Lee de Forest: Difference between revisions

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Line 70: {{main\|Phonofilm}} In 1919, De Forest filed the first patent on his [[sound-on-film]] process, which improved on the work of Finnish inventor [[Eric Tigerstedt]] and the German partnership [[Tri-Ergon]], and called it the De Forest [[Phonofilm]] process. Phonofilm recorded sound directly onto film as parallel lines of variable shades of gray, and later became known as a "variable density" system as opposed to "variable area" systems such as [[RCA Photophone]]. These lines [[photograph]]ically recorded electrical waveforms from a [[microphone]], which were translated back into [[sound]] waves when the movie was projected. This system, which synchronized sound directly onto film, was used to record stage performances (such as in vaudeville), speeches, and musical acts. In November 1922, De Forest established his De Forest Phonofilm Company at 314 East 48th Street in New York City, but none of the [[Hollywood, California\|Hollywood]] [[film studio\|movie studios]] expressed any interest in his invention. From October 1921 to September 1922, DeForest lived in [[Berlin]], meeting with the Tri-Ergon developers and investigating other European sound film systems. He announced to the press in April 1922 that he would soon have a workable sound-on-film system.<ref>[http://encyclopedia.jrank.org/articles/pages/2064/Lee-de-Forest-and-Phonofilm-Virtual-Broadway.html Lee de Forest and Phonofilm at Virtual Broadway website]</ref> On 12 March 1923, DeForest presented a demonstration of Phonofilm to the press.<ref>[http://www.wired.com/science/discoveries/news/2008/03/dayintech_0312 Randy Alfred, ''Wired'' magazine (12 March 2008)]</ref> On 12 April 1923, DeForest gave a private demonstration of the process to electrical engineers at the Engineering Society Building's Auditorium at 33 West 39th Street in New York City.<ref>[http://www.ascemetsection.org/content/view/443/1023/#EngineeringSocietiesBuilding ASCE website entry]</ref> This system, which synchronized sound directly onto film, was used to record stage performances (such as in vaudeville), speeches, and musical acts. In November 1922, De Forest established his De Forest Phonofilm Company at 314 East 48th Street in New York City, but none of the [[Hollywood, California\|Hollywood]] [[film studio\|movie studios]] expressed any interest in his invention. De Forest premiered 18 short films made in Phonofilm on 15 April 1923 at the Rivoli Theater in New York City. He was forced to show his films in independent theaters such as the Rivoli, since Hollywood movie studios controlled all major theater chains. De Forest chose to film primarily short [[vaudeville]] acts, not features, limiting the appeal of his process to Hollywood studios. [[Max Fleischer]] and [[Dave Fleischer]] used the Phonofilm process for their [[Sound Car-Tunes\|Song Car-Tune]] series of cartoons—featuring the "[[Bouncing Ball\|Follow the Bouncing Ball]]" gimmick—starting in May 1924.