Analysis Of Manhattan Nickelodeons: New Data On Audiences And Exhibitors

Ben Singer’s essay titled “Manhattan Nickelodeons: New Data on Audiences and Exhibitors” (Singer, 2004) explores early film history in the city of Manhattan and the impact it has on the general film industry. In his essay, he examines how nickelodeons, storefront theater houses, experienced an unprecedented growth in Manhattan, New York City, during the years beginning from 1905. He asserts in the opening section of his essay that Manhattan plays a significant role in early film history, mostly because the boom of nickelodeon in Manhattan has become a representation of the general “rise of movies” (p. 119). In addition to Manhattan’s role in the expansion of movie industry, Singer also discusses the contribution of Manhattan’s nickelodeon

He realizes that a multidimensional approach is the best way to answer the question, but he realizes that it’s not very feasible. Therefore he points out the factors that play the biggest role in determining the location of nickelodeons: population density and to a lesser extent, social class (p. 126). Singer argues that the densest areas, either dense in terms of the number of residents or pedestrians traffic. With more people, there would be more customers to visit the sprawling nickelodeons in these areas. However, areas such as Yorkville and middle East Side did not have a huge number of nickelodeons compared to the number of residents. This, according to Singer, is most likely caused by the mixed socioeconomic background of the population. At the time, the middle-class saw nickelodeons as proletarian entertainment, which then hindered them from visiting and explains why there were a low number of nickelodeons in the

He uses sources such as census data, handwritten memo, trade journals, lists and directories, and a wide array of other sources. Directories, maps, and lists seem to be adequate, and these sources indeed appear to contribute to many information used by Singer. However, there is a lack of first-hand account and data that is directly related to the nickelodeon boom and the moviegoers itself. This causes Singer to imply and conclude some of his claims since the data he possesses aren’t complete enough in order to paint a genuine picture of the situation. In the end, this essay, although incomplete, succeeds in explaining the significance of Manhattan’s nickelodeon boom in the bigger picture of American history and early film history by building up on others’ works. Nonetheless, deeper research will probably lead to a more complete picture of Manhattan during the period of the nickelodeon