The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1896-06-01
TRIUMPH OF VITASCOPE
Edison's Achievement Made Plctori-
ally Perfect Success.
New rhonograph Coming--Recorded Vol
umc OF Sound Will Be Magniflcd.

Edison's vitascope, the latest thing on
the vaudeville stage, and a triumph OF
the Wizards inventive genius, Is simple
contrivance, and yet wondrous in its de-
tail and mechanism. Mhen Edison named
the machine vItascope no did SO, he
explained, because IL showed lie, and he
added thet il was the very thing he bad
in mind when he worked so long and so
patiently on the kinctoscope, with which
he has never been satisfied.
by means Of the vitascope life-size
figures of men, women and animals and
scenes from nature are thrown npon a
screen, and present 10 the spectator an
animated. moving panorama. The result
is intensely interesting and pleasing, but
Mr.. Edison is not quite satisfied yet. He
wants now to improve the pbonograpb so
that il will record double the amount OF
sound that il does at present; and he
hopes then to go combine this improved
phoncgraph with the vitascope as to
make 1t possible for an audience TO wit
ness n Photographic reproduction OF an
opera or a play--to see the movements OF
the actors and hear their voices Ms
plainly as though they were witnessing
-tAe- original production itself. And when
IL ie remem bcred what marvels Edison
improbable that he may yet add this one
to his many others.
coLoRs REPRODUCED.
An astonishing feature of the vitasco pc
Is that II throws any and all colors on
the screen. In the case OF the dancer
mentioned her gauze skirt was pink, an
underskirt was blue, while her bodice was
pale green. These colors were reproduc-
ed in oil their naturalness on the screen.
But, il should be said, they were not
photographed on the kinetoscope film;
they were painted on 1t later, and IN such
way that they do not rub off as the
tilm passes over the wheels OF the Vita
scope.
Another interesting feature of the vita
scope Is a magnet that Is suspended be-
fore the frame over which the film passes.
Close to this magnet is a small dynamo.
The purpose of the magnet Is to protect
the film from being melted by the focus
sed light when the arc lamp behind the
large lens Is burning. The light thus TO-
cussed on the frame is very intense and
IL allowed to rest for a moment on the
film would melt IL. The magnet, being
the electrical current is turned into the
vitascope and its wheel, carrying the film
are set in motion, the dynamo is also
charged, and the magnet Is drawn TO IL,
so that the light can strike the moving
film ana sent it's pictures through the
smaller lens. Thus the light is not focus
sed on any part of the film for a moment
and the latter is not melted. When the
current is cut of the vitcseope, the mag
net falls from the dynamo 10 its place in
front of the frame, and its mission of
protecting the filRa ftem- destruction is
resumed.
AS stated, the films now used in the
exhibitions of the vitascope are each
fifty feet in length, but they are TO be
improved shortly by films from $50 to
500 feet in length. Pictures for these
films are now being taken, and among
them are Niagara Falls, steamer going
down the Lachine Rapids, and an ocean
greyhound leaving h,r pier with her
decks crowded with passengers waving
adieus TO their friends on shore.