1900-08-14 The Philadelphia Inquirer (Philadelphia, PA) (page 6) Professor Lubin, in explaining the visit of the two pugilists said: "Owing to an accident several of the films were spoiled, which broke the continuity of the action of the two men, and rendered it necessary for these two men to go through that part of the fight again. The exhibition was in every way satisfactory, and the films are perfect. They are, in fact, the best I have ever taken, and will show the entire fight from the first clash of the gong until Ruhlin was carried out of the ring insensible." 1900-08-14 The Philadelphia Record (Philadelphia, PA) (page 11) Bob Fitzsimmons and Gus Ruhlin refought their battle of last Friday night before a moving-picture camera at No. 912 Arch street yesterday, and some 200 people saw them do it. While far from being an exact reproduction of that wicked encounter the exhibition was a very interesting one, and should look all right in the pictures. S. Lubin, the enterprising individual who engineered the show, says no one will be able to distinguish any difference between the real fight, carried by memory oly, and the photographs of the imitation. ... After the battle the fighters and a few friends adjourned to Mr. Lubin's Eighth street establishment, where they were shown the pictures of the two fighters, taken at their training quarters before the fight. Ruhlin was shown taking a swim with his trainer, Billy Madden; boxing with Charley Goff, swinging Indian clubs, working with dumbbells and exercising with the medicine ball with Madden and Goff. Fitzsimmons was shown coming in from his daily run, boxing with Bob Armstrong and Jeff. Thorne, in which he repeatedly floors his man; swimming with his retinue of trainers and throwing the medicine ball. ... Both fighters expressed the opinion that the training films were the best ever made, and when told that the fight pictures should be even better, since the light was just about perfect, they declared that the whole should make a great show. It is the intention to combine the films, thus showing both men at work before the fight, the mill and how they looked afterward. 1900-08-14 The Times (Philadelphia, PA) (page 10) At the big fight last week, when Fitzsimmons pounded Ruhlin into insensibility in six rounds, there were no pictures taken at the time.
According to two authors, Gilbert Odd and Adam Pollack no film of the fight was taken. Lubin had a history of trying to pass off re-enactments as the actual fight,thanks for you post, but it reads like a publicity blurb to me.
I didn't try to argue whether the original fight had been filmed or not. George Siler, in his report, said he had learned from somebody "in the know" that the two cameras set on a platform at the east end of the garden weren't meant to film anything and the intention, from the beginning, was to film a re-enactment at a later date, like you said. But that's just his version. The reporter of the Brooklyn Times, for example, didn't know the cameras were fake, and hoped that the film of the fight would turn out all right.
After the public warning in the other thread he just needs to be left alone per Mendoza accusations and references. But yeah i might have a little bo peep over there!!!!
Certainly there are reports from the time which describe the movie cameras being prominently set up, but no attempt being made to actually operate them. https://ibb.co/MSm3qQ8