*LIFE*
Marie-Georges-Jean Melies was born in Paris on December 8, 1861.
His father, Jean-Louis-Stanislas Melies, was a Frenchman; his mother, Johannah-Catherine Schuering, was Dutch.
His father was a boot and shoemaker who owned large amounts of property and three shoemaking factories.
Georges had two older brothers, Henri and Gaston.
Georges showed a flair for art and drama in his youth, and loved sketching and putting on puppet shows in his spare time.
When he was ten years old, Georges saw a performance by the magician Robert-Houdin and fell even more in love with the possibilities of theatre.
He later joined the 113th Regiment of Cavalry in the French army.
In 1884 he left the army and his parents sent him to London to learn English in preparation for taking over the family business.
In London, Georges frequented evening performances at several theatres, enjoying especially visual fantasy and magic shows.
When he returned to France, his father Louis insisted he work at the shoe factory with his brothers.
In June 1885, Georges married Eugenie Genin, a Dutch woman whose father was friends with Louis.
He had a daughter with Eugenie, named Georgette, in 1888.
That year, Louis retired and his sons took over his business. Georges promptly sold his share of the company to his brothers.
He then was able to purchase the Theatre Robert-Houdin, where he had watched magic shows as a child. He refurbished it and reopened it that autumn.
For the next nineteen years he would continue to put on shows containing a variety of acts (many of his own devising) as well as projections and, later, films.
In December 1895, Melies was invited to a private screening of the Lumiere Brothers' first publicized film. He was amazed at the new medium, and immediately tried to purchase a copy of the brothers' "Cinematographe," but they were not for sale.
Instead Georges pieced together his own version, called the "Kinetographe," and used that until better cameras became available.
Between 1896 and 1913, he produced over 500 films.
On December 20, 1896, Georges introduced his new company, called Star Films, whose motto was "The Whole World Within Reach."
In the spring of 1897, Georges finished constructing a large glass film studio on the grounds of his family property.
By 1902, his films had become so popular that he was now forced to battle piracy, which was the first factor in the decline of his profits.
As part of this battle, Georges opened a New York office run by his brother Gaston. He then began producing two negatives for every film, one to be registered in the US and one in France.
Star Films eventually spread across Europe, with agents in Barcelona, Berlin, and London as well as overseas in New York.
In 1909, Melies was elected the president of the Congress International des Editeurs du Film, a group of representatives gathered from the major filmmaking countries.
Their decision to rent instead of sell films to theaters would also greatly decrease Georges' income.
Most importantly, audiences' interest in his style of fantasy films was declining. Filmmakers like D.W. Griffith and Edwin S. Porter were rising in popularity, with their innovative techniques and constant new ideas.
Melies' techniques had improved but did not change through the years and so grew outdated in the public eye.
By 1911 his financial difficulties had increased to the point where he was forced to make an arrangement with Charles Pathe, the owner of a large film company. Pathe loaned Melies the money to keep Star Films going under the condition that Pathe be allowed to edit Melies' films. This harsh condition proved the last straw for Georges' career.
During this time his wife Eugenie died.
Georgette, their daughter, had married and had a son, Andre. Andre also was married and had a daughter, Madeleine.
In 1913 Georges quit making films entirely.
To stay alive, he then constructed a little theatre out of his studio buildings and produced small shows with Georgette, Andre, and their families during World War I.
Pathe finally ordered Melies to sell his property, and the Theatre Robert-Houdin was demolished.
Melies ended up touring France, performing small personal shows for payment.
When he was 64 years old, he married Jehanne d'Alcy, an actress he had worked with during his film days.
Jehanne owned a small toy store which provided them with income for the next seven years.
In 1929, an avant-garde filmmaker discovered Georges working at the toy store and arranged to restore and screen some of his films.
Audiences recieved the screenings well, and Melies was given a small retirement apartment.
His daughter, Georgette, died in 1930.
Melies was awarded the French Legion of Honour medal in 1931 for his contributions to cinema.
Though he was once again content, his health soon deteriorated.
Georges Melies died on January 21, 1938.