison. Obviously, the focus is on him and his inventions, but the story would have had a wider and better perspective, if his collaboration and later conflict with Nikola Tesla had been included.
If this was a short film, the producers could defend themselves by saying that there was no time to include the story about Tesla or the World’s Fair of 1893. But this is not a short film, this is a double-feature. The producers had a lot of time at their disposal. As far as I can see, the exclusion of the negative facts cannot be justified. It is inexcusable.
Conclusion
Edison: The Father of Invention is an interesting and informative film. I want to give it a good rating. But I cannot ignore the flaws mentioned above. This is why I think it deserves a rating of four stars (80 percent).
If you are interested in the history of the modern world - in particular the development of modern technology - this film is definitely something for you.
PS # 1. For more information about Edison, see the following books written or edited by authors who are interviewed in the film:
Randall Stross,
The Wizard of Menlo Park
(2007) (2008)
Lisa Gitelman, co-editor of
Thomas Edison and Modern America
(2002)
Neil Baldwin,
Edison
(1995) (2001)
Paul Israel,
co-author of
Edison’s Electric Light
(2010)
Leonard DeGraaf,
Edison and the Rise of Innovation
(2013)
Ernest Freeberg,
The Age of Edison
(2013) (2014)
Jill Jonnes,
Empires of Light: Edison, Tesla, Westinghouse, and the Race to Electrify the World
(2003) (2004)
PS # 2. For information about the Columbian Exposition, see The Chicago World’s Fair of 1893 by Stanley Appelbaum (2003).
PS # 3. Westinghouse is a documentary film about the life and times of George Westinghouse which premiered in 2008. It was released on DVD in 2008 and 2010.
PS # 4. Tesla: Master of Lightning is a documentary film about the life and times of Nikola Tesla. It premiered on US television (PBS) in the year 2000. It was released on DVD in 2007.
PS # 5. American Experience is a television program produced by PBS. The first episode was aired in 1988. The number of episodes differs from one season to the next, but the program is still running today.
The story under review here (Edison) is season 26 episode 04 from 2015. There is more information about Edison on the PBS website about this episode.
*****
The famous inventor
Thomas Edison
(1847-1931)
*****
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