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A retired high school teacher in Michigan has uncovered a cinematic rarity: a lost short film by Georges Méliès, the French pioneer of narrative cinema and special effects. The 45-second reel, titled "Gugusse and the Automaton," was made in 1897 and was discovered spliced into a reel of films that had sat in a family trunk for over a century, according to a report by France 24.

Bill McFarland, 76, inherited the trunk from his great-grandfather, William DeLyle Frisbee, who showed silent films to audiences in rural Pennsylvania at the turn of the 20th century. For 20 years, McFarland kept the trunk without knowing its contents' true value. "It was just this trunk of films that seemed too good to throw away. But I had no idea what they were or how to show them," he told AFP.

Coverage Comparison

The story has been reported by France 24 in two separate accounts, both providing consistent details. Both reports emphasize the same narrative arc: a family heirloom, a moment of curiosity, and a surprising discovery. Neither report suggests any dispute over the facts, but the single-outlet coverage means that independent verification from other news organizations has not yet been seen.

The discovery was made when McFarland drove from his home in Michigan to the US Library of Congress's National Audio-Visual Conservation Center in Culpeper, Virginia, last summer. There, archivists found the Méliès film spliced into one of ten reels.

Key Claims

  • The film's provenance: The trunk originally belonged to William DeLyle Frisbee, McFarland's great-grandfather, who screened silent movies in rural Pennsylvania. This detail is reported by both France 24 articles.
  • The film's creation: "Gugusse and the Automaton" was made in 1897, just two years after the Lumière Brothers staged the world's first public movie screening in Paris. Méliès, a theatrical showman and magician, attended that screening and was inspired to make films of his own. Both reports include this context.
  • The film's condition: The recovered reel is likely a third-generation copy of the Méliès original, according to the reports. The film itself runs 45 seconds.
  • The discovery process: McFarland first offered the films to museums and even tried to sell them through an antique store. The antique dealer quickly returned them upon learning that vintage nitrate film reels are highly combustible. This anecdote is included in both reports.

Perspectives

The story is framed primarily as a heartwarming discovery, with an emphasis on the element of chance and family history. Both reports quote McFarland directly, lending a personal voice to the narrative. Experts are cited to underscore the significance of Méliès's work, noting that he was the first to experiment with fictional narratives and special effects at the dawn of cinema. He is best known for "A Trip to the Moon" (1902), featuring the iconic image of a rocket landing in the eye of the man in the Moon.

The reports also note that by a decade later, Méliès's filmmaking had fallen out of vogue as the center of the movie world shifted—a reminder of how cinematic tastes evolve, and how easily early works can be lost. The preservation of this film at the Library of Congress adds to the historical record, offering a tangible link to a formative era in movie history.

As of now, the discovery has not been reported by other major news outlets beyond France 24, but the details provided are consistent across the two accounts. Further independent verification may emerge as the story gains wider attention.