Charles Musser's Before the Nickelodeon: The Early Cinema of Edwin S. Porter traces the saga of filmmaking between 1896 and 1908, focusing on the film pioneer known chiefly for the revolution in narrative exposition with which his 1903 western, The Great Train Robbery, paved the way for Griffith and Ince. Musser reevaluates the career of Porter, who was responsible for a number of contributions that elevated film from arcade sideshow to artful entertainment. Some 16 complete short films by Porter are incorporated into Before the Nickelodeon, including Edison in His Laboratory (Porter was an Edison employee), Taking President McKinley's Body from the Train, Kansas Saloon Smashers and Life of an American Fireman. Narrated by Griffith star Blanche Sweet and featuring contributions by directors such as Louis Malle and Milos Forman, Before the Nickelodeon is presented in the style of a Porter movie, with hand-tinted frames and intertitles.