Ernest Higgins

Ernest Henry Higgins (19 October 1871 – 28 November 1945)[2] was an Australian cinematographer during the days of silent film. He was the eldest brother of Arthur and Tasman Higgins.[3] He shot the film The Throwback (1920) for director Arthur Shirley which resulted in Shirley unsuccessfully suing Higgins for breach of contract.[4]

For the cyclist, see Ernest Higgins (cyclist).

Ernest Higgins
Born
Ernest Henry Higgins

(1871-10-09)9 October 1871[1]
Hobart, Tasmania, Australia
Died28 November 1945(1945-11-28) (aged 74)
Darling Point, Sydney, Australia
Occupation(s)Cinematographer, director, photographer
Years active1903–1945
Spouse
Elsie May Dickson
​
(m. 1919)​

Life and career

In 1900, Higgins rigged up a projector from his father's shop's balcony with a screen on a building across the street. Higgins was working as a bioscope operator by 1903. The following year, he purchased a motion picture camera and began capturing Hobart streetscapes.[5] Eventually Higgin's fascination with photography and cinema took him to Sydney where he found work at Spencer's Pictures filming newsreels and travelogues. Higgins was involved in a train crash at Richmond Station in 1906 while filming a newsreel.[6]

In 1908, Higgins filmed a boxing match between Tommy Burns and Jack Johnson. The film, The Burns-Johnson Fight became a box office sensation, earning £2,114 in one week in Sydney, and £1,738 in Melbourne over four nights.[7][8]

In 1912, Higgins captured the first moving pictures from an aircraft for the production of the film The Camera in the Clouds. Flying with William E. Hart, who was the first man in Australia to fly a plane, Higgins made eighteen flights over the course of the production. It premiered at the Lyceum Photo Show.[9]

The Throwback lawsuit

In 1922, Shirley Productions went into voluntary liquidation during the filming of The Throwback and Higgins, who was the production's cinematographer, overtook the business. Higgins was then successfully sued by actress Vera Remée for six weeks worth of unpaid wages.[10] Director Arthur Shirley later sued Higgins for A£1000 in breach of contract, and for the detention of certain films and plates in connection with the movie.[11][12] Shirley claimed that Higgins had promised to pay money for the preparation and production of the movie to a maximum of A£600.[13] Higgins argued that Shirley had departed from the arrangement between them without his consent, and that he had disagreed with Shirley during filming over scenes that were shot, including the substitution of the female actors.[14] The jury eventually found for Higgins, and awarded him costs.[15] As a result, Shirley declared bankruptcy for the second time in his life, claiming he was the victim of Higgins' "hate, spleen and malice".[16]

Select filmography

References
  1. Rutledge, Martha; Osborne, Graeme, "Higgins, Ernest Henry (1871–1945)", Australian Dictionary of Biography, Canberra: National Centre of Biography, Australian National University, retrieved 19 November 2022
  2. Richard Abel (ed.): Encyclopedia of Early Cinema, p. 428. Routledge, 2005.
  3. Rutledge, Martha; Osborne, Graeme, "Higgins, Tasman George (1888–1953)", Australian Dictionary of Biography, Canberra: National Centre of Biography, Australian National University, retrieved 26 October 2021
  4. "LAW REPORT". The Sydney Morning Herald. National Library of Australia. 16 April 1923. p. 7. Retrieved 23 March 2012.
  5. Reade, Eric (1970). Australian Silent Films. A Pictorial History 1896-1929. Melbourne, Victoria: Lansdowne Press Pty Ltd. p. 36. ISBN 07018-0320-7.
  6. Australian Geographical Society (31 July 1970), "The Good Old Days of Aussie Films (31 July 1970)", Walkabout, Australian National Travel Association, 36 (8): 52, ISSN 0043-0064
  7. "THE GREAT FIGHT". Eastern Districts Chronicle (York, WA : 1877–1927). York, WA. 16 January 1909. p. 3. Retrieved 21 February 2015 – via National Library of Australia.
  8. Collins, Diane (1987). Hollywood Down Under. Australians at the Movies: 1896 to the Present Day. North Ryde, New South Wales: Angus & Robertson Publishers. p. 39. ISBN 0-207-15267-5.
  9. Reade, Eric (1970). Australian Silent Films. A Pictorial History 1896-1929. Melbourne, Victoria: Lansdowne Press Pty Ltd. p. 66. ISBN 07018-0320-7.
  10. "MOVIE ACTRESS. Verdict Against Cinematographer". The Bathurst Times. New South Wales, Australia. 20 January 1922. p. 2. Retrieved 19 November 2022 – via National Library of Australia.
  11. ""THE COMEBACK!"". The Sun. No. 3884. New South Wales, Australia. 14 April 1923. p. 6 (LATE SPORTING). Retrieved 19 November 2022 – via National Library of Australia.
  12. "MUSIC AND DRAMA". The Mercury. Hobart, Tas.: National Library of Australia. 18 April 1922. p. 2. Retrieved 23 March 2012.
  13. "SUPREME COURT". The Sydney Morning Herald. National Library of Australia. 12 April 1923. p. 6. Retrieved 23 March 2012.
  14. "MOVING PICTURE DISPUTE". The Mercury. Hobart, Tas.: National Library of Australia. 14 April 1923. p. 7. Retrieved 23 March 2012.
  15. "LAW REPORT". The Sydney Morning Herald. National Library of Australia. 16 April 1923. p. 7. Retrieved 23 March 2012.
  16. "PICTURE PRODUCER". The Sydney Morning Herald. National Library of Australia. 2 July 1925. p. 6. Retrieved 23 March 2012.


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