International projectionist (Jan-Dec 1945)

of course, in considerable edge damage to the film. The matter of edge damage to film has been discussed before the National Film Carriers Association for several years past, with demonstrations as to the cause of this particular type of damage, as well as the SMPE, without result. The National Film Carriers Association has taken serious steps in the past to prevent undue rough handling by their drivers, but to my knowledge they have had little success. From time to time the idea has been advanced that some of this edge damage is due to poor quality of film which, of course, is not true. A number of years ago I made a slow-motion picture for Paramount showing damage to film due to improper splicing. This picture demonstrated the necessity of proper splicing in order to prevent damage to the film at the point of splicing. Today several of the distributors have their exchanges equipped with a modern and efficient splicing device, with the result that these distributors have very little film damaged due to splicing. Before making the picture demonstrating results of bad splicing, I gathered film scraps from some 35 exchanges throughout the United States, and analyzed and catalogued each particular type of damage due to improper splicing. The result of this analysis was the slow-motion film mentioned. The point I am trying to make is this: I believe that in order to overcome excessive edge damage to film, or any other type of damage, it is necessary to visit a sufficient number of exchanges throughout the country, gather samples of film damage, analyze and catalogue them. Any particular type of damage to film can quickly be catalogued by an expert and only then can proper steps be taken to correct this evil. In my opinion, testing or analyzing film damage cannot be satisfactorily arrived at in a laboratory. The life of motion picture film has been greatly increased in the past years due to intelligent investigation and analysis of causes. There is still considerable research to be done to bring about the maximum life of positive prints and most of these causes will be found in the field, mainly in the film exchanges. With the advent of sound it was necessary to keep projector heads in a much better mechanical condition than in the silent days. There have been many attempts to correct sprocket pitch, take-up tension, use of bad reels, etc., all of which are contributing factors to various types of film damage. Positive film is handled only in exchanges and theatres, consequently it is my belief that a thorough survey of these 2 branches of the industry should result in the establishment of the necessary standards for the proper handling of film. First, the investigation should be made in the exchanges where, it will be found, a great deal of the damage to film occurs. There should be designed a good rewind and a blueprint for the installation of these rewinds. Also it is considered practical to install between the rewinds a guide for J>vA (pAbfadtion in (pJwj&ciwn MONOGRAPH 3>vA ft&Afaciwn in Sound MIRROPHONIC NAMES THAT WEAR WELL Chief among the reasons why Motiograph and Mirrophonic have always been acclaimed the perfect projectors and sound systems is the fact that they have always embodied all those features which the projectionists have considered necessary to superb, dependable performance, long life, and ease of operation and maintenance. As the actual users of this equipment, their opinions have always been respected by Motiograph engineers. GREETINGS from DETROIT MOTION PICTURE PROJECTIONISTS LOCAL NO. 199 I. A. T. S. E. CLAYTON BALL-BEARING EVEN TENSION TAKE-UPS For all projectors and sound equipments All take-ups wind film on 2, 4 and 5 inch hub reels. Silent Chain Drives THE CLAYTON REWINDER For perfect rewinding on 2000-foot reels. CLAYTON PRODUCTS CO. 31-45 Tibbett Avenue New York, N. Y. DECEMBER 1945 29