In '76 I performed some transfers and restorations for AT&T. One of the
disks was dated 10-14-24. It's was a 16" sync disk for what two years later
would be debuted as Vitaphone. It was alateral cut shellac, electrically
recorded & inside start. This group of specs (save shellac replaced by
Vitrolac in many cases circa 1931) became the standard for this
application. The master # was M64. The artist was notated "McGregor -
Baritone". The artist performed 3 songs: "On The Road To Mandalay", "Danny
Deever", & a third whose title I didn't recognize when I made the notes. No
film, (35mm or otherwise) accompanied it.
Knowing this master # possibly provides an insight into how many
'Vitaphone' tests were performed
prior to the theatrical debut in NYC on 8-6-26. "The Birth Of The
Telephone" by Thomas Watson is master M189. That was shot / recorded on
June 4.
Best,
Art (Shiffy) Shifrin
Best,
Art (Shiffy) Shifrin
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