The New York Motion Picture Company was founded in 1909 by
Adam Kessel,
Charles O. Baumann, and camera operator Frank Balshofer. Originally interested purely in film distribution, the company's refusal to work with
Thomas Edison's Motion Picture Patents Company (MPPC) created difficulties in securing films. Kessel was quoted as saying, "We would have to go out of business unless we made some films ourselves." At this point, the company had changed location from the North East to California, being one of the first to do so. It was during Chaplin's time at Keystone that he created the '
Little Tramp' character he became known for. Their mission statement was to make multi-reel films, à la
The Birth of a Nation, that would appeal to higher class audiences while also gaining popularity among the general population. Triangle Film was largely considered a failure, however, Feature Play would go on to merge with
Famous Players and become
Paramount Pictures, a company that was far more successful in achieving the kind of vertical integration Triangle sought in its business model. ==Filmography==