The Film Renter and Moving Picture News (Apr-Jun 1922)

June 3, 1922. THE FILM RENTER & MOVING PICTURE NEWS. 45 PROGRESS OF TALKING AND SINGING PICTURES. An_ Invention which it is claimed has immense possibilities, and already been commercially tested with success. (By CLAUDE H. VERITY, Inventor of Verity Talking and Singing Pictures,) T will interest you to know that the gramophone side of my I inventica has now been developed so that the reproduction of the human voice is so natural that the people who have in the past criticised the invention from this point oi view will now have a difficulty in doing so. Iam using the Cliftophone in conjunction with electrical — amplification and — specially designed horns which produce this desire result. NEW TRADE DEVELOPMENT NECESSARY. The interesting article with reference to Mr. James White, which appeared in a recent issue of the Fum Renter, shows hew necessary it ‘s that some new developinent should take place in the film trade, and it is to b= hoped that the scheme which is suggested will prove succe:sful, but I venture to th'nk that the silent film will, before long, be placed at a disadvantage owing to the fact that the public are becoming tired of the pictures which are being presented to them to-day. To show that there is something lacking in the silent photoplay film, why is it necessary to have expensive orchestras to support them? serious SOMETHING MISSING. When synchronised films are shown in conjunction with silent films, the gramophone will produce all the music that is necessary and so bring about a considerable saving, while at the same time the public will have the advantage of musical synchronised pictures which at present the silent film cannot give., If one were to ask people to go to Covent Garden to watch silent opera, to go to the theatre and watch the artistes silently carrying out their story, with the aid of titles lowered on a drop screen, to enable the audience to understand the story, I think it would be realised there is something wanted which the silent film does not give. Digitized by Goc gle Tue Verity TALKING AND StIncinG ProtureE APPARATUS. RECREATING PUBLIC INTEREST. My idea cf this criticism is not to depreciate the silent film, but to prove that the novelty of the idea has worn off. The public will demand something more, or otherwise the industry program of synchronised films with — silent — films which would consist of Topical News, comedies, and films which do not lend themselves to synchronisation, an in. teresting variety program will be produced which will recreate the publie’s support of the industry, and convert the pending lack of interest shown by the ‘eduped tak. ings at the pay-box into a great boom, whic will restore prosperity to the industry, and at the same time bring wealth to all those who assist and encourage synchronised pictures, will suffer. By combining a THE OBJECTION TO SELENIUM. The different efforts to solve this problem which we occasionally hear of in the Press have not the slightest hope of definite commercial success, beeause the technical difficulties and general difficulties in connection with working the systems in ordinary commercial use have not been overcome. We constantly see reminders in the Press, by those who are interested, referring to so-called genuine speaking films where the sounds are photographed on the same film as the movements of the artistes. There are so many technical objections to the use of selenium or any other compound which Press agents, maybe, discover for producing the same results, that any hope in this direction need not be expected, SIMULTANEOUS SOUND RECORD. To take one particular objection, the obvious impossibility cf recording photo-dramas so that the sound is simultaneously recorded at the same time as the artistes are photographed. (Continued on next page.) Original from NEW YORK PUBLIC LIBRARY