“Vaudeville on the Screen”: Renfax Musical Motion Pictures (1913-1920)

Did you know that The Jazz Singer (1927) wasn t necessarily the first Al Jolson sound film? And did you know that acoustic-era recording artists Collins and Harlan, Cal Stewart, Billy Murray, and others featured in early sound films as well? If you didn t, you re not alone: the Renfax Musical Motion Pictures are all but forgotten today, earning