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<title>The Magic Box</title>

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<span id="openzim-page-title" class="mw-page-title-main"><i>The Magic Box</i></span>

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</style><div role="note" class="hatnote navigation-not-searchable">For the 2002 Tunisian film, see <a href="The_Magic_Box_(2002_film)" title="The Magic Box (2002 film)">The Magic Box</a>. For other uses, see <a href="Magic_Box_(disambiguation)" class="mw-redirect mw-disambig" title="Magic Box (disambiguation)">Magic Box</a>.</div>

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</style><table class="infobox vevent"><tbody><tr><th colspan="2" class="infobox-above summary" style="font-size: 125%; font-style: italic;">The Magic Box</th></tr><tr><td colspan="2" class="infobox-image"><div class="infobox-caption">Theatrical release poster</div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="white-space: nowrap; padding-right: 0.65em;">Directed by</th><td class="infobox-data"><a href="John_Boulting" class="mw-redirect" title="John Boulting">John Boulting</a></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="white-space: nowrap; padding-right: 0.65em;">Written by</th><td class="infobox-data"><style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1126788409">

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<ul><li>Ray Allister (biography)</li>

<li><a href="Eric_Ambler" title="Eric Ambler">Eric Ambler</a> (screenplay)</li></ul>

</div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="white-space: nowrap; padding-right: 0.65em;">Produced by</th><td class="infobox-data"><a href="Ronald_Neame" title="Ronald Neame">Ronald Neame</a></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="white-space: nowrap; padding-right: 0.65em;">Starring</th><td class="infobox-data"><div class="plainlist">

<ul><li><a href="Robert_Donat" title="Robert Donat">Robert Donat</a></li>

<li><a href="Margaret_Johnston" title="Margaret Johnston">Margaret Johnston</a></li>

<li><a href="Maria_Schell" title="Maria Schell">Maria Schell</a></li>

<li><a href="Robert_Beatty" title="Robert Beatty">Robert Beatty</a></li>

<li><a href="Margaret_Rutherford" title="Margaret Rutherford">Margaret Rutherford</a></li></ul>

</div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="white-space: nowrap; padding-right: 0.65em;">Cinematography</th><td class="infobox-data"><a href="Jack_Cardiff" title="Jack Cardiff">Jack Cardiff</a></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="white-space: nowrap; padding-right: 0.65em;">Edited by</th><td class="infobox-data"><a href="Richard_Best_(film_editor)" title="Richard Best (film editor)">Richard Best</a></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="white-space: nowrap; padding-right: 0.65em;">Music by</th><td class="infobox-data"><a href="William_Alwyn" title="William Alwyn">William Alwyn</a></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="white-space: nowrap; padding-right: 0.65em;">Distributed by</th><td class="infobox-data"><a href="British_Lion_Films" title="British Lion Films">British Lion Films</a></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="white-space: nowrap; padding-right: 0.65em;"><div style="display: inline-block; line-height: 1.2em; padding: .1em 0; white-space: normal;">Release date</div></th><td class="infobox-data"><div class="plainlist film-date">

</div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="white-space: nowrap; padding-right: 0.65em;"><div style="display: inline-block; line-height: 1.2em; padding: .1em 0; white-space: normal;">Running time</div></th><td class="infobox-data">118 minutes</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="white-space: nowrap; padding-right: 0.65em;">Country</th><td class="infobox-data">United Kingdom</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="white-space: nowrap; padding-right: 0.65em;">Language</th><td class="infobox-data">English</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="white-space: nowrap; padding-right: 0.65em;">Budget</th><td class="infobox-data">£220,000<sup id="cite_ref-sue_1-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-sue-1"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>1<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> or $700,000<sup id="cite_ref-2" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-2"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>2<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="white-space: nowrap; padding-right: 0.65em;">Box office</th><td class="infobox-data">£82,398 (UK)<sup id="cite_ref-3" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-3"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>3<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup></td></tr></tbody></table>

<p><i><b>The Magic Box</b></i> is a 1951 British <a href="Technicolor" title="Technicolor">Technicolor</a> <a href="Biographical_film" title="Biographical film">biographical</a> <a href="Drama_(film_and_television)" title="Drama (film and television)">drama film</a> directed by <a href="John_Boulting" class="mw-redirect" title="John Boulting">John Boulting</a>.<sup id="cite_ref-bfi_4-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-bfi-4"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>4<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> The film stars <a href="Robert_Donat" title="Robert Donat">Robert Donat</a> as <a href="William_Friese-Greene" title="William Friese-Greene">William Friese-Greene</a>, with numerous cameo appearances by performers such as <a href="Peter_Ustinov" title="Peter Ustinov">Peter Ustinov</a> and <a href="Laurence_Olivier" title="Laurence Olivier">Laurence Olivier</a>.<sup id="cite_ref-5" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-5"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>5<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup>

</p><p>Produced by <a href="Ronald_Neame" title="Ronald Neame">Ronald Neame</a> and distributed by <a href="British_Lion_Film_Corporation" class="mw-redirect" title="British Lion Film Corporation">British Lion Film Corporation</a>,<sup id="cite_ref-bfi_4-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-bfi-4"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>4<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> the film was made as part of the <a href="Festival_of_Britain" title="Festival of Britain">Festival of Britain</a> and adapted by <a href="Eric_Ambler" title="Eric Ambler">Eric Ambler</a> from a biography by Ray Allister.<sup id="cite_ref-6" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-6"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>6<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup>

</p><p>The film presents a dramatized account of Friese-Greene's life, who was one of the earliest inventors to design and patent a working cinematic camera.<sup id="cite_ref-7" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-7"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>7<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Told largely in flashback, the story follows his passionate pursuit of motion picture technology and its impact on his financial stability and personal life.<sup id="cite_ref-8" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-8"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>8<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup>

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<p>The film begins in 1921, where British inventor William Friese-Greene, in severe financial distress, attends a London film industry conference. The story unfolds through a series of flashbacks.

</p><p>The first is told from the perspective of Helena Friese-Greene, who recounts to a friend how she met "Willie". They marry and have four sons, but the family is continually plagued by financial difficulties due to his obsession with developing colour film. Their three eldest sons eventually lie about their ages to enlist in the army during the First World War. The persistent strain leads Helena to leave him.

</p><p>Back in 1921, Friese-Greene is disheartened by the conference attendees, who appear interested only in the commercial aspects of filmmaking. When he tries to speak, he is ignored. He slips into a longer flashback reflecting on his early career.

</p><p>In this extended flashback, young "Willie" works as assistant to photographer Maurice Guttenberg, who refuses to allow him creative freedom. After disagreeing over portrait techniques, he leaves to open his own studio with his new wife, Edith, a former client. Though initially successful with multiple studios, his interest shifts to developing moving pictures and colour processes, often at the expense of his profitable photography work.

</p><p>He abandons his wife at a choir concert so he can visit photographic pioneer <a href="Henry_Fox_Talbot" title="Henry Fox Talbot">Fox Talbot</a>, returning home elated from the meeting. Friese-Greene relocates to London and partners with businessman Arthur Collings to continue his film experiments. Although Collings initially supports him, the growing financial burden forces him to end the partnership. Friese-Greene mortgages his home to raise additional funds.

</p><p>One Sunday, he skips church to film relatives in <a href="Hyde_Park%2C_London" title="Hyde Park, London">Hyde Park</a> with his new camera. That night, he develops the footage and watches, entranced, as light flickers across the images.

</p><p>Although Friese-Greene tells his wife they will soon be millionaires, he is declared bankrupt. Helena collapses in a side office at the court. A doctor advises a year of rest, but she secretly tears up the expensive prescription on the way home. She sells her jewellery to fund a new studio for her husband. On his birthday—forgotten by him—she gives him a prism, which he receives with joy.

</p><p>Back at the 1921 conference, Friese-Greene rises again, clutching film reels. He declares cinema a "universal language" before collapsing mid-speech. A doctor arrives too late, finding only enough money in his pockets for a cinema ticket.

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<ul><li><a href="Robert_Donat" title="Robert Donat">Robert Donat</a> as <a href="William_Friese-Greene" title="William Friese-Greene">William Friese-Greene</a></li>

<li><a href="Margaret_Johnston" title="Margaret Johnston">Margaret Johnston</a> as Edith Harrison</li>

<li><a href="Maria_Schell" title="Maria Schell">Maria Schell</a> as Helena Friese-Greene</li>

<li>David Oake as <a href="Claude_Friese-Greene" title="Claude Friese-Greene">Claude Friese-Greene</a></li>

<li><a href="Janette_Scott" title="Janette Scott">Janette Scott</a> as Ethel Friese-Greene</li>

<li><a href="John_Howard_Davies" title="John Howard Davies">John Howard Davies</a> as Maurice Friese-Greene</li>

<li><a href="Robert_Beatty" title="Robert Beatty">Robert Beatty</a> as <a href="Lord_Beaverbrook" class="mw-redirect" title="Lord Beaverbrook">Lord Beaverbrook</a></li>

<li><a href="Richard_Attenborough" title="Richard Attenborough">Richard Attenborough</a> as Jack Carter</li>

<li><a href="Basil_Sydney" title="Basil Sydney">Basil Sydney</a> as <a href="William_Fox_Talbot" class="mw-redirect" title="William Fox Talbot">William Fox Talbot</a></li>

<li><a href="Bernard_Miles" title="Bernard Miles">Bernard Miles</a> as Cousin Alfred</li>

<li><a href="Eric_Portman" title="Eric Portman">Eric Portman</a> as Arthur Collings</li>

<li><a href="Mary_Ellis" title="Mary Ellis">Mary Ellis</a> as Mrs Collings</li>

<li><a href="Muir_Mathieson" title="Muir Mathieson">Muir Mathieson</a> as Sir <a href="Arthur_Sullivan" title="Arthur Sullivan">Arthur Sullivan</a></li>

<li><a href="Joyce_Grenfell" title="Joyce Grenfell">Joyce Grenfell</a> as Mrs Claire</li>

<li><a href="Dennis_Price" title="Dennis Price">Dennis Price</a> as Harold, the man who gathers Willie's possessions</li>

<li><a href="Margaret_Rutherford" title="Margaret Rutherford">Margaret Rutherford</a> as Lady Pond</li>

<li><a href="Mervyn_Johns" title="Mervyn Johns">Mervyn Johns</a> as Goitz</li>

<li><a href="Glynis_Johns" title="Glynis Johns">Glynis Johns</a> as May Jones</li>

<li><a href="Frederick_Valk" title="Frederick Valk">Frederick Valk</a> as Maurice Guttenberg</li>

<li><a href="Ronald_Shiner" title="Ronald Shiner">Ronald Shiner</a> as the Fairground Barker</li>

<li><a href="Peter_Reynolds_(actor)" title="Peter Reynolds (actor)">Peter Reynolds</a> as Bridegroom</li></ul></div>

<div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Cameos">Cameos</h3></div>

<ul><li><a href="Barry_Jones_(actor)" title="Barry Jones (actor)">Barry Jones</a> as a doctor</li>

<li><a href="Bessie_Love" title="Bessie Love">Bessie Love</a> as wedding group member</li>

<li><a href="Cecil_Parker" title="Cecil Parker">Cecil Parker</a> at the <a href="Connaught_Rooms" class="mw-redirect" title="Connaught Rooms">Connaught Rooms</a></li>

<li><a href="Cecil_Trouncer" title="Cecil Trouncer">Cecil Trouncer</a> as <a href="John_Arthur_Roebuck_Rudge" title="John Arthur Roebuck Rudge">John Rudge</a></li>

<li><a href="David_Tomlinson" title="David Tomlinson">David Tomlinson</a> as a Willie's lab assistant</li>

<li><a href="Emlyn_Williams" title="Emlyn Williams">Emlyn Williams</a> as a Bank Manager</li>

<li><a href="Ernest_Thesiger" title="Ernest Thesiger">Ernest Thesiger</a> as "man"</li>

<li><a href="Kay_Walsh" title="Kay Walsh">Kay Walsh</a> as a receptionist</li>

<li><a href="Laurence_Olivier" title="Laurence Olivier">Laurence Olivier</a> and <a href="Jack_Hulbert" title="Jack Hulbert">Jack Hulbert</a> as police officers</li>

<li><a href="Leo_Genn" title="Leo Genn">Leo Genn</a> as a doctor</li>

<li><a href="Marius_Goring" title="Marius Goring">Marius Goring</a> as an estate agent</li>

<li><a href="Michael_Denison" title="Michael Denison">Michael Denison</a> as a reporter</li>

<li><a href="Michael_Hordern" title="Michael Hordern">Michael Hordern</a> as the Official Receiver</li>

<li><a href="Miles_Malleson" title="Miles Malleson">Miles Malleson</a> as an orchestra conductor</li>

<li><a href="Peter_Ustinov" title="Peter Ustinov">Peter Ustinov</a> as an "industry man" in audience</li>

<li><a href="Sheila_Sim" title="Sheila Sim">Sheila Sim</a> as a nursemaid</li>

<li><a href="Sid_James" title="Sid James">Sid James</a> as an army sergeant in payroom</li>

<li><a href="Stanley_Holloway" title="Stanley Holloway">Stanley Holloway</a> as a broker's man come to collect goods in lieu of rent</li>

<li><a href="Thora_Hird" title="Thora Hird">Thora Hird</a> as a housekeeper</li>

<li><a href="William_Hartnell" title="William Hartnell">William Hartnell</a> as a <a href="Recruiting_sergeant" title="Recruiting sergeant">Recruiting sergeant</a></li>

<li><a href="Googie_Withers" title="Googie Withers">Googie Withers</a>, <a href="A._E._Matthews" title="A. E. Matthews">A. E. Matthews</a>, <a href="John_McCallum_(actor)" title="John McCallum (actor)">John McCallum</a>, <a href="Patrick_Holt" title="Patrick Holt">Patrick Holt</a>, <a href="Robertson_Hare" title="Robertson Hare">Robertson Hare</a>, <a href="Richard_Murdoch" title="Richard Murdoch">Richard Murdoch</a> and <a href="Sybil_Thorndike" title="Sybil Thorndike">Sybil Thorndike</a> as sitters</li>

<li><a href="Henry_Edwards_(actor)" title="Henry Edwards (actor)">Henry Edwards</a> as the Butler at Fox Talbot's</li>

<li><a href="Ren%C3%A9e_Asherson" title="Renée Asherson">Renée Asherson</a> as Miss Tagg</li>

<li><a href="Martin_Boddey" title="Martin Boddey">Martin Boddey</a> as Sitter in Bath Studio</li>

<li><a href="Edward_Chapman_(actor)" title="Edward Chapman (actor)">Edward Chapman</a> as Father in family group</li>

<li>Maurice Colbourne as Bride's father in wedding group</li>

<li><a href="Roland_Culver" title="Roland Culver">Roland Culver</a> as 1st Company promoter</li>

<li><a href="Joan_Dowling" title="Joan Dowling">Joan Dowling</a> as Maggie</li>

<li><a href="Marjorie_Fielding" title="Marjorie Fielding">Marjorie Fielding</a> as Elderly Viscountess</li>

<li><a href="Robert_Flemyng" title="Robert Flemyng">Robert Flemyng</a> as Doctor in surgery</li>

<li><a href="Everley_Gregg" title="Everley Gregg">Everley Gregg</a> as Bridegroom's mother in wedding group</li>

<li><a href="Kathleen_Harrison" title="Kathleen Harrison">Kathleen Harrison</a> as Mother in family group</li>

<li><a href="Joan_Hickson" title="Joan Hickson">Joan Hickson</a> as Mrs Stukely</li>

<li><a href="Jack_Hulbert" title="Jack Hulbert">Jack Hulbert</a> as 1st Holborn Policeman</li>

<li><a href="Peter_Jones_(actor)" title="Peter Jones (actor)">Peter Jones</a> as Industry Man who picks up Willie when he falls</li>

<li><a href="Ann_Lancaster" title="Ann Lancaster">Ann Lancaster</a> as Bridesmaid in Wedding Group</li>

<li><a href="Herbert_Lomas_(actor)" title="Herbert Lomas (actor)">Herbert Lomas</a> as Warehouse manager</li>

<li><a href="John_Longden" title="John Longden">John Longden</a> as Speaker in Connaught rooms</li>

<li><a href="Garry_Marsh" title="Garry Marsh">Garry Marsh</a> as Second company promoter</li>

<li><a href="Michael_Trubshawe" title="Michael Trubshawe">Michael Trubshawe</a> as Sitter in Bath studio</li>

<li><a href="Amy_Veness" title="Amy Veness">Amy Veness</a> as Grandmother in wedding group</li>

<li><a href="Charles_Victor" title="Charles Victor">Charles Victor</a> as Industry man</li>

<li><a href="Harcourt_Williams" title="Harcourt Williams">Harcourt Williams</a> as Tom</li>

<li><a href="Frank_Pettingell" title="Frank Pettingell">Frank Pettingell</a> as Bridegroom's father in Wedding Group</li>

<li><a href="Norman_Pierce" title="Norman Pierce">Norman Pierce</a> as Speaker in Connaught rooms</li>

<li><a href="Michael_Redgrave" title="Michael Redgrave">Michael Redgrave</a> as Mr. Lege the instrument maker who creates the movie camera</li>

<li><a href="Oda_Slobodskaya" title="Oda Slobodskaya">Oda Slobodskaya</a> as Soloist at Bath concert</li>

<li><a href="John_Stuart_(actor)" title="John Stuart (actor)">John Stuart</a> as 2nd Platform man at Connaught</li>

<li><a href="Sally_Smith_(actress)" title="Sally Smith (actress)">Sally Smith</a> as Little girl</li>

<li><a href="Marianne_Stone" title="Marianne Stone">Marianne Stone</a> as Bride in wedding group</li></ul></div>

<div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="Production">Production</h2></div>

<p>Half the budget was provided by the <a href="National_Film_Finance_Corporation" title="National Film Finance Corporation">National Film Finance Corporation</a> (NFFC). The film was made by Festival Film Productions, a semi co operative to which all major British film companies contributed their services either free or on a reduced rate basis.<sup id="cite_ref-sue_1-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-sue-1"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>1<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup>

</p>

<div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="Release">Release</h2></div>

<p>The film was completed and shown just before the end of the 1951 <a href="Festival_of_Britain" title="Festival of Britain">Festival of Britain</a>, but did not enter general release until 1952.<sup id="cite_ref-9" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-9"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>9<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup>

</p>

<div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="Reception">Reception</h2></div>

<p>Writing in <i><a href="The_New_York_Times" title="The New York Times">The New York Times</a></i>, critic <a href="Bosley_Crowther" title="Bosley Crowther">Bosley Crowther</a> described <i>The Magic Box</i> as "a handsome exercise in pathos and sentiment", though he felt it lacked dramatic grounding or connection to significant historical events. He praised Robert Donat's performance as "superlative", comparing it favourably to his role in <i><a href="Goodbye%2C_Mr._Chips_(1939_film)" title="Goodbye, Mr. Chips (1939 film)">Goodbye, Mr. Chips</a></i>. Crowther also commended the film's visual qualities, particularly its Technicolor cinematography, period setting, and production design, while noting that the screenplay—adapted by Eric Ambler from Ray Allister's biography—was "vague and extended", yet "quaintly eventful and literate".<sup id="cite_ref-10" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-10"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>10<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup>

</p><p>In the <i><a href="Motion_Picture_Herald" title="Motion Picture Herald">Motion Picture Herald</a></i>, film historian <a href="Terry_Ramsaye" title="Terry Ramsaye">Terry Ramsaye</a> criticised the film's depiction of Friese-Greene as the father of motion pictures, calling it a "perversion of history" and "an injustice to the very genuine contributions of eminent British scientists and other persons". The producers responded by accusing Ramsaye of prejudice against Friese-Greene.<sup id="cite_ref-11" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-11"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>11<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup>

</p>

<div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Box_office">Box office</h3></div>

<p>Despite its prestigious ensemble cast, which included numerous cameo appearances by leading British actors, the film performed poorly at the box office and was ultimately regarded as a major financial failure.<sup id="cite_ref-sue_1-2" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-sue-1"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>1<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup>

</p>

<div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="Nominations">Nominations</h2></div>

<p>The film was nominated for two <a href="BAFTA" class="mw-redirect" title="BAFTA">BAFTA</a> Awards in 1952—<a href="BAFTA_Award_for_Best_Film" title="BAFTA Award for Best Film">BAFTA Award for Best Film</a> and <a href="BAFTA_Award_for_Best_British_Film" class="mw-redirect" title="BAFTA Award for Best British Film">BAFTA Award for Best British Film</a>.<sup id="cite_ref-12" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-12"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>12<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup>

</p>

<div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="References">References</h2></div>

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</style><cite id="CITEREFHarperPorter2003" class="citation book cs1">Harper, Sue; Porter, Vincent (2003). <i>British Cinema of the 1950s: The Decline of Deference</i>. Oxford University Press USA. p. 16.</cite></span>

</li>

<li id="cite_note-2"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-2">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><cite class="citation magazine cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://archive.org/details/variety179-1950-07/page/n15/mode/1up?q=%22budgeted+at%22">"All British Industry Film for 51 Festival"</a>. <i>Variety</i>. July 1950.</cite></span>

</li>

<li id="cite_note-3"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-3">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><cite id="CITEREFPorter2000" class="citation journal cs1">Porter, Vincent (2000). "The Robert Clark Account". <i>Historical Journal of Film, Radio and Television</i>. <b>20</b> (4): 495. <a href="Doi_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="Doi (identifier)">doi</a>:<a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://doi.org/10.1080%2F713669742">10.1080/713669742</a>. <a href="S2CID_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="S2CID (identifier)">S2CID</a> <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://api.semanticscholar.org/CorpusID:161670089">161670089</a>.</cite></span>

</li>

<li id="cite_note-bfi-4"><span class="mw-cite-backlink">^ <a href="#cite_ref-bfi_4-0"><sup><i><b>a</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-bfi_4-1"><sup><i><b>b</b></i></sup></a></span> <span class="reference-text"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20160309123437/http://www.bfi.org.uk/films-tv-people/4ce2b6bf4e62e">"The Magic Box (1951)"</a>. Archived from <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.bfi.org.uk/films-tv-people/4ce2b6bf4e62e">the original</a> on 9 March 2016.</cite></span>

</li>

<li id="cite_note-5"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-5">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><cite id="CITEREFGifford2016" class="citation book cs1">Gifford, Denis (1 April 2016). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://books.google.com/books?id=1c7eCwAAQBAJ&pg=PA583"><i>British Film Catalogue: Two Volume Set – The Fiction Film/The Non-Fiction Film</i></a>. Routledge. p. 583. <a href="ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <bdi>978-1-317-74063-6</bdi>.</cite></span>

</li>

<li id="cite_note-6"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-6">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.screenonline.org.uk/film/id/453725/index.html">"Magic Box, The (1951)"</a>. <i>BFI Screenonline</i>.</cite></span>

</li>

<li id="cite_note-7"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-7">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b037w0x9">"BBC Two – The Magic Box"</a>. BBC.</cite></span>

</li>

<li id="cite_note-8"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-8">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.allmovie.com/work/the-magic-box-100913">"The Magic Box (1951) – John Boulting – Synopsis, Characteristics, Moods, Themes and Related"</a>. AllMovie.</cite></span>

</li>

<li id="cite_note-9"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-9">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.britishpathe.com/video/magic-box-premiere-2">"'Magic Box' Premiere"</a>. <i>British Pathé</i><span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">4 July</span> 2022</span>.</cite></span>

</li>

<li id="cite_note-10"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-10">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><cite id="CITEREFCrowther1952" class="citation news cs1">Crowther, Bosley (24 September 1952). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.nytimes.com/1952/09/24/archives/the-screen-in-review-the-magic-box-british-film-on-early-movie.html">"The Screen in Review: 'The Magic Box'"</a>. <i>The New York Times</i><span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">4 July</span> 2022</span>.</cite></span>

</li>

<li id="cite_note-11"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-11">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><cite class="citation magazine cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://mediahistoryproject.org/reader.php?id=motionpictureher202quig">"Ramsaye Finally Vindicated on Legend of Friese Greene"</a>. <i><a href="Motion_Picture_Herald" title="Motion Picture Herald">Motion Picture Herald</a></i>. 7 January 1956. p. 17<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">4 July</span> 2022</span> – via <a href="Internet_Archive" title="Internet Archive">Internet Archive</a>.</cite></span>

</li>

<li id="cite_note-12"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-12">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://awards.bafta.org/award/1952/film/film-and-british-film">"1952 Film Film And British Film – BAFTA Awards"</a>. British Academy of Film and Television Arts.</cite></span>

</li>

</ol></div></div>

<div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Further_reading">Further reading</h3></div>

<ul><li><cite id="CITEREFPym2001" class="citation book cs1">Pym, John, ed. (2001). <span class="id-lock-registration" title="Free registration required"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://archive.org/details/timeoutfilmguide00john_0"><i>TimeOut Film Guide</i></a></span> (10th ed.). Penguin Books. p. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://archive.org/details/timeoutfilmguide00john_0/page/710">710</a>. <a href="ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <bdi>978-0-14-029395-1</bdi>.</cite></li></ul>

<div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="External_links">External links</h2></div>

<ul><li><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0043769/"><i>The Magic Box</i></a> at <a href="IMDb_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="IMDb (identifier)">IMDb</a></li>

<li><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/82359/enwp"><i>The Magic Box</i></a> at the <a href="Turner_Classic_Movies" title="Turner Classic Movies">TCM Movie Database</a></li>

<li><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.screenonline.org.uk/film/id/453725/"><i>The Magic Box</i></a> at the <a href="British_Film_Institute" title="British Film Institute">BFI</a>'s <a href="Screenonline" title="Screenonline">Screenonline</a></li>

<li><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://friesegreene.com/">William Friese-Greene & Me</a> – Research on William Friese-Greene</li></ul>

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</style><div id="Films_directed_by_the_Boulting_brothers68" style="font-size:114%;margin:0 4em">Films directed by the <a href="Boulting_brothers" title="Boulting brothers">Boulting brothers</a></div></th></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%">Together</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-odd hlist" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em">

<ul><li><i><a href="Seven_Days_to_Noon" title="Seven Days to Noon">Seven Days to Noon</a></i> (1950)</li>

<li><i><a href="Seagulls_Over_Sorrento" title="Seagulls Over Sorrento">Seagulls Over Sorrento</a></i> (1954)</li>

<li><i><a href="Suspect_(1960_film)" title="Suspect (1960 film)">Suspect</a></i> (1960)</li>

<li><i><a href="Heavens_Above!" title="Heavens Above!">Heavens Above!</a></i> (1963)</li></ul>

</div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%">John only</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-even hlist" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em">

<ul><li><i><a href="Journey_Together" title="Journey Together">Journey Together</a></i> (1945)</li>

<li><i><a href="Brighton_Rock_(1948_film)" title="Brighton Rock (1948 film)">Brighton Rock</a></i> (1948)</li>

<li><i><a href="Private's_Progress" title="Private's Progress">Private's Progress</a></i> (1956)</li>

<li><i><a href="Lucky_Jim_(1957_film)" title="Lucky Jim (1957 film)">Lucky Jim</a></i> (1957)</li>

<li><i><a href="I'm_All_Right_Jack" title="I'm All Right Jack">I'm All Right Jack</a></i> (1959)</li>

<li><i><a href="Rotten_to_the_Core_(film)" title="Rotten to the Core (film)">Rotten to the Core</a></i> (1965)</li></ul>

</div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%">Roy only</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-odd hlist" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em">

<ul><li><i><a href="Trunk_Crime" title="Trunk Crime">Trunk Crime</a></i> (1939)</li>

<li><i><a href="Inquest_(1939_film)" title="Inquest (1939 film)">Inquest</a></i> (1939)</li>

<li><i><a href="Pastor_Hall" title="Pastor Hall">Pastor Hall</a></i> (1940)</li>

<li><i><a href="Thunder_Rock_(film)" title="Thunder Rock (film)">Thunder Rock</a></i> (1942)</li>

<li><i><a href="Burma_Victory" title="Burma Victory">Burma Victory</a></i> (1945)</li>

<li><i><a href="The_Guinea_Pig_(film)" title="The Guinea Pig (film)">The Guinea Pig</a></i> (1948)</li>

<li><i><a href="High_Treason_(1951_film)" title="High Treason (1951 film)">High Treason</a></i> (1951)</li>

<li><i><a href="Sailor_of_the_King" title="Sailor of the King">Sailor of the King</a></i> (1953)</li>

<li><i><a href="Josephine_and_Men" title="Josephine and Men">Josephine and Men</a></i> (1955)</li>

<li><i><a href="Brothers_in_Law_(film)" title="Brothers in Law (film)">Brothers in Law</a></i> (1957)</li>

<li><i><a href="Happy_Is_the_Bride" title="Happy Is the Bride">Happy Is the Bride</a></i> (1958)</li>

<li><i><a href="Carlton-Browne_of_the_F.O." title="Carlton-Browne of the F.O.">Carlton-Browne of the F.O.</a></i> (1959)</li>

<li><i><a href="A_French_Mistress" title="A French Mistress">A French Mistress</a></i> (1960)</li>

<li><i><a href="The_Family_Way" title="The Family Way">The Family Way</a></i> (1966)</li>

<li><i><a href="Twisted_Nerve" title="Twisted Nerve">Twisted Nerve</a></i> (1968)</li>

<li><i><a href="There's_a_Girl_in_My_Soup" title="There's a Girl in My Soup">There's a Girl in My Soup</a></i> (1970)</li>

<li><i><a href="Soft_Beds%2C_Hard_Battles" title="Soft Beds, Hard Battles">Soft Beds, Hard Battles</a></i> (1974)</li>

</div></td></tr></tbody></table></div></div><div><div class="zim-footer">

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