100 years ago…..

A world war unprecedented in history broke out. Another unprecedented event occurred. The film, THE PHOTO DRAMA OF CREATION premiered; making 1914 a year that will never be forgotten!

As the twentieth century dawned many new social and religious changes were being proclaimed. Modernism and humanism were gaining control of theological thinking. The tendency of the newer thoughts was to question the authenticity of the Scriptures which put many on a fast-moving track toward higher criticism and infidelity.

In this day when faith in the Bible was being severely challenged and the world was entering the earth-shaking events of the First World War; THE PHOTO-DRAMA OF CREATION, offered the most remarkable religious exhibitions the world had yet seen.

Imagine the historic scene: on this day in January 1914, during the era of silent movies, an audience gathered at The Temple, a building on West 63rd Street, in New York City. Before the audience was a large motion-picture screen. As they watched and listened, something truly amazing happened. A distinguished white haired man in his early 60’s suddenly appeared on the screen. His lips began to move, and his words could be heard! The 5,000 spectators sat spellbound, as they viewed the premiere of THE PHOTO-DRAMA OF CREATION!

This awe inspiring production has the distinction of being the first major screenplay which incorporated synchronized sound, moving film, and color slides. This striking presentation took the audience from earth’s creation, down through 49,000 years of human history, to the climax of God’s purpose for the earth and mankind, at the end of Christ’s Millennial Reign. Never before had sound and color been incorporated into an “epic length” production, such as this; a production that not only broke all records in technology but also in attendance, which was consistently astronomical. By the end of 1914, the “Photo-Drama” had been presented before over 9,000,000 people in North America, Europe, New Zealand, and Australia.

THE PHOTO-DRAMA OF CREATION was shown in four parts. It included everything appertaining to the creation of earth--animals, man, and the experiences of mankind for the past six thousand years and the work of the thousand years of Messiah's Kingdom. The original Photo Drama was made up of pictures from all parts of the world and was presented as slides and moving pictures, synchronized with narration from audio records. It ran eight hours in length, shown in four parts of two hours each.

Part one carries us from star nebula to the creation of the world and down to the Deluge--down to Abraham's time. Part two reaches from Israel's deliverance from Egypt, wilderness experiences, etc., down through the period of the Kings to the time of Elisha, the Prophet. Part three continues the story from Daniel's time down to the time when the Logos was made flesh at the birth of Jesus, His boyhood, manhood, baptism, ministry, miracles, crucifixion, death, resurrection. Part four begins at Pentecost and traces the experiences of the Church, during the past nineteen centuries to our day and beyond for a thousand years to the glorious consummation.

It was one hundred years ago, that this grand production treated CREATION from the broad, general standpoint of the Bible and the Divine intention which it presents. When God made man in His own image and placed him in Paradise, which was not the end of the Divine intention, but merely the beginning of it. The CREATION there begun will be completed only when the earth shall have been filled with a population as perfect as was Adam before he sinned; and when Paradise shall have been extended to the utmost bounds of the earth.

This fullness of the CREATION purpose of God He expressed to Adam, saying, "Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it." (Gen. 1:28) Had Adam and his children remained perfect, gradually, as needed, they would have subdued the earth, extending the boundaries of Eden until the whole earth would have been a paradise like Eden and fully populated. Then the Divine CREATION would have been completed.

The interruption of this Divine Program by sin, the Lord foreknew. From the very beginning His wisdom arranged a plan whereby man would be permitted to have six days (of a thousand years each) of labor, sweat of face and failure, so far as extricating himself from sin and death is concerned. But God had purposed from the beginning that He would provide a Savior and Great One, who, as the Messiah, during the seventh day (a thousand years) would restore and uplift the willing and obedient of humanity from sin and death conditions to perfection-- meantime also extending the boundaries of Eden worldwide.

In a word, sin has not caused the Almighty to change His original purpose one bit. He has merely adapted His Plan to the conditions. The permission of sin indeed will constitute a great, everlasting lesson for men and for angels, illustrating, as it does, the downward course of sin and the Justice and Love and Power of the Creator. When all those preferring sin shall have been destroyed in the Second Death, at the close of the Millennium, the creation of the world will be complete, perfected --man will again be in the image of God.

This comprehensive Biblical explanation of history which records God’s loving and wise plan for his CREATION, has been preserved in a book by the same name, and was also published in 1914. The Photo Drama of Creation contains representative slide images with a page of accompanying text to explain the chronological progression of God's plan from the creation of the earth through to the end of the 1,000 year reign of Jesus Christ.

This book is a historic reprint of the original scenario book issued for distribution at the Photo Drama showings that toured the US and Canada in 1914. The original book was printed in magenta ink with half tone pictures. It was originally published in both hardcover and paperback. This paperback reprint is a careful reproduction with some important differences. The cover was carefully re-drawn tracing the original artwork from the printed cover. The pictures have been created by scanning and carefully retouching the original glass slides from the production. These glass slides had been hand painted and tinted for the original production. The original colors and details have been carefully preserved when possible, with scratches and cracks being electronically removed. With the exception of seven glass slides which could not be located, all pictures in the book are reproductions of the genuine, original glass slides from the 1914 production. The type has been re-set for readability, but not edited.

This is a fascinating book, not just for its historical interest but for the sweeping explanation of God's Plan as set forth in the Scriptures. It starts with the Creation narrative in the book of Genesis and goes through to Revelation, explaining history as it sets forth the Plan of God.

Click here to download a free PDF of this book.

Click here to order this historic reprint of the original scenario book which explains and illustrates 49,000 years of earth’s history.