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Why did Edison initially make Kinetoscope films for individual viewing rather than theater projection?

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Zazu Pitts, Gibson Gowland, and Hughie Mack in a dramatic scene from the silent film Greed (1924); Gowland stands center, supported by Pitts and Mack on either side. — Silent film era (From left) Zasu Pitts, Gibson Gowland, and Hughie Mack in the silent film *Greed* (1924), directed by Erich von Stroheim.

Thomas Edison initially designed the Kinetoscope for individual viewing because he originally conceived of motion pictures as a visual accompaniment to his phonograph, rather than as a medium for public exhibition.12

Because of this specific intent, Edison did not commission the development of a projector to accompany his Kinetograph camera. Instead, he tasked his assistant, W.K.L. Dickson, with creating a peep-show device that allowed a single viewer to watch a continuous film loop through a peephole.123

Furthermore, the Kinetoscope possessed technical limitations that made it unsuitable for theater projection. While the device functioned by running film continuously at a high rate of 40 frames per second, successful projection requires an intermittent movement mechanism—where each frame is briefly arrested and exposed—to produce a bright, enlarged image on a screen. Edison’s focus on the peep-show format meant these projection requirements were not addressed until later innovations by other inventors.4