GREAT MAURICE NEWSREEL

Genre: Newsreel

Description: Title Card: The film opens with the intertitle: "THE GREAT MAURICE DOES HIS DAILY DOZEN ATOP A SIX-STORY HOTEL." What happens: The newsreel documents a daredevil/strongman performer known as "The Great Maurice" performing a series of extreme physical stunts on the rooftop and ledge of a six-story hotel, while a large crowd gathers on the street below to watch. The key moments include: Arrival — Maurice is seen leaning out of a car with "Great Maurice" painted on the door, presumably arriving at the hotel. On the rooftop ledge — The film cuts to a very high vantage point showing two figures walking along the narrow parapet at the very edge of the building, with the city street far below. Riding a bicycle on the ledge — Maurice rides a bicycle along the rooftop parapet, high above the city, with a wide-angle view of the early 20th-century townscape in the background. Handstands and acrobatics on the edge — Multiple shots from both street-level and overhead perspectives show Maurice performing handstands and gymnastics on the building's ledge. The overhead "bird's-eye" shots are particularly vertiginous. Pole/flagpole climbing and hanging — Maurice shimmies up a tall vertical mast or flagpole fixed to the building's roof, performing strength feats while suspended in mid-air above the city. The crowd — Repeated aerial shots show a massive, densely packed crowd of spectators gathered on the street below, watching the spectacle, with early automobiles lined up along the curb. Overall tone: It's a classic early newsreel stunt film in the tradition of rooftop daredevils like Harry Houdini and Harold Lloyd — showcasing a professional performer doing death-defying exercises for public spectacle and press coverage, filmed with dramatic angles to emphasize the terrifying height above a busy

Complete Record: Title Card: The film opens with the intertitle: "THE GREAT MAURICE DOES HIS DAILY DOZEN ATOP A SIX-STORY HOTEL." What happens: The newsreel documents a daredevil/strongman performer known as "The Great Maurice" performing a series of extreme physical stunts on the rooftop and ledge of a six-story hotel, while a large crowd gathers on the street below to watch. The key moments include: Arrival — Maurice is seen leaning out of a car with "Great Maurice" painted on the door, presumably arriving at the hotel. On the rooftop ledge — The film cuts to a very high vantage point showing two figures walking along the narrow parapet at the very edge of the building, with the city street far below. Riding a bicycle on the ledge — Maurice rides a bicycle along the rooftop parapet, high above the city, with a wide-angle view of the early 20th-century townscape in the background. Handstands and acrobatics on the edge — Multiple shots from both street-level and overhead perspectives show Maurice performing handstands and gymnastics on the building's ledge. The overhead "bird's-eye" shots are particularly vertiginous. Pole/flagpole climbing and hanging — Maurice shimmies up a tall vertical mast or flagpole fixed to the building's roof, performing strength feats while suspended in mid-air above the city. The crowd — Repeated aerial shots show a massive, densely packed crowd of spectators gathered on the street below, watching the spectacle, with early automobiles lined up along the curb. Overall tone: It's a classic early newsreel stunt film in the tradition of rooftop daredevils like Harry Houdini and Harold Lloyd — showcasing a professional performer doing death-defying exercises for public spectacle and press coverage, filmed with dramatic angles to emphasize the terrifying height above a busy