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The History of Sound in the Cinema

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The History of Sound in the Cinema A fascinating article by Dion Hanson of Dolby Laboratories, Chairman of the BKSTS Cinema Technology Committee, based on the 1997 Annual BKSTS Bernard Happé Memorial Lecture which Dion presented under the title Fantastic Formats. Bernard Happé was a Member, Fellow, and Past- president of the BKSTS and a member of the Technicolor team who played a great part in the development of film formats, including 70mm. Fantastic Formats is a visual experience giving the audience a chance to see some of the older formats they have only read about. Dion says that it is impossible to recreate in print, but this article is based upon the presentation, and provides useful reminders for the older members who can remember some of the developments taking place, and gives an excellent history lesson for those who are newer to the cinema sound scene. Thanks are due to Dolby who kindly sponsored the Bernard Happé Lecture. The History The 1997 Bernard Happé Memorial Lecture of Sound in the Cinema Most people consider that phonograph does for the ear, were actually printing the a Movietone sound-track and sound movies were not and that by a combination of sound photographically onto a silent feature 'What Price invented until 1928 with the the two all sound and motion the film. However, it was not Glory?', to which a musical release of Warner's 'The Jazz could be recorded and until the invention of the score had been added . Singer'. It is certainly true that reproduced simultaneously". photocell by Hertz in 1887 and Western Electric in 1925 this was the first notable film Looking at diagrams and the 'Audion' valve by De developed a system which using sound, but we must go pictures of his early work back to the invention of the certainly shows the inclusion cinematograph to realise that of a phonograph to deliver experiments were being sound with his pictures. carried out using sound as well as picture from the very When reading books about the beginning. Edison wrote in development of sound in the one of his papers " In the year cinema it is not uncommon to 1887, the idea occurred to me think that the only research that it would be possible to was being carried in America. devise an instrument which This is far from the truth and it should do for the eye what the is often found that other inventors were actually in front of the Americans. Using Forest in 1907 that film sound successfully synchronised a Edison's phonograph became a real possibility for turntable with a film projector. Frenchman Auguste Baron large auditoria. In 1923 They tried to interest synchronised sound with Petersen and Poulsen gave a Hollywood in the system but picture in 1896 and gave a successful demonstration of as the studios were doing demonstration at an exposition their sound on film system at good business with silent films in 1900 featuring Sarah the Palads Cinema they were not interested. Bernhardt reading Hamlet. Copenhagen. In America Fox Warner Brothers on the other Both Pathe and Gaumont set about securing the rights to hand were not making so were also working on disk a German sound on film much money since they did systems based on the system called Tri-Ergon which not own their own theatres and phonograph. pre-dates De Forest's were finding difficulty in getting Phonofilm system, but it was their product screened. Eugene Lauste and Lee De Theodore Cases system Consequently they decided to Forest were also working on which Fox adopted and called give talking pictures a go. sound systems to accompany Movietone. Fox released Signing exclusive contracts pictures but their systems several short films in 1926 with with Western Electric they 8 Cinema Technology July / August 1998 christened the system death whilst he was Vitaphone and released their researching the use of first sound movie 'Don Juan' in RADAR. 1926. Having been completed earlier as a silent movie the RCA and Disney were sound track consisted of music however, carrying out and some synchronised sound research in America into a effects, the screenings did stereo system specifically for what Warner's had hoped for, Disney's now classic film and that was to raise the 'Fantasia', the system public's interest in sound ultimately taking the name movies. 'The Jazz Singer' 'Fantasound'. Using optical released in the following year sound the three tracks were Fantasound equipment was the film that set the recorded on to a separate cost and industry talking, sound movies piece of film run in complexity, but it did show to had arrived. Although sound synchronisation with the the world the superior quality on disc was the first successful picture. A fourth track on the that could be obtained in the commercial system, it only sound film acted as a gain cinema that would never be lasted for about two years, control for the three stage available to its rival, television. after which it was replaced by channels. the more versatile 'Movietone' Warner Brothers in the sound on film system. The Fantasound equipment meantime were experimenting Whichever system the was installed in only 14 with stereo images in the form theatres chose they both relied theatres, causing quite a stir, of 3-D which they called on amplifiers and speaker before RCA had to NaturalVision, again to try and horns to deliver the sound to concentrate all their offer audiences that extra the theatre, and so Bell production in to the war effort. something that television Telephone Laboratories' Though no equipment could not. Their first film being manufacturing division survives the stereo mix is still 'Bwana Devil' in November Western Electric became preserved and was re- 1952. synonymous with film sound. mastered for the films last re- Not wishing to back the wrong release a few years ago. Warners' system used two system they developed their Universal Base which was Cinema audiences had to wait able to replay both Vitaphone another ten years to hear true and Movietone films. Hi-Fidelity stereo sound in the cinema in the form of Fred Even from these early days of Waller's Cinerama system sound on film companies were which was first screened at the investigating the possibilities Broadway Theatre in New of stereo sound, one of the York in September 1952. This earliest such examples was in used three 35mm projectors 1931 at Columbia's Studios in running in synch to create a huge high definition picture covering the projectors mechanically locked viewer's whole field of together and running two vision, along with a copies of the same film, one separate 35mm for the left eye, and one for the magnetic film strip right, and using polaroid filters Hayes, Middlesex. Alan carrying seven Blumlein began using a twin channels of microphone technique he had audio to developed to record a stereo surround the signal on to film in the same audience with area taken up by the then sound. standard mono optical track. These experiments were Cinerama was curtailed by the advent of war, doomed from which resulted in his untimely the outset because of its Cinema Technology July / August 1998 9 on the projectors to mono cinema. One of the complement the polaroid more notable films being glasses worn by the audience. 'Seven Brides for Seven The sound was again carried Brothers'. Both MGM and on a separate magnetic film. Paramount opted for this The screen channels were left, system and it is said that centre, and right, on the because of this Fox were magnetic film, with the forced to reduce their picture 'surround' or effects channel size on CinemaScope copies being carried on the optical to add an optical mono track, track of the right projector. The thus making their release optical track on the left prints compatible also. projector being a mono back up or for use in theatres not To achieve a larger picture equipped for stereo. impressive film to launch their MGM adopted a similar new system called anamorphic system and called Film distributors were also 'CinemaScope' in September it Metroscope whereas searching for a system that 1953. In fact for the launch Fox Paramount developed would give the same effect as were still having problems VistaVision. VistaVision was a Cinerama but for a lot less getting the magnetic stripes method of filming where the cost, a system that was onto the film and the cinemas 35mm film was run relatively simple to install and which opened initially with 'The horizontally through the would fit into a normal sized Robe' had the sound on camera to give a widescreen theatre. Twentieth Century Fox separate film utilising the image without having to employed a system using an sound equipment previously compress it with an anamorphic lens developed used for 3-D. anamorphic lens. The release earlier by Frenchman Henri print derived from this negative Chretien. The lens squeezed Although Fox offered had an aspect ratio of 1:1.85 the photographed image CinemaScope to all its rivals and was printed onto the film horizontally, enabling a wide the other studios were loath to with the normal configuration. image to be photographed use it as it meant they would The film ran through the onto 35mm film. This image have to pay royalties to one of projector in the conventional was then expanded during their competitors. To enable way but the high quality image projection back to its wider the release film to carry the allowed it to be magnified ratio. Four channels of four tracks the size of the greatly without any great loss magnetic sound were laid sprocket holes had to reduced in definition, which is more down the sides of the release making them less robust and than can be said for the print to give three screen thus the film more prone to CinemaScope images of the channels and an 'effects' wear and damage.
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