Adolphe Le Prince

Adolphe Le Prince (c. June 1872 – 20 August 1901) was an English actor. He appeared in Roundhay Garden Scene, the earliest surviving film.^[1]

Adolphe Le Prince
Le Prince (far right) in Roundhay Garden Scene, directed by Louis Le Prince
Born	Louis Adolphe W. Le Prince c. June 1872 Hunslet, Yorkshire, England
Died	20 August 1901(1901-08-20) (aged 28) Fire Island, New York, U.S.
Cause of death	Suicide by gunshot
Father	Louis Le Prince

In 1898, Le Prince appeared as a witness for the defence in a lawsuit brought by Thomas Edison against the American Mutoscope Company.^[2] Le Prince testified about the inventions of his late father, Louis Le Prince, rebutting Edison's claim to be the inventor of cinematography, and therefore entitled to royalties for the use of the process.^{[citation needed]}

Death

Adolphe tried to find his father for his entire adult life. He retreated to the house he and his brothers built as a refuge for his mother in Point O' Woods, New York, vicinity of Fire Island, for the summer, and in August the rest of the family joined him. On the afternoon of 20 August 1901, Le Prince picked up his hunting gun and went shooting for ducks in the area. He walked out into the sand dunes and shot himself through the forehead.^[3] The official verdict was suicide.

Filmography

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1888	Roundhay Garden Scene	Self	Short
	Accordion Player	Accordion Player