Projection engineering (Jan-Dec 1931)

DECEMBER, 1931 Page 29 always practicable or allowable, depending upon local legislation. Another curious feature was that many exhibitors, while having no real stage room, insisted upon retaining the potentiality of using the few square feet in their possession. While it is fairly easy to construct horn towers to fit on to a small stage, it is an entirely different matter to arrange for their withdrawal when no offstage room is available. Sometimes the question of actually getting the horns within the auditorium was itself more than a small problem. In several cases, in the experience of the present writer, walls had to be cut away owing to the fact that even the double-doored exits were too small. Sometimes, too, it was impossible to reach the stage when the screen was in position. Thus, during one night the old screen had to be removed, the horns slung in position and then the new Transvox erected and laced. This was especially difficult when local regulations demanded that the screen frame should be of metal construction. In one particular case the writer remembers where the backstage room was so limited that it was found impossible to flare and tilt the horns correctly when in their logical position. To over come tne difficulty they were therefore inverted, but the end did not by any means justify the attempt. Although theoretically the sound axis is known to be 15 degrees divergent from the geometric axis, yet in practice other factors have to be considered. With these horns upside down, a thin but definite beam of scratch raked the circle which, of course, included the best seats. Illusion also was inclined to be poor except in the stalls. The introduction of the Roxy type of horn did much to alleviate the difficulty of horn placement in the smaller theatres. British operating "boxes" were always proverbially inadequate and frequently the installation of sound equipment compelled complete rebuilding. Even when this was not undertaken, quite often concrete bases had to be prepared for carrying the bulky projectors. Such instances were particularly unfortunate for the installation engineer as changeover had to take place in one night. It was obviously out of the question to build up the new machines at the side, since it was impossible then to lift them on to the newly prepared bases of concrete. Owing to restricted space in small theatres the amplifier rack could rarely be situated where it would be in plain view of both projectionists. Then again it was a fairly frequent occurrence for a large girder to strike right across the "box," usually just in the position where one wished to fix the monitor. Acoustic faults were not so prevalent as might have been thought. The old style music halls, many of which had been converted into cinemas, were particularly happily placed as regards quality of reproduction. The ornate ornamentation and heavy hangings did much to keep the time of reverberation within the required limits. Some of these small, and by no means clean, converted music halls in the early days obtained reputation for clarity of speech which greatly increased their turnover. The writer remembers a case in the north of England where two cinemas were owned by the same person. One of these was a dirty little music hall, and the other a provincial super seating about 2,500. Naturally the owner was by no means pleased after both of these had been equipped that reproduction was very much better in his smaller hall. Engineers tried unsuccessfully for some time to raise the quality level of the super to that of the music hall. Needless to say, it was quite out of the question. ▲ ▲ A New talking movies THE measurement of the flickering of the eye in adding a column of figures, the analysis by the motion picture camera of wild oat seeds jumping along the ground like animals, and the recording of the daily work of school children learning to read by modern methods were among the subjects discussed recently by Frederick L. Devereux, general manager, Electrical Research Products, Inc., in his address, "The New Talking Movie," at the meeting of the Science Forum of the New York Electrical Society. The address was illustrated by several educational talking pictures of the new type, among which were "Individual Differences in Arithmetic," by Dr. Guy T. Buswell, University of Chicago ; "The Teaching of Reading," by Dr. Arthur I. Gates, Columbia University; "The Brass Choir," describing the use of brass instruments in a symphony orchestra; "Seed Dispersal," showing how nature distributes seeds; "The Modern Knight," showing the use of up-to-date communication devices in apprehending criminals, and others. "It has been clearly demonstrated by carefully controlled experimentation that the talking movie is making a fundamental contribution to education," said Colonel Devereux. "not onlv in the field of teacher training, but also in actual classroom teaching situations. The new talking movie, however, to be of greatest service to education, must be produced along new lines that are in conformity with changing techniques in the teaching profession. Any program that is laid out for the production of talking movie subjects for educational use must be based on a program of research to determine the proper subjects to make and the materials to be included in those subjects. It must also include a series of tests and measurements to evaluate the subject matter used and its effectiveness in the enrichment of the school curriculum. "The adaptation of the talking movie to industry promises to bring to the public economic and cultural benefits of ever increasing value. Here is a comparatively new medium that records and transmits ideas, locale and personalities to this and future generations, with a fidelity to truth and simplicity of operation that have earned it a high place in the history of the art of communication. It is a medium that makes use of all of the well-known devices of the silent motion picture — microscopic, diagrammatic, time-lapse, slow motion and realistic photography, and of the sound transmission principles of the telephone, the radio, and the phonograph, combining them all so skilfully into an harmonious whole that the illusion of reality is substantially maintained. "Realizing the potentialities of the talking picture, many large industries have carried on progressive talking movie programs this year with excellent results. These programs have taken the form of pictures for employee training, sales demonstrations to dealer conventions, analysis of service faults and their correction, and straight sales messages. "It is not expected that the talking movie will in any way supplant the classroom teacher. As a matter of fact, talking movies properly used will enrich teacher training courses and improve the quality of teaching by bringing to the aid of the teacher materials, information and demonstration otherwise not available." Colonel Devereux described the procedures that were followed in the production of the pictures shown and outlined many of the problems that are being solved at the present time in technical research, appraisal research and curriculum research necessary in the developing of educational and industrial talking movie programs.