Evening star., 1937-01-24

stage, about 1912.
The American technicians and man.
ufacturers who have adopted this
policy fear that If they put television
sets on sale in their present stage, the
public might be disappointed and de-
velopment Of the art be retarded.
There may be something in this theory.
I recall that my own feeling about the
first crude radio set we had in the
house caused me not to take it seriously
for several years, until long past the
time when it deserved to be taken serl-
ously: it was not until the late l920s
that We had another set in the house.
The experts say it will be about two
years before televiSion in launched in
America in large way. 1t is doubt
full. however. if they will be able to
hold it off the market until their zest
for nearer perfection is satisfied. Some
one alert to the commercial poSsibili-
ties Of the first introduction Of sem
sational novelty will put it on sale.
Though there are as yet no regular
television broadcasts in America such
as those being conducted regularly in
London, the art in this country Is
actually more advanced than abroad.
At least five, and perhaps more, Amerl-
can scientists-experimen have car
ried their television systems farther
along in development than any Of their
European competitors
Await Greater Facilities.
One Of the needs for which the
American television experts want more
time is the development of satisfac-
tory broadcasting stations and studios
they must be quite different from
radio stations and studios. Broad
casting towers for television will need
TO be very high, much higher than
radio towers, for reasons too technical
to tell here. AS so far developed, the
broadcasting distance for television
will be limited to about so miles.
The television studio must have
strong artificial light, so that the
image picked up by the camera will
transmit sharply and clearly. This
light must be provided by lamps so
powerful that they give of great heat.
The heat must be got rid of-other-
wise the actors and everybody else
taking part in the broadcast would
almost melt. Whatever devices are
used to get rid of this heat must be
silent and invisible. French tele-
visionist put electric fans beneath con-
cealed grills in the floor of the stage.
which pumped streams Of cooled air
/ into the studio. The installation was
| done in such way that to the CAM
era's eye the grills did not exist. They
/ kept the temperature on the stage
comfortable. But whenever an ac-
| tress absorbed in her part got too close
to the grills her skirts were whipped
! suddenly over her head. To distant
watchers of the broadcast this Incl
/ dent, appearing perhaps at the most
dramatic point of a tragedy. must
have seemed either very mystifying or
very funny.
/ In television scenery is a special
/ problem. In a radio broadcasting
station scenery is not necessary-just
a room having proper acoustics. In
motion pictures one outfit Of scenery
will do for picture which may take
months to film and be shown over
and over again for weeks in thou
sands of theaters everywhere.
In televiSion, however, the matter
Of scenery is more complex and ex-
! pensive. A set of scenery can be used
once. for the half hour or so Of a
broadcast, and that is all. Multitudes
of television fans will be aSsiduous
/ in seeing every program. They would
! criticize and resent the repeated tele-
/ vising of the same scenery in different
performances.
Programs to Be Big Business.
| If television is to be, as radio Is,
/ continuous for some 10 hours day,
/ with. as a rule. four performances an
hour, the providing of programs will
/ become business greater in volume
than the providing of radio and motion
/ picture shows. For one felevision per-
! formance it will be necessary to do
what the motion picture does for one
performance. But motion picture
show lasts for weeks-a television
show will last for only an hour or q
half hour or quarter. The appre-
hensive television experts and manu-
| facturers think it wise before putting
sets on the market, to wait until there
is supply of shows.
| A problem upon which all television
experimenters are working is the at
present limited size of the images
that can be shown by receiving sets.
In most systems the surface receiving
/ the telecast as it would appear in the
home is small. 9 by IL inches, or
thereabouts. The images are tiny
and cannot be seen clearly by any
one standing more than a few feet
away from the receiver. This limits
the number of persons who can watch
a program-at present the maximum
is three or four.
German scientists have developed a
system which employs a screen feet
high by 3I2 feet wide. However,
American engineers say that magni.
flcation of images to this size, with
the equipment the Germans are known
to possess, cannot be completely sat.
infactory, for all the faults and flaws
incident to imperfect transmission
and reception must be magnifled, too.
1t may be that television receivers,
when finally perfected and standard.
lied, may have small projection sur.
faces, say II inches by 10. which
could be seen with sufficient clarity
and detail by half dozen persons sit
ting within range of eight or nine
feet. The trend toward small rooms
in modern apartment houses may in
huence television manufacturers to
decide on designs Of that type. They
will, of course, have sound accom-
paniment But it is just as possible
that sets having screens about the size
of the one developed In Germany. or
even larger. may win greater popular
favor and be the type which manu-.
facturers will make standard.
Whatever the form television equip
ment may take-and nobody can say
as Of the present what it will bet
is reasonably certain that at no very