Background
Tait was born in Castlemaine, Victoria, the son of John Turnbull Tait (1830-1902), a tailor from Scalloway, Shetland Islands, Scotland, and his English wife Sarah, née Leeming.
Tait was born in Castlemaine, Victoria, the son of John Turnbull Tait (1830-1902), a tailor from Scalloway, Shetland Islands, Scotland, and his English wife Sarah, née Leeming.
The film was first shown on 26 December 1906. They had nine children: including Charles (1868-1933), John Henry (1871-1955), James Nevin (1876-1961), Edward Joseph (1878-1947) and Frank Samuel (1883-1965) (later Sir Frank). In about 1879, the Taits moved to Richmond, a suburb of Melbourne, Victoria.
The Tait brothers" earliest presentations centred on the Athenaeum Hall in Collins Street, Melbourne, with concerts often including popular short, film screenings.
This interest led them to join with Millard Johnson and William Gibson in the production of The Story of the Kelly Gang which premièred on 26 December 1906 at the Athenaeum. The film is now recognized as the first feature-length narrative film.
In March 1911, the brothers John and Nevin Tait, and Millard Johnson and William Gibson merged their film interests in Amalgamated Pictures which for a short time continued to produce features and newsreels before combining with its main competitor, Australasian Films, in 1912. After 1911, the Taits concentrated on concert presentation and occasional film exhibition.
Charles died in Melbourne in 1933.