A History of Light and Lighting
Edition: 2.2 - (1999)
Copyright (c) 1990-1999 by Bill Williams
IN THE BEGINNING - (c 4.5 Billion BC)
Let There Be Light!
In the beginning it was dark and cold. There was no sun, no light, no
earth, no solar system. There was nothing, just the empty void of
space. Then slowly, about 4.5 billion years ago, a swirling nebula, - a
huge cloud of gas and dust was formed. Eventually this cloud contracted
and grew into a central molten mass that became our sun. At first the
sun was a molten glow. As the core pressure increased, and the
temperature rose to millions of degrees - a star was born. Through the
process of thermonuclear hydrogen fusion, the sun began to shine.
This was the nebular hypothesis, first proposed in 1755 by the great
German philosopher, Immanuel Kant.
THE SUN - (c 4 Billion BC)
Our sun is an atomic furnace that turns mass into energy. Every second
it converts over 657 million tons of hydrogen into 653 tons of helium.
The missing 4 million tons of mass are discharged into space as energy.
The earth receives only about one two-billionths of this. Scientists
calculate that the sun should keep burning for another 10 to 30 billion
years. It has been estimated that in 15 minutes our sun radiates as
much energy as mankind consumes in all forms, during an entire year.
The sun is approximately 93,000,000 miles from the earth, 864,000 miles
in diameter, and is only an 'average' star in size, brilliance and age.
There are more than 100 billion other stars in our sun's own galaxy,
the Milky Way. Energy, with a color temperature of approximately 6500
degrees Kelvin, is received on earth, from the sun. It takes light from
the sun approximately 8 minutes to reach the earth. The illumination on
the earth's surface by the sun may exceed 100,000 lux, (10,000 fc) in
mid summer.
THE EARTH - (c 4 Billion BC)
About 4 billion years ago, soon after the Sun was formed, the Earth and
our other planets were formed from violent explosions and spinoffs from
the process that created the Sun. The nine planets created are now
known as Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune
and Pluto, (arranged in order, from the sun). As rocks and other
particles collided forming the Earth, it became molten. The rocks
liquefied and the heavier elements sank to the core of the planet. The
surface of the Earth cooled and hardened. Gradually oceans appeared and
sunlight and water gave birth to life, eventually, intelligent life.
The earth has a diameter of 7,900 miles (compared to the sun's
diameter of 864,000 miles).
EARLY LIFE - (c 3 Billion BC)
Without light, there would be no life. Life was dependent on three
things being present: a.) the basic long molecule building block,
carbon, b.) water, and c.) light. The Earth had all three. Eventually
the oceans formed a rich organic soup that ultimately bore life. The
oldest verified evidence of life comes from Rhodesia, where rocks
formed approximately 3 billion years ago, bear 'stromatolites', the
fossilized remains of algae.
Originally our atmosphere contained; hydrogen, helium, nitrogen,
methane, ammonia and water vapor. For millions of years, the waste
product of oxygen, from the ocean's algae, bubbled up out of the sea
and into the atmosphere. Gaseous oxygen reacted strongly with the
methane and ammonia in the atmosphere, turning it into carbon dioxide
and water vapor. Over time, methane, ammonia and carbon dioxide were
almost eliminated from the atmosphere. As oxygen began to build up in
the atmosphere, the usual oxygen module (0-2) began to absorb
ultraviolet wavelengths from the sun to form three atom molecules
(0-3). In time a layer of poisonous ozone had built up high in the
atmosphere, about 30 miles above the surface of the Earth. This ozone
layer effectively blocked much of the damaging ultraviolet rays from
reaching the Earth. Paleontological records show that life moved from
the sea to land, only after the ozone layer had formed, providing a
'sunscreen' to protect the land from harmful ultraviolet radiation.
Today, the air we breath today is approximately 78 percent nitrogen, 20
percent oxygen and 2 percent noble gases, carbon dioxide and water
vapor.
PHOTOSYNTHESIS - (c 2 Billion BC)
Somehow, as the primitive ocean organisms developed, one managed to
develop a molecule that could use the energy of sunlight to produce
food for itself. Sunlight, water, carbon dioxide and simple inorganic
elements were all that was needed to sustain itself. No longer did
ocean creatures have to eat other ocean creatures to survive. This was
the birth of the first 'autotroph', a creature that could manufacture
its own food. The plant was born and the process of photosynthesis had
begun.
FIRST MAN - HOMO ERECTUS EMERGES - (c 1 Million BC)
EARLY MAN - (c 500,000 BC)
For people that lived before the dawn of history, there was no such
thing as a solar system. The world as they understood it, was a small
patch of land bounded perhaps by hills and by the blue line of the sea.
Overhead was the sky, and across it rode the sun, a god, giving light
and warmth. The moon was a lesser god, shining with a lesser light, and
with it at night, rode the brilliant innumerable stars. Outside of this
little universe, lay unimagined mystery.
FIRE, FLAME and TORCH - (c 400,000 BC)
Homo erectus probably discovered fire by accident. Fire was most likely
given to man as a 'gift from the heavens' when a bolt of lightning
struck a tree or a bush, suddenly starting it on fire.
The flaming touch and the campfire probably constituted early man's
first use of 'artificial' lighting. For the first time man gained some
small degree of freedom from the blindness of night, and some small
degree of safety from the fear of unseen prowling beasts. As early as
400,000 BC, fire was kindled in the caves of Peking man.
The torch was the first portable lamp. One of the earliest developments
was the discovery that a bundle of sticks tied together made a blazing
torch, producing a brighter and longer lasting light. Man had finally
learned to control fire and the human race was on the road to
civilization.
The discovery of fire has had such a profound effect on humankind that
all early societies constructed a myth to commemorate it. Years later,
to the ancient Greeks, the fire bringer was Prometheus.
ANCIENT ART - (c 28,000 BC)
In the Ice Age snow and cold of 30,000 years ago, Cro-Magnon artists
used natural pigments to create primitive paintings. Excellent examples
of early art have been found in the cave at Lascaux, in France. Clearly
man must have been using fire to provide the necessary light to create
his art, as many painting have been found deep within caves, far beyond
the reach of daylight.
PRIMITIVE LAMPS - (c 13,000 BC)
Prehistoric man, used primitive lamps to illuminate his cave. These
lamps, made from naturally occurring materials, such as rocks, shells,
horns and stones, were filled with grease and had a fiber wick. Lamps
typically used animal or vegetable fats as fuel. Hundreds of these
lamps (hollow worked stones) have been found in the famous Lascaux
caves (France), dating to about 15,000 years ago.
The Sumerians of 2600 BC left behind them alabaster lamps so close to
shell form that it is indisputable that shells themselves must have
been used long before. Early man also realized that a crude reflector
would help direct and intensify the light. Niches have been found
carved into cave walls that are thought to have served this purpose.
In the Mediterranean area, hand fabricated lamps appear in Palestine,
before 2000 BC.
Additional Reading: Greek and Roman Pottery Lamps, Donald Bailey,
British Museum, 1972.
WORLD POPULATION - (8000 BC) - 100,000 people.
AGRICULTURE - (c 8000 BC)
About ten thousand years ago, man made an incredible discovery. For
hundreds of thousands of years before, man has been a hunter/gatherer.
Once man realized that he could actually plant crops and harvest them
at specific times he now had a stable food supply. Man had discovered
agriculture and now was able to settle down and farm a small patch of
land. The knowledgeable use of light and other important factors
brought man new freedom.
Successful agriculture meant for the most part predicting the seasons.
Whoever could predict the coming of spring, the flooding of fertile
river planes and the proper time to harvest - was certainly a god or a
magician. It is possible that many ancient monuments were built to
predict the coming of the seasons. The [STONEHENGE] is an example.
ANIMAL LAMPS - (c 5000 BC)
Animals were also used as lamps. Oily birds and fish needed only be
threaded with a wick to produce a working lamp.
There are also records of the early use of fireflies to provide man
with a source of convenient light. In the West Indian Islands (and also
in Japan) fireflies were imprisoned in primitive cages to provide
illumination through the process of bioluminescence. See also:
[BIOLUMINESCENCE].
(REF: Lighting 1, Early Oil Lamps, British Science Museum, 1966).
EARLY LAMP FUELS - (c 5000 BC)
The fuel used in ancient lamps, depended largely on availability. Olive
oil was probably the principal fuel employed in the Mediterranean
countries, and was exported to areas where the olive did not grow.
Other oils which were probable used in lamps include sesame oil (mainly
in the East), nut oil, fish oil, castor oil and other plant oils.
Lamp fuels were editable, so lamps were more likely to be used by the
wealthy than the poor. In times of hunger, fats would be consumed by
the poor, and they would have less fuel available for their lamps.
(REF: Greek & Roman Pottery Lamps, Donald Bailey, British Museum,1972).
WORLD POPULATION - (3000 BC) - 100 million people.
EARLY LIGHTING - (3000 BC)
In the ancient civilizations of Babylonian and Egypt, light was a
luxury. The Arabian Nights were far from the brilliance of today. The
palaces of the wealthy were lighted only by flickering flames of simple
oil lamps. These were usually in the form of small open bowls with a
lip or spout to hold the wick. Animal fats, fish oils or vegetable oils
(palm and olive) furnished the fuels.
ORIGIN OF THEATRE - (c 3000 BC)
Ancient theatre is as old as man's need to tell stories. The origins of
theatre go far back into the past, to the religious rites of the
earliest civilizations. Throughout the history of mankind there can be
found traces of songs and dances in honor of a god, performed by
priests and worshipers. The earliest civilization in which primitive
rituals developed into truly elaborate performances was the Egyptian.
It has been argued however, that the earliest existent Egyptian texts
for funerals and coronations, some dating as far back as 3000 BC are
really plays. See also: [EARLY THEATRE, GREEK], [EARLY THEATRE, ROMAN].
EARLY GLASS - (c 2500 BC)
The most reliable research places the invention of glass in the third
millennium before the birth of Christ, in Mesopotamia, (or present-day
Iraq and Syria). The earliest known glass makers worked in Mesopotamia,
as far back as 2500 BC, crafting beads and other small objects. Hollow
vessels do not appear before about 1500 BC.
Mix sand, soda and lime, cook and cool, the results: glass. Natural
glass can sometimes be created with little more than a strike of
lightning on a sand beach. It appears in the form of thin tubes called
fulgurites. There are also tektites: small, rounded bodies of glass
formed as a result of meteorites crashing to earth. Among natural
glass, the most prevalent is obsidian. Shiny and dark, it is born in
the fires of volcanoes and was first used by humans to make tools, more
than a million years ago. The Romans introduced glass blowing, about 50
BC. See also: [MEDIEVAL STAINED GLASS].
RE (THE SUN GOD) - (c 2300 BC)
(Also: RA) - The Egyptians believed that at night the sun god, Re,
would travel through dark regions beneath the world where his ship
faced destruction by a dragon named Apophis. A papyrus in the British
Museum records a ceremony based on this theme, dating from about 2300
BC. Although Egyptian art survives in some quantity, direct
illustrations of early rituals do not. Dancing and music, however, the
secular entertainment of the pharaoh's courts are well illustrated by
paintings and other artifacts.
STONEHENGE - (c 2000 - c 1500 BC)
Early man considered himself to be a child of the sun. Worship of the
sun became part of early civilization.
Stonehenge was built on the Salisbury Plain (England) between about
2000-1500 BC. From the stones and other existing landmarks,
archeologists have long puzzled over its meaning. Dr. Gerald S.
Hawkins, (astronomer) showed in 1963 (with the aid of computers) that
the stones were aligned to indicate the solstices and the beginning of
seasons, and to predict eclipses of the sun and moon.
SUNDIAL - (c 1500 BC)
The sundial is an instrument for measuring time, by means of location
of a sun shadow, cast by a marker. A sundial consists of two parts; a
gnomon and a dial plane. The gnomon is the shadow producing device. The
principal of the sundial was discovered about 1500 BC and allowed early
man to divide the day into hours. The first hemispherical sundial was
described about the 3rd Century BC by Chaldean astronomer Berossus.
Sundials were used for determining the time until the 18th. Century,
when clocks and watches became available.
TEMPLES - (1000 BC)
Although early Roman temples date as far back as 2000 BC, Greek temples
were built after the Dorian immigration (before 1000 BC). One of the
best examples is the Parthenon, from the 5th Century BC.
Most Greek temples were usually oriented to the east to illuminate the
statues within through the doorways at sunrise.
OIL POTTERY LAMPS - GREEK - (600 BC)
After the natural oil lamp, then the crude worked lamp, pottery lamps
followed. Early Greek pottery and were hand-modeled. Handles first
appeared on Minoan lamps, and on the first Athenian lamps of the 7th
Century BC. In addition to hand-modeling, later lamps were also
manufactured by pottery wheel and molding techniques. Both of these
techniques became far more popular than the hand-modeling method.
Pottery lamps were a cheap and practical means of illumination, easy to
produce, easy to use, but rather messy to handle. The oil would often
ooze from the wick hole and run down the outside of the lamp.
During the 6th, 5th and 4th centuries BC, Athens was a major
manufacturer and exporter of high quality poetry lamps. Lamps similar
in basic design may still be used today, in some parts of the world.
Additional Reading: Greek and Roman Pottery Lamps, by Donald M. Bailey,
The British Museum, 1972.
PYTHAGORAS - (c 582 - c 500 BC)
Pythagoras was a Greek philosopher and mathematician who was born in
Samos. He founded the Pythagorean School that emphasized the study of
musical harmony and geometry. He also put forth the 'Particle' theory
of light. This assumed that every visible object emits a steady stream
of particles, that bombard the eye. Pythagoras suggested that "light
consists of rays that acting like feelers, travel in straight lines
from the eye to the object, and the sensation of sight is obtained when
these rays touch the object", much like the sense of touch.
HERACLITUS - (c 535 - 475 BC)
Heraclitus - Greek philosopher - "The world, an entity out of
everything, was created neither by gods nor by men, but was, is and
will be eternally living fire, regularly becoming ignited and regularly
becoming extinguished" (The Cosmic Fragments #20, c 480 BC).
OIL RESERVOIR LAMP - (500 BC)
Gradually the body of the oil lamp closed, forming a completely
enclosed reservoir, by about 500 BC. The oil reservoir lamp consisted
of pottery or metal bowls with one or more wicks projecting through
openings in the spouts and a cover to keep the reservoir from being
spilling or being ignited. The cover also helped keep rats and mice
from drinking the oil and prevented insects that were attracted to the
light, from falling into the oil.
Artisans of that day found in the oil lamp, an intriguing medium for
their artistic expression. Early Greek, Roman and Egyptian lamps are
highly artistic in design.
Additional Reading: Greek and Roman Pottery Lamps, by Donald M. Bailey,
The British Museum, 1972.
EARLY THEATRE, GREEK - (500 BC)
The first great theatrical age in the history of Western civilization
is that of Greece in the 5th Century BC. It was there that tragedies
and comedies were first performed by actors, not by priests, in special
buildings. The Greeks built open air theatres, and used natural
daylight and sunlight for their lighting. In the Greek theatre,
lanterns were used to show that the scene was set at night. Early
theatres were constructed from wood. Later, theatres (300 B.C.) were
constructed from stone.
Additional reading: Theatre Design & Technology, December 1991.
Additional reading: A Concise History of the Theatre, P.Hartnoll 1974.
EURIPIDES - (484 - 406 BC)
Euripides (Greek) a contemporary of Sophocles was the last great writer
of Greek tragedy. Eighteen plays survive (out of a possible
ninety-two.)
PLATO - (c 427 - c 347 BC)
Plato was a Greek philosopher and one of the most creative and
influential thinkers in Western philosophy. Born to an aristocratic
family in Athens, he eventually became a disciple of Socrates. The
Platonic School complicated the theory of light, by supposing that
vision was produced by rays of light that originate in the eye and then
strike the object being viewed.
ROMAN - LIFE & LIGHT - (400 BC - 80 AD)
From the earliest days, light became a part of religious ceremony. In
the pagan temples of the Romans, The Vestal Virgins tended the
everlasting light. Apparently, any of the virgins who broke their vow
of virginity, would be buried alive.
In 264 BC, the first year of the war, gladiatorial combats were made
part of the 'games', prisoners being allowed to hack each other to
death for the amusement of the people, instead of being executed. By
the first Century AD there were sixty days of games at various times of
the year. Three centuries later, the figure had risen to one hundred
and seventy-five days a year. By then, the games had moved from
temporary to permanent buildings and started to offer more extravagant
horrors. Crocodiles, bison, zebra, lions and tigers were imported to
fight each other or the gladiators. In 80 AD, Titus dedicated the
'Colosseum" in Rome with games lasting a hundred days, in which some
nine thousand animals were killed in 'hunting scenes'
ARISTOTLE - (384 - 322 BC)
Aristotle was a Greek philosopher and scientist. He was also a pupil of
[PLATO]. He had a different theory of light from the Pythagorean
School. Aristotle concluded that light travels in something like waves.
Regarding the relationship between color and sound (music), he wrote:
"colors may mutually relate like musical concords for their pleasantest
arrangement like those concords mutually proportionate".
'The whole terrestrial region, (wrote Aristotle in his Meteorologica)
was composed of four 'bodies': fire, air, water and earth'.
According to Aristotle, a play is 'an imitation of an action, not the
action itself".
Additional reading: "Aristotle's Works" were translated into English
and edited by Sir David Ross and S.J. Smith, 12 vols (New York &
London, 1910-1952).
COLOR AND MUSIC (SOUND) - (c 350 BC)
Many people over the years have tried to find a relationship between
the color of light and music (or sounds).
See: [ARISTOTLE, NEWTON, CASTEL, HOFFMAN, WILFRED, and COLOR ORGAN].
EUCLID - (320 - 275 BC)
Euclid, (probably Greek) a mathematician studied light and followed the
teachings of [PLATO]. He was to greatly influence the development of
the field of optics. He described the behavior of light and in his book
on optics, (in his twelve postulates), he anticipates the important ray
theory. The first postulated stated: The rays emitted by the eye,
travel in a straight line.
Euclid also gathered all the geometry of his time into a single logical
system, in his book 'Elements'. It is still the basis of geometry
taught today.
The speed of light must be very high, Euclid believed, because you can
close your eyes (thus making the things you are looking at disappear!)
and then, when you open them again, even the distant stars appear
instantly.
EARLY OPTICS & LENSES - (c 300 BC)
The earliest known lenses to the Greeks and Romans consisted of glass
spheres filled with water. These early lenses were used as 'burning
lenses'. True glass lenses were unknown at this time. It wasn't until
the end of the 13th Century that glass lenses were manufactured in
Europe.
Today, most lenses are made from special types of high quality glass
known as optical glass. This glass is generally free of internal
bubbles, and imperfections. First a glass 'blank' is cut from a block
of optical glass. Next the blank is ground into rough shape by grinding
on a cast iron plate, covered with a mixture of abrasive material and
water. Convex or concave surfaces are formed using special curved
grinding tools. The final process of manufacture is polishing, a
process accomplished on a pitch covered iron tool coated with jeweler's
rouge and water.
ARCHIMEDES - (287 - ??? BC)
Archimedes a Greek, discovered the principal of buoyancy in his
bathtub. He invented a device for lifting water (Archimedes Screw) and
he built many devices for the study of astronomy.
In 212 BC as the Roman republic invaded Syracuse in Sicily, Archimedes
is said to have built large focusing mirrors that reflected and
directed intense sunlight onto the Roman ships in the harbor, setting
them alight. (This is doubted by most historians).
PHAROS OF ALEXANDRIA (LIGHTHOUSE) - (c 280 BC)
The Pharos of Alexandria was a lighthouse more than 134 m. (440 ft.)
tall, that stood on an island at the entrance to the harbor at
Alexandria, Egypt. A fire burned at the top as a signal to ships on the
Mediterranean. The Pharos has been called "archetype of every modern
lighthouse." It lasted to about the 14th Century AD.
HERO OF ALEXANDRIA - (c 150 BC)
Hero of Alexandria, was a Greek scientist and mathematician, probably
born in Egypt. He wrote at least 13 works on subjects concerning
applied mathematics, mechanics and physics. Although [EUCLID] could
explain plane surface reflection, Hero of Alexandria is often credited
with discovering the properties of reflection of light, and putting
forward the law. {1ST REFLECTION}
The early Greeks, assumed that light traveled in straight lines.
Although the Pythagorean school assumed that every visible object emits
a steady stream of particles, [ARISTOTLE] on the other hand, concluded
that light travels in waves.
EARLY THEATRE, ROMAN - (55 BC - 200 AD)
The Romans, developed their theatres after the Greeks, however there
were a number of differences. Rome theatres were built on flat ground,
not on a hillside, and had a vast wall of surrounding masonry, often
elaborately decorated. The first stone theatre in Rome was built by
Pompey in 55 BC. Soon after, other theatres were built, each steadily
becoming more vast and ponderous. The 'Theatre at Sabratha' (North
Africa), was built about 200 AD and had a typical Roman semicircular
orchestra (seating), raised stage and elaborate three story stage
facade (frons scaenae).The Roman theatre had no real great dramatists.
Plays were read and quoted from, but not acted.
The Romans continued to use natural light as the main source of
lighting for their plays. The Romans also used torches and fire in
their presentations to indicate the time of day.
ROMAN - LIGHT AND ARCHITECTURE - (c 15 BC)
The use of natural light in buildings was the domain of the architect.
The Roman Architect Vitruvius devoted a whole chapter to natural
lighting in his text book 'De Architectura' written about 15 BC.
WORLD POPULATION - (0 BC) - 250 million people.
0 BC - BIRTH OF CHRIST
LIGHT AND THE BIBLE
There are more than 200 references to the word 'light' in the Bible.
About 75 of these occur in the new testament. The book of Job contains
the most references (over 25) and the book of Psalms has about 25
references to light. In the new testament, the Gospel of John has the
most references (about 16),
Light was the first of God's creations, according to the book of
Genesis. "And God said, let there be light, and there was light". (Old
Testament, Genesis, i,3.)
God saw that the light was good, and he separated the light from the
darkness. (Old Testament, Genesis, i,4.)
"Speak to Aaron and say to him 'When you set up the seven lamps, they
are to light the area in front of the lampstand'". (Old Testament,
Numbers 8.2.
The Bible, Numbers 4.9: "They are to take a blue cloth and cover the
lampstand that is for light together with its lamps, its wick trimmers
and trays, and all its jars for the oil used to supply it."
"to the land of deepest night, of deep shadow and disorder, where even
the light is like darkness". Job 10.22.
"What is the way to the abode of light? And where does darkness
reside?" Job 38.19.
"His snorting throws out flashes of light, his eyes are light the rays
of dawn". Job 41.18
Light was identified throughout the New Testament with the nature of
God, himself. "The word is light that the darkness cannot extinguish,
and this light illuminates every man.....We are the children of light,
who have put aside the world of darkness."
"The first creature of God in the works of the days, was the light of
the senses, the last was the light of reason". - (Francis Bacon, Essays
of Truth.
HORN LANTERN - (c 100 AD)
The horn lantern provided a portable light source. It was not only
suitable for moving about outdoors, it was also no doubt used for
moving around safely indoors. The lamps were made from the working of
horns from cattle into transparent plates and are described in detail
by Plinty the Elder (1st Century A.D.) and the lamps were clearly
referred to even earlier by Plautus (254?-184 BC).
PTOLEMY, CLAUDIUS - (c 100 - c 170 AD)
Claudius Ptolemaeus, also, Ptolemy (tol-e-mi) of Alexandria was a Greek
who lived in Egypt in the 2nd Century of the Christian era - and may
have merely recorded the ideas of others. Ptolemy developed a theory of
the planets about AD 150. Ptolemy was also able to measure the bending
of a beam of light as it passed from air into water or glass. It is
known that whatever observations Ptolemy may have made, he was not led
to the correct reflection laws, as later discovered by [SNELL] in 1621.
{1ST REFRACTION}
THEATRE IN THE MIDDLE AGES - (400)
There is little known of the Romanesque and Byzantine theatre. In the
5th Century A.D. all performers of mime were excommunicated; in the 6th
Century Justinian closed the theatres and the end of theatrical
entertainment was finally sealed with the arrival of the Barbarians in
568 A.D. For almost 1000 years, very little theatre or performance
took place.
CANDLE - (c 400)
The invention of the candle dates back to about 400 A.D., perhaps
somewhat earlier. Relatively few candles were used in the home until
about the 14th Century, however they were an important symbol of the
Christian religion. The best candles were made of beeswax and were used
chiefly in church rituals because the bee was regarded as a symbol of
purity. But because beeswax was expensive, crude tallow candles had to
be used by the common people. Tallow was smelly and smoky. The candles
dripped badly and generally gave a feeble light.
MEDIEVAL STAINED GLASS - (905)
According to legend, glass is a Phoenician discovery and, therefore,
more than 2000 years old. As recorded in literary sources, it was often
used for windows in late antiquity and early Christian times. The
German monk Theophilus Presbyter in his "Schedula diversarum artium",
of the tenth or eleventh Century, says that the stained-glass window,
was a craft long practiced in France, and the chronicle of the St. Remi
in Reims, dating from 905, says the window in the church depicted
various scenes.
The art of stained glass reached its height in the Middle Ages, between
1150 and 1250. Outstanding examples of 12th Century stained glass can
be found in the windows of such churches as Saint-Denis, in Paris, and
Canterbury, in England. Excellent examples of 13th Century works
include the windows at Chartres and the Saint-Chapelle in Paris.
See also: [EARLY GLASS].
ALHAZEN (IBN AL HAITAM) - (965 - 1039)
Abu Ali Mohamed ibn al-Hasan Ign al-Haytham (also: ibn al-Haitam) was
an Arabian scientist and scholar, also known as 'Alhazan'. He was one
of the earliest, to write and describe optical theory. He studied
light, the nature of vision, the eye, and solar and lunar eclipses.
His early experiments led to a forerunner of the [CAMERA OBSCURA] which
he used to prove that light travels in straight lines. He also studied
reflection and refraction, and published a book on optics in 1038.
Alhazan's work became an historical reference work in the evolution of
optics.
His treatise on optics was translated into Latin by Witelo (1270) and
afterwards published by F. Rismer in 1572 with the title "Opticae
Thesauris Alhazeni Libri VII cum ejusdem libro de crepusculis et nubium
ascensionibus" Other manuscripts are preserved in the Bodleian Library
at Oxford and in the Library of Leiden.
CAMERA OBSCURA - (c 1000)
The development of the modern day camera is based on the early
discovery of the camera obscura. Although it is difficult to prove the
original inventor, certainly one of the first to describe and use the
principles of the camera obscura, was [ALHAZEN], in 1038. Others
including Roger [BACON], and Giovanni [PORTA], also are credited with
the invention or development of the camera obscura. The principals of
the camera obscura were frequently used by early painters and artists,
in their studies of architecture, much like a photograph is used today.
The camera obscura at first was simply a small room, completely
darkened and light-tight. A small pinhole was made in an outside wall
and the brightly illuminated exterior scene would be projected on the
opposite wall. No lens was required. The image was inverted, or
projected up-side-down. The principal of the camera obscura evolved
into a small box, with drawing paper being used to trace the image and
by about the year 500, artists began using the device as a drawing aid.
Some versions were made with an internal mirror to reverse the image
and turn it right side up again. Over the years, the camera obscura
became smaller in size and eventually evolved into the modern day
camera.
MEDIEVAL RELIGIOUS DRAMA - (11th Century)
After the disappearance of classical drama, it is within the Church
itself, that theatre is revived in the Middle Ages in the form of the
liturgical or church drama of western Europe. The first liturgical
plays were written for performances by priests and choir boys in a
church. The alter with its crucifix was always central to the playing
area. On stage right was Heaven, on stage left was Hell. Several other
scenes, were arranged in between.
MEDIEVAL THEATRE - (12th & 13th Century)
It was during the late 12th and 13th centuries that plays began to move
out of the Church. Productions continued to become more elaborate and
complicated. They continued to demand a great number of properties and
working machinery. The raised wooden platform would conceal traps,
there were cranes by which God and his angles could descend from
Heaven, and in the Mons play of 1501 the mechanism of Hell-Mouth which
opened to belch out clouds of smoke and closed to swallow up the
damned, was so complicated that it took seventeen men to work it. The
stage carpenters thought nothing of producing floods, fires and
earthquakes. Realistic executions were called for, with bloody wounds,
severed heads and limbs. Costumes were elaborate and sometimes
splendidly embroidered.
1200
MAGNIFYING GLASS - (1200's)
- See: [BACON, ROGER]
SPECTACLES (EYEGLASSES) - (1200's)
Credit to developing spectacles generally goes to Roger [BACON]. One of
the earliest paintings to show spectacles is by the artist Jan van Eyck
and dates to 1436.
BACON, ROGER - (c 1214 - c 1294)
Bacon (place of birth unknown) was an English monk, scientist and
scholar and was also known as Doctor Mirabilis. Details of his life are
obscure however he did make a great impression on the learned minds of
his time.
Bacon is usually given credit for developing the magnifying glass. He
is also variously credited with the discovery of eyeglasses. Others
also give him credit for developing the [TELESCOPE], the [CAMERA
OBSCURA] and gunpowder. He followed the work of [ALHAZAN] and spoke of
concave and convex lenses. He also expressed interest in the natural
sciences, mathematics, perspective and astronomy.
He wrote in his 'Opus Majus': "...pictures could be projected into
space, into air where it could become visible for the multitudes."
1300
1400
LEONARDO DA VINCI - (1452 - 1519)
A scientist and artist, Leonardo did much to study the natural forces
and actions of nature. Leonardo's world reached from philosophy to
mathematics to physics, optics, botany, zoology, mechanics, hydraulics,
astronomy, and other scientific areas. He investigated the nature of
light and studied reflection, refraction and mirrors. He studied the
structure and anatomy of the human eye and compared it to the [CAMERA
OBSCURA]. Leonardo also attempted to fly, but failed. He was an
excellent painter. In fact, he was a true genius.
Born in 1452, Vinci, Leonardo lived at first just outside of the
Italian village of Vinci. In 1469, Leonardo's father took him to
Florence to continue his schooling. He outshone his fellow pupils at
every skill and in 1472, when he was 20, was accepted into the guild of
painters, allowing him to seek independent commissions for his work.
Leonardo was a master of light. As a painter, he studied; light,
reflection, shadow and color in detail. The presents and importance of
light is clearly evident in Leonardo's work. Leonardo produced a great
many sketches and paintings. He left behind, however, very few
completed works, most of which can be found today in the Louvre museum.
da Vinci is probably best know for his painting of the 'Mona Lisa',
painted between 1503-1505. He kept this painting at his side, until the
day he died, as he claimed it was unfinished. This painting is now
perhaps the most famous painting in the world.
There is evidence from his note books that Leonardo may have combined a
negative and positive lens to observe the Moon. Unfortunately he kept
his notes secret during his lifetime and they were edited much too late
to have any influence on [GALILEO] who did extensive work with the
telescope in the early 1600's.
Leonardo was also left handed and wrote his notes in mirror writing
(reversed).
Additional Reading: National Geographic, Vol. #152, Sept. 1977,
Leonardo da Vinci: A Man for All Ages, James L. Amos.
COPERNICUS, NICOLAUS - (1473 - 1543)
Copernicus, (Poland) in 1512, correctly placed the sun at the center of
the solar system. Finally, the world was free from the misconception
that all other heavenly bodies revolved around a stationary earth. He
still believed however that the planets orbited in perfect circles. It
wasn't until 1609 that Johannes [KEPLER] correctly identified the
orbits as being elliptical in nature, instead.
SERLIO, SEBASTIANO - (1475 - 1554)
Serlio (Italian), a painter then architect was the first published
theorist of the Renaissance theatre. His six chapters on how to build
stages and scenery appeared first in Paris in 1545 under the title 'Le
second livre de la perspective'. He also developed a system of 'color
filters', using candles placed behind translucent containers of color
liquid. He went on to give recipes and recommendations for the use of
specific colors. By using a brightly polished barber's basin behind a
torch or candle, he developed an elementary spotlight, with a round
bottle serving as the lens. {1st EARLY SPOTLIGHT}
MAUROLYCUS, FRANCISCUS - (1494 - 1575)
Maurolycus wrote on the subject of light in 1554 in his "Light on the
Subject of Light".
AGRICOLA, GEORGIUS - (1494 - 1555)
Agricola was a German scientist and the founder of petrology and the
science of mining (mineralogy). He studied medicine in Italy and became
town physician in the mining town of Joachimsthal. He wrote on the
subject of the color of flames when common salts were dropped into
them. He concluded that "it must be possible to obtain from the color
of a flame enlightenment concerning the materials burning therein." We
know today that is the sodium in the salt that causes yellow flames,
potassium salts, when burned produce a violet color, strontium salts
red, and barium salts, green. See also [MELVILL].
1500
VESALIUS, ANDREAS - (1514 - 1564)
Andreas Vesalius (vi-sa-le-as) was a Flemish physician born in
Brussels, Flanders. His dissections of the human body and descriptions
of his findings helped to correct misconceptions held since ancient
times and are the basis of the foundation of the modern science of
anatomy. In 1543 he published his 'Fabric of the Human Body" and
clarified many obscure details, including those of the human eye. Much
of his work is noted for its remarkable drawings of the body.
DI SOMI, LEONE - (1527 - 1592)
Leone di Somi was a stage artist and a noted physician. In 1565 in
Mantua, he wrote his 'Dialogues on Stage Affairs' giving valuable
insights into period theatre design practices of the time. Di Somi is
also credited with being the first person to discuss the advantages of
the darkened auditorium during a stage performance.
PORTA, GIOVANNI - (1533 - 1615)
Giovanni Basttista Porta - Although the invention of the [CAMERA
OBSCURA] has been attributed to a number of people, [ALHAZAN, BACON,
LEONARD0], before him), Porta often also is given credit. In 1558,
Porta published a book "Magis Naturalis" and describes the use of
convex lenses in order to improve the formation of images. In 1593
Porta wrote another book "De Refractione", which tried to explain the
theory of lenses.
GRECO, EL - (1540 - 1614)
El Greco (a pupil of Titian), became one of the most remarkable
exponents of individualism, that can be found in the history of art. El
Greco went his own way, free from any fashion or trends in painting. He
introduced into his work expressionistic ideas, in regards to both form
and color.
It is often thought that his elongated figures were attributed to
astigmatism. Others dispute this and claim that X-ray evidence shows
that the elongated paintings were applied to non distorted drawings.
BRAHE, TYCHO - (1546 - 1601)
Tycho Brahe (Danish astronomer) was an early observer of the heavens.
Night after night, for more than twenty years he studied and recorded
the position of the planets and the stars. Near the end of his life, he
hired an assistant, Johannes KEPLER, an excellent mathematician. Using
Brahe's data, Kepler formulated three laws of planetary motion. The
data accumulated by Brahe was superior to all other available
astronomical measurements, made until the invention of the telescope in
the early 17th Century (about 1600).
INGEGNIERI, ANGELO - (c 1550 - c 1613)
In 1598, Angelo Ingegnieri, a stage designer, published his views in a
work entitled "Dramatic Poetry and How to Produce Plays". He calls
lighting 'one matter of supreme theatrical importance'. The lighting of
the actors' faces was especially important. Ingegnieri was also an
advocate of the darkened auditorium, during a performance.
GALILEO, GALILEI - (1564 - 1642)
Galileo was an Italian astronomer, mathematician and physicist from
Pisa who developed the scientific method of studying natural events. He
studied light and observed the heavens with a telescope and in 1609,
discovered that Jupiter had satellites and that Venus displayed phases
like the moon. Although Galileo did not invent the telescope he did
invent modern astronomy.
He also studied motion and acceleration and defined the laws of motion
He was an outspoken advocate of Copernicus's theory that the sun forms
the center of the universe, which led to his persecution and
imprisonment by the Inquisition in 1633.
See also: [TELESCOPE].
SHAKESPEARE, WILLIAM - (1564 - 1616)
The English dramatist and poet, William Shakespeare was the author of
the most widely admired and influential body of literature by any
individual in the history of western civilization. His work comprises
36 plays, 154 sonnets, and 2 narrative poems.
Very little is know about the life of William Shakespeare. Born perhaps
in Stratford-upon-Avon, he married at eighteen and soon went to London
where he became first an actor then a playwright and a shareholder in
the Globe Theatre, where many of his plays were performed. It was
indeed fortunate that his plays were printed, as none of his
manuscripts survived.
During a play in Shakespeare's day, attendants were assigned the task
of caring for the candles. Candle wicks needed to be trimmed
constantly, to keep the flame from smoking. To keep these candles
burning brightly, these attendants were constantly crossing the stage,
even at the most tense moments of the drama, to trim the wicks.
Shakespeare wrote: "Mary, sir, she's the kitchen wench, and all grease;
and I know not what use to put her to, but to make a lamp of her and
run her by her own light. I warrant her rags, and the tallow in them
will burn a Poland winter". (Comedy of Errors iii.ii).
"Light, seeking light doth light of light beguile".
(Love's Labours Lost, i,i.)
RENAISSANCE THEATRE - (1565 - 1675)
During the Renaissance, theatre in Europe flourished. Natural light,
the torch, the oil lamp and the candle, were still the principal
sources of illumination. Gradually, theatre began to move indoors, from
the palace gardens, into the great halls of the ruling nobles.
Chandeliers with candles above the stage and the auditorium were used
for general lighting. Lighting along the front edge of the stage was
(later) provided with candles or oil 'float' lamps. Candles behind the
proscenium, were used to light the scenery.
The first permanent classic theatre was the Teatro Olimpico, which
still survives today in Vicenza, Italy. Built between 1580-1584, by the
famous Italian architect, Andrea Palladio, the auditorium was
originally open to the sky. The first theatre with a proscenium arch
and a front curtain, (as we know it today) was the Teatro Farnese,
build at Parma about 1618. During this period other major design
elements of the 18th and 19th Century theatre were developed, including
auditorium design, stage sets, wings with flats, the orchestra pit and
auditorium balconies. Renaissance Italy was the birthplace of lighting
specifically devised for stage productions.
KEPLER, JOHANNES - (1571 - 1630)
Kepler was a German astronomer and mathematician. A contemporary of
[GALILEO] he is often credited as being the true founder of modern
astronomy, and the first to explain the laws of natural planetary
motion. In 1604 Kepler compared the eye to a camera, (a darkened
chamber). In 1609 Kepler showed that the earth's orbit was elliptical.
SABBATTINI, NICOLA - (c 1574 - 1654)
Nicola Sabbattini was an architect, theatre designer and painter at the
court of Urbino, Italy. He published his famous 'Practica' or 'how-to'
on theatrical devices in two volumes (1637 and 1638). His Practica is
the first handbook on the art of scenography for the practicing theatre
technician. He describes a number of techniques relating to lighting,
illumination, scenery and special effects. He describes in detail the
need and placement of footlights and the arrangement of other lighting
around the stage and auditorium. He even shows (drawing of 1638) a
mechanical method of lowering cylindrical metal hoods around burning
candles, to cause them to dim. The publication of this text represented
a significant step in the evolution, awareness and use of light in the
theatre as an art form.
JONES, INIGO - (1576 - 1656)
Jones was England's first major architect. He was born in London on
July 15, 1573. Between 1600 and 1603 he visited Italy where he was
influenced by the architecture of the Romans and especially as adapted
by the Italian architect Andrea Palladio.
Returning to England, he began in 1605 a long association with the
English court as a theatre designer and architect. He also introduced
the classical manner of Palladian architecture, which he had studied.
Between 1605-1613 he produced a number of elaborate stage and costume
designs for the theatre. As a theatre designer, he brought the spirit
and vitality of the Italian theatre to lavish masques at the British
court. He also became a master at lighting and created many spectacular
effects for his productions.
He was also an architect of theatres, one of which still exists today,
the Banqueting House. This is considered to be Britain's oldest
theatre, built in 1622 with a massive cellar underneath, to support the
large stage and the one hundred stage hands required to work it.
Additional reading: Ian Mackintosh, Tabs, September 1973.
Additional reading: Microsoft Bookshelf 97 Encyclopedia.
ELIZABETHAN THEATRE - (1576 - 1640)
The first permanent theatre in London was built appropriately enough,
by a carpenter, James Burbage, who was also a part time actor,
obviously a man born for the theatre. One of his two sons, the younger,
Richard, was the first leading English actor, the creator of Hamlet,
Lear, Othello and Richard III, while the elder, Curthbert, acted as his
brother's manager. The building which the elder Burbage erected in 1576
was known simply as 'The Theatre'. It was an enclosed structure of
wood, which because of opposition from the Lord Mayor of London, was
built outside the city boundary.
The most famous Elizabethan theatre, is the 'Globe' built by Burbage's
sons on London's South Bank in 1599, with timber from 'The Theatre'. It
was here that most of Shakespeare's plays were produced and it was
after a performance of Henry VIII in 1612, that the theatre was
destroyed by fire. It was rebuilt the following year, and remained in
use until it was demolished in 1644. In 1640, the Puritans effectively
put an end to theatre until the end of the war in 1648.
As in Greece, there were no women on the Elizabethan stage. Boys,
specially selected for their slight, graceful build and light voices,
were apprenticed to older actor's and trained to play such parts as
Juliet, Rosalind, Viola and Portia. As in Italy, all the actors had to
be dancers and singers.
MICROSCOPE - (1590)
The microscope was invented about 1590 by Zacharias Jenssen of Holland.
This was the first compound microscope, using two lenses. The
microscope wasn't really put to serious use until in 1665, when the
English scientist, Robert [HOOK], published his 'Micrographia', the
first documentation of the microscopic world.
FURTTENBAC, JOSEPH - (1591 - 1667)
Also: (JOSEF FURTENBACH) a German architect, in 1628 described a stage
sloping toward the audience. In front was an orchestra pit with a wall
masking the musicians from the audience. He also developed a mechanical
method of blacking out candles by remote control and a type of
reflector for the candle, using mica. He gives very detailed
descriptions of lighting instruments.
SNELL, WILLEBROD, VON ROIJEN - (1591 - 1626)
Willebrod Snell (commonly known as Snellius) was a Dutch mathematician
and physicist. He is known for his discovery of the simple relationship
between the angle of incidence and the angle of refraction for a ray of
light crossing from one medium to another. Although he never published
his discovery, (Snell's Law), he merely lectured on it. His discovery
(1621) of the law of refraction was of significance for the study of
the nature of light. Now crude optical instruments, already in use
(i.e. [TELESCOPE]), could now be further explained.
DE LA TOUR, GEORGES - (1593 - 1652)
Georges de la Tour (French) was a painter of Louis XIV's time. Many of
his (later) works show a masterful, almost obsessive use of artificial
light. He was born in Vic-Sur Sille in 1593 and died in Lun‚ville in
1652.
DESCARTES, RENE - (1596-1650)
Rene Descartes (da-kart) was a French philosopher, scientist and
mathematician. In 1637 he published his "Les Meteores" in which there
is an admirable explanation of the [RAINBOW], showing how both primary
and secondary colors are formed. Descartes study of optics led him to
the independent discovery of the fundamental law of reflection, that
the angle of incidence is equal to the angle of reflection. His essay
on optics was the first published statement of this law.
VELAZQUEZ, DIEGO RODRIGUEZ DE SILVA Y - (1599 - 1160)
Velazquez was a Spanish painter with an extraordinary technique and
mastery of light. He painted still lifes, portraits, and historical
scenes, such as 'The Surrender of Breda' (1635).
1600
AVERAGE LIFE EXPECTANCY - 33 YEARS in 1600
TELESCOPE - (c 1600)
Hans Lippershey was a Dutch lens grinder and maker of spectacles. He is
usually credited with the invention of the first telescope about 1600
and he applied for a patent in 1608. About a year later, various lens
grinders of northern Europe, were making telescopes. Records show that
the telescope was further developed by [GALILEO] and by others. [BACON]
(in the 1200's) is also sometimes given credit for discovering the
first telescope.
KIRCHER, ATHANASIUS - (1601 - 1680)
Kircher was a professor of mathematics in Rome, about 1650. Kircher is
often given credit for the invention of the [LATERNA MAGICA], the
earliest form of projection device (about 1645). [HUYGENS] and
[WALGENSTEIN] are also given credit). Kircher published a number of
books, and also described the [CAMERA OBSCURA], lenses and optics.
Kircher was also one of the first to experiment with moving images. He
was also one of the first to try and correlate and relate light to
sound.
REMBRANDT VAN RIJN - (1606 - 1699)
The art of oil painting originated in Holland. Rembrandt Harmenszoon
van Rijn was born in Leyden, in the province of Holland, on July 15,
1606. Rembrandt was to become the supreme dramatist of light. He saw
man isolated in nature and he revealed man in nuances of light and
dark. Rembrandt remains unrivaled in his understanding of the complex
world of feelings and emotions. Although the source of light is seldom
seen in his paintings, his figures often 'radiate' light as if they
were the source of light itself.
Many of his works show very dramatic lighting. A perfect example is
'The Woman Taken in Adultery' which shows great contrast and dramatic
side lighting.
GRIMALDI, FRANCESCO - (1618 - 1663)
Grimaldi, in Italy, discovered optical diffraction and observed its
periodic nature. {1ST DEFRACTION}
BOYLE, ROBERT - (1627 - 1691)
Robert Boyle, physicist and chemist, is often referred to as the father
of modern chemistry. He invented the vacuum pump and used it in the
discovery of what is known as Boyle's law. Boyle was also a pioneer
in the laboratory study of the field of [BIOLUMINESCENCE]. In 1667, he
showed that the light of luminous bacteria and fungi goes out if the
organisms are deprived of oxygen.
HUYGENS, CHRISTIAN - (1629 - 1695)
Huygens (hoi'gens) was a Dutch scientist, who thought that light
consisted of waves, not particles, as did [NEWTON]. Both theories had
strong arguments in their favor.
His wave theory suggested that light results from the molecular
vibration in the luminous material. Further, that vibrations were
transmitted through an 'ether' as wavelike movements (like ripples in
water). Huygens concluded that the result of these transmissions acted
on the retina, stimulating the optic nerves to production vision.
His numerous, original discoveries won him wide recognition and honors
among the scientists of the 17th Century. He discovered a new method of
grinding lenses, and using the sharper definitions obtained, he
discovered a satellite of Saturn and was able to provide the first
accurate description of the rings of Saturn.
In 1678 Huygens discovered the polarization of light by double
refraction in calcite. Huygens is often also given credit for the
development of the projector [LATERNA MAGICA].
HOOKE, ROBERT - (1635 - 1703)
Hooke was an English physicist who discovered the law of elasticity,
known as Hook's Law. He also did research in a remarkable variety of
fields. Hooke was educated at the University of Oxford and later went
on to assist the English physicist Robert Boyle in the construction of
the air pump. In 1662 he was appointed the curator of experiments of
the Royal Society and served in this position until his death. After
the great fire of London in 1666 he was appointed surveyor of London
and was responsible for designing many new buildings. Hooke was also a
pioneer in microscopic research and published his observations, which
included the discovery of plant cells.
RAINBOW - (1637) See: [DESCARTES, RENE] and [NEWTON].
PURITANS - (1640)
In 1640, the Puritans effectively put an end to theatre in Britain,
until the end of the war in 1648.
NEWTON, SIR ISAAC - (1642 - 1727)
Sir Isaac Newton was an English scientist and mathematician who greatly
contributed to many fields of science including; motion, gravity and
optics. He was first to formulate the corpuscular theory of light.
Newton said that luminous bodies radiate energy in particles or
corpuscles, and that these particles are ejected in straight lines. The
particles then act on the retina of the eye in a manner to stimulate
the optic nerve and produce the sensation of vision in the brain.
Newton was born the same year that [GALILEO] died.
In 1666 Newton at the age of 23, performed his famous prism experiment.
He noticed and recorded that sunlight is white light that contains all
the colors of the spectrum. In 1704 he published the first edition of
his famous book 'Opticks'. Newton correctly identified the principals
of refraction associated with his experiment in that light is bent as
it travels from one medium to another at a slight angle, dependent on
its wavelength. He didn't know that he was repeating what [LEONARDO DA
VINCI] had noted down, in mirror writing, approximately 200 years
earlier.
Newton, like others before him also tried to discover a link between
light and color and between light and sound. Newton divided the visual
spectrum into seven colors. He considered that these divisions
corresponded to the diatonic scale. He wrote: " Considering the
lastingness of emotions in the bottom of the eye by light, are they not
of a vibratory nature? Do not the most refrangible rays excite the
shortest vibrations - the least refrangible the largest? May not the
harmony and discord of colors arise from the proportions of the
vibrations propagated through the fibers of the optic nerve into the
brain, as the harmony and discord of sounds arise from the proportions
of the vibrations of the air?" The answer to Newton's question today,
would be no! His color scale was as follows:
- Red - C
- Orange - D
- Green - F
- Blue - G
- Indigo - A
- Violet - B
"Nature and Nature's laws lay hid in Night:
God said, Let Newton be, and all was Light"
(Alexander Pope, 18th Century)
ROEMER, OLAF - (1644 - 1710)
(Also: Olaus and Ole) - The speed of light was roughly calculated in
1675 by the Danish astronomer Olaf Roemer. He used the moons of
Jupiter, discovered several years earlier by Galileo to assist in his
calculations. His calculations led to an estimate of 132,000 miles per
second. Roemer's submitted his work to the French Academy of Science in
1675. He was ridiculed and his work was largely forgotten. Fifteen
years after his death the British astronomer James Bradely started out
from the same observations that R”emer had made and his thinking
ultimately led to a conclusive figure for the speed of light (186,000
miles per second). See also: [SPEED OF LIGHT].
LATERNA MAGICA - (c 1645)
The Laterna Magica (magic lantern) was the first early projection
device and a forerunner of the modern slide and motion picture
projectors.
[KIRCHER], (in about 1645) is usually given credit for the invention of
the Laterna Magica. Although it is very difficult to prove the original
inventor, [HUYGENS] and [WALGENSTEIN] are also given credit for
invention of the Laterna Magica.
In his book, German historian, Helmuth Wolff wrote: "It is possible to
prove the use of the Laterna Magica at the beginning of the 18th
Century, that is for the years 1726-27, at the Opera in Hamburg. The
designer and architect Thomas Lediard describes these projections very
precisely, eliminating any doubts".
WALGENSTEIN, THOMAS - (1650)
Walgenstein (Danish), demonstrated an early projection device [LATERNA
MAGICA] throughout Europe and worked with an early projector in Rome in
1650.
RESTORATION THEATRE - (a 1660)
During the interval of Puritan rule in Britain, all of the formerly
supported stage productions were suspended (1640). The main source of
light in Restoration theatre was usually chandeliers concentrated
toward the front of the house, especially over the forestage. The
chandeliers were somewhat of a nuisance however, as they had to do for
indoor and outdoor scenes alike. Furthermore, they dripped hot grease
on both audience and actors.
The candle snuffer was a characteristic figure of these times.
Candlewicks needed frequent trimming, regardless of what was taking
place on the stage.
GREAT PLAGUE SWEPT ENGLAND - (1664 - 1665).
COLORS OF THE SPECTRUM - (1666)
Color is an electromagnetic wave phenomenon. It is a sensation produced
when light stimulates the retina of the eye, and the brain interprets
this sensation as 'color'.
Early scientists always considered the primary colors to be relatively
large areas of the spectrum: red, orange, yellow, green, blue and
violet. However in 1666, [NEWTON], named a 7th color located between
blue and violet, as indigo. Aubert in 1865 estimated that the solar
spectrum contained approximately 1,000 distinguishable hues. Root in
1881 found 2 million tints and shades can be distinguished.
See also: [COLORS, PRIMARY].
DISCOVERY OF PHOSPHORUS - (1669)
Phosphorus - from phos-phoros, or 'light bearer'. Hennig Brand (German)
discovered the strange new element phosphorus in 1669. A painting by
the Englishman Joseph Wright in 1771 shows Hennig on his knees praying,
while his dark laboratory is illuminated by the eerie glow of
phosphorus, contained in a glass vessel. He obtained the material from
human urine.
FIRST - USE OF WING LIGHTS - (1670)
There is reference to candles having been fixed behind the shutters
(sliding flat wings), as early as 1670, at the Hall Theatre.
FIRST - USE OF FOOTLIGHTS - (1673)
One of the first recorded use of footlight can be seen in the French
painting 'Les delices du genre humain', 1670. The painting of the
Comedie Francais in Paris shows a row of small protruding flames along
the downstage edge of the stage. Four chandeliers with candles are also
shown, hanging above the stage.
Another of the first recorded uses of footlights in the English theatre
(also with chandeliers above the stage) can be seen from the drawing
(front piece) to Francis Kirkman's 'The Wits', published in 1673. ('The
Wits' or 'Sport upon Sport', was a collection of short comedies acted
in private halls during the Puritan ban of the theatres between 1642
and 1660.) The footlights are candles (or possibly, oil lamps). Oil
lamps usually had two or more wicks in individual containers, and their
use certainly predates this print.
POLARIZATION/POLARIZED LIGHT - (1678)
In 1678 [HUYGENS] discovered the polarization of light by double
refraction in calcite. Polarized light is a special type of light. It
occurs in nature and can also be manmade. Ordinary light consists of a
mixture of waves vibrating in all directions perpendicular to its line
of propagation (or travel). Polarized light consists of the electric or
magnetic waves all confined to one plane. Polarized light can be
obtained by reflection (depend on the angle of incidence) and it can
also be obtained by double refraction in certain crystals, such as
calcite. See also: [POLAROID FILTER] and [ETIENNE, LOUIS MALUS]
CASTEL, PADRE - (1688 - 1757)
Over the centuries, many efforts have been made to compare color to
sound and to link the two media into a single systematic language. The
French Jesuit, Louis Bertrand Castel claimed that he was inspired by
Kircher, and was the first to create an actual [COLOR ORGAN]. Castel
called his device 'Clavessin Oculaire'. The device consisted of a
remodeled harpsichord with a keyboard. Padre gave his first recital in
Paris on December 21, 1734.
Additional Reading: The Art of Light & Color, Tom Jones, 1972.
1700
FRANKLIN, BENJAMIN - (1706 - 1790)
Franklin was an American painter, author, diplomat, philosopher, and
scientist. He was born in Boston on January 17, 1706, and at the age of
13 was apprenticed to his brother James, who had recently returned from
England with a new printing press. In 1723 he left Boston and moved to
Philadelphia, to continue work as a printer. In 1724 he traveled to
London (at age 18) and obtained employment from two of the leading
printing houses in London. In 1726, Franklin returned to London to
resume his trade as a printer.
Always interested in scientific studies, he invented the Franklin
stove, and then later in 1747, he began to experiment with electricity.
He supported the hypothesis that [LIGHTNING] was an electrical
phenomenon, and proposed an effective method of demonstrating this
fact. His plan was published in London and carried out in England and
France before he himself performed his celebrated experiment with the
kite in 1752. He invented the lightning rod and offered an explanation
of positive and negative electricity.
In 1784, Franklin also invented bifocals. He was also a critic of the
corpuscular theory of light. His research into the nature of
electricity helped pave the way for its practical use and resulted in
the development of the lightning rod.
GARRICK, DAVID - (1717 - 1779)
David Garrick was the leading figure of the English stage from 1741 to
1776. He was responsible for many innovations in the theatre.
Perhaps the most significant lighting of the eighteen Century was
practiced at the Drury Lane Theatre under the management of David
Garrick. On his return from the Continent in 1765, Garrick began to
institute his so-called reforms at the theatre. While in Paris he was
particularly impressed with the lighting and staging techniques at the
Paris Opera that he decided to import many of the French stage
techniques and lighting equipment, to Britain.
Further Garrick removed the traditional chandeliers, and lighting
shifted to sources located behind the proscenium and across the apron.
We know in Britain that the sidelight unit had been in use for some
years and that the footlight unit had been in use since 1673. Garrick
put footlights into the Drury Lane Theatre in 1765 and masked them from
the audience with metal screens which also served a reflectors. The
notion that Garrick brought the footlight from France is clearly false.
PHOTOGRAPHY, EARLY - (1727)
It had been know for centuries that salts containing silver, when
exposed to light would darken. This was discovered by Johann Heinrich
Schultz in 1727 and probably by others, earlier. Using Schultz's
research, in 1802, Thomas Wedgewood and chemist Humphry Davy studied a
method of reproducing drawings on materials that had been treated with
silver chloride or silver nitrate. They created the first photogram.
The images were 'burned' directly onto a sensitized plate by intense
light. The images were not very permanent however. See also: [DAVY].
In 1819, Sir John Herschel discovered that the images could be
permanently 'fixed' if they were treated with certain chemicals
containing sulfur (hyposulfides). In 1839 Sir John Herschel coined the
word 'photography'.
See also: [PHOTOGRAPHY, MODERN]
WATT, JAMES - (1736 -1818)
The term horsepower was first used by James Watt, a Scottish inventor
and engineer, known for his improvements to the steam engine.
Roughly expressed, a horsepower is defined as 550 foot-pounds of work
per second, or 33,000 foot-pounds of work per minute. The metric unit
of power is the watt, and even though the term nowadays describes
electrical power only it could just as well be used in the automotive
field. One horsepower equals 745.7 watts. If an engine lifts a 550
pound object to height of two feet in one second, it delivers two
horsepower.
DE LOUTHERBOURGH, PHILIPPE - (1740 - 1812)
De Loutherbourgh, artist and designer received his early training in
Paris. In 1771 he was engaged by [GARRICK], the English actor and
producer, to design at the Drury Lane Theatre. He often would combine
two and three dimensional scenic elements and he also conceived many of
his designs in terms of light.
De Loutherbourgh eventually left the theatre to devote his time to an
idea known at the time as the 'Eidophusicon'. The Eidophusicon
consisted of a miniature theatre constructed to conduct a performance
of nothing but scenic effects using light, space, color, movement and
sound.
HOFFMANN, JOHANN LEONARD - (1740 - 1814)
Hoffmann, a painter as well as a writer, produced an essay in 1786
where he sought to establish relationships between 'painterly harmony'
and 'color harmony'. He also tried to relate color to sound. Hoffman's
system was highly theoretical and was based on the concept of
polarities or opposites. Hoffman's system was highly subjective and was
based on arbitrary personal choices.
GOETHE, JOHANN WOLFGANG VON - (1749 - 1832)
Goethe was a German dramatist, philosopher, poet and pioneer of
colorimetry and physiological optics. He was also one of the principal
stage directors of the 19th Century. He published a book on color, in
1810. This remarkable book, was exacting in its structure, methods of
analysis and the manner of presenting conclusions. In his book "Theory
of Color" he recommended the use of complementary colors in to order to
help separate costumes from the scenery.
It is in a production of Goethe's Faust, where the use of projection in
the theatre - for expressive purposes, is documented for the first
time.
"More Light" .... Goethe, on his deathbed.
"Lamps make spots, and candles need snuffing, it is only the light of
heaven that shines pure and leaves no stain". - (Goethe, Spruche in
Prosa).
Additional reading: Towards a Theatre of Light, E.M. Feher, c 1975.
Additional reading: Microsoft Encarta 97 Encyclopedia
MELVILL, THOMAS - (1752)
Melvill (Scottish), was on of the first to make a scientific study of
the color of flames, burning various salts. Melvill, like [AGRICOLA]
before him, was unable to provide answers to many questions. See also:
[SPECTROSCOPE].
MURDOCK, WILLIAM - (1754 - 1839)
William Murdock, a Scotsman is generally regarded as the father of gas
lighting. In 1792 he heated coal to produce gas and used it to light
his home and office in Cornwall, England.
ARGAND LAMP / AMI ARGAND - (1755 - 1803)
In 1783/4, Ami Argand a Swiss chemist developed the principal of using
an oil lamp with a hollow circular wick surrounded by a glass chimney.
The wick and chimney improved the combustion of the oil and resulted in
a brighter light with less smoke. This was the first real advancement
in lamp technology, in thousands of years. The Argand lamp required
much more fuel than did conventional oil lamps, limiting their use to
the rich, and to public places. The Argand lamp was perfected by
Quinquet in 1785.
LIGHTING OF CANDLES - (1761)
In 1761, at the coronation of George III, groups of 3000 candles were
connected together with threads of gun cotton, and lit in half a
minute. Those clustered below were showered with hot wax and burning
thread. See also: [CANDLES].
ADDITIVE COLOR MIXING - (1769)
In 1769, Guyot (French) discovered the additive method of color mixing,
by experimenting with transparent colored papers.
YOUNG, THOMAS - (1773 - 1829)
Thomas Young (born in England) was a London physician, linguist, and
expert in many fields of science. He read fluently at the age of two
(2) At an age of fourteen (14) he was familiar with Latin, Greek,
Hebrew, Arabic, Persian, French, and Italian. Young strongly supported
the [HUYGENS] wave theory of light, mainly by virtue of his now famous
double slit experiment (1801) demonstrating the interference of light
waves. He was also the first to describe and measure astigmatism
(1801).
While in medical school, he made original studies of the eye and later
developed what is now known as the three-color theory of vision. He
also did research in physiology. Young also turned to optics and showed
that many of [NEWTON's] experiments with light could be explained in
terms of a simple wave theory of light. This conclusion was strongly
attacked by some scientists in England who defended Newton.
COLORS, PRIMARY, (OF LIGHT) - (1775)
Even before [NEWTON's] famous prism experiment in 1666, man has long
pondered the nature of color. After Newton, it was discovered that
sunlight actually contains a continuous spectrum of colors, not just
the seven distinct colors that Newton identified. Modern scientists
however have recognized only three primary colors as follows:
Mayer (1775): - red, yellow and blue.
Thomas Young (1801): - red, green and violet
Clerk Maxwell (1860): - red, green and blue
Today we consider red, green and blue to be the three primary colors in
light. These are the three colors from which all other colors may be
'mixed'. White light is a mixture of equal parts of all three primary
colors. Secondary colors in light are formed when any two primary
colors are mixed together. The secondary colors are as follows:
- red and blue = magenta
- red and green = yellow
- blue and green = cyan
Complementary colors are any two colors when mixed together provide
'white light" Examples of complementary colors are as follows:
- magenta and green = white
- yellow and blue = white
- cyan and red = white
The color sensation of 'black' is produced by the absence of light.
TURNER, JOSEPH MALLORD WILLIAM - (London, 1775 - 1851)
Turner was an English landscape painter, renowned for his vibrant and
dramatic treatment of natural light and atmospheric effects. He viewed
the world through the medium of light and sought to explain light and
its action upon the physical nature of things by his own theoretical
ideas. Turner became one of the first to give art a new intellectual
basis whose only goal was objective expression of the subjective
experience.
ETIENNE, LOUIS MALUS - (1775 - 1812)
Louis Etienne was a French physicist who discovered that light when
reflected becomes partially plane polarized, i.e. its rays vibrate in
the same plane. He published a paper in 1809 on his discovery, and a
memoir in 1810 on the theory of double refraction of light in crystals.
See also: [POLARIZATION] and [POLAROID].
DAVY, SIR HUMPHRY - (1778-1829)
Davy was a renowned British chemist, best known for his experiments in
electrochemistry and for his invention of a minor's safety lamp. Davy
was born on December 17, 1778, in Cornwall, England. He experimented
with the properties of gases during which he discovered the anesthetic
effects of nitrous oxide. (laughing gas). Davy was appointed assistant
lecturer in chemistry at the newly founded Royal Institution in London
in 1801 and the following year became professor of chemistry there.
Davy is also given credit for inventing the electric arc. The electric
arc revolutionized lighting at the time, as now there was a powerful
'clean' source of light available as an alternative to oil or gas. The
high (relative) light output made the electric arc lamp particularly
suited to both theatre and street lighting applications. See also:
[ELECTRIC ARC].
FRESNEL, AUGUSTIN JEAN - (1788 - 1827)
Fresnel (pronounced (Fr'nel) was an engineer of bridges and roads for
the French government. In his spare time (as a physicist) he carried
out extensive experimental and theoretical work in optics. Fresnel
developed a comprehensive wave model of light that successfully
accounted for; reflection, refraction, interference, and polarization.
He also designed a lens system for lighthouses that is still in use
today. The fresnel lens is also used in the modern 'fresnel spotlight',
a common fixture with an adjustable beam spread, used for stage and
television lighting applications.
See also: [FRESNEL SPOTLIGHT].
DAGUERRE, LOUIS JACQUES MANDE - (1789 - 1851)
Daguerre was a French scene painter known for his illusionistic stage
sets. He was also the inventor (with C.M. Bouton), of the diorama. The
diorama was a three dimensional setting usually melded with two
dimensional painted backgrounds and realistic lighting effects. Today
dioramas are commonly used by museums for display or exhibit
applications.
Daguerre, working, with J. Nicephore Niepce, developed the
daguerreotype, a photograph formed on a copper plate coated with silver
and treated with iodine vapor. This was the first practical photograph.
BETTY LAMP (& BETSY LAMP) - (1790)
The simple oil lamp, consisting of an open (then later enclosed) saucer
or pan filled with animal or vegetable fat and some form of porous
wick, remained virtually unchanged for several millennia.
Early American lamps, (originating from Europe) included tin and iron
versions of this simple oil lamp. An improved oil lamp, using an
integral wick support caused the drip to run back into the reservoir
and made it a 'better lamp'. This improved lamp became known to the
American colonists as the 'betty lamp' and the 'betsy lamp'. It was
simply a metal variation, of the early Greek and Roman oil reservoir
lamp, once made from pottery.
As defined by Charles L. Woodside in "Early American Lamps", they
usually were of an 'open' type, although some of the later betty lamps
were covered but not spill proof. The lamps of this period burned any
grease or oil available and were apt to be smelly, messy, and demanding
of constant attention". Examples of the betsy lamp date from about
1790.
Additional Reading: Lighting in America, Lawrence Cook, 1977.
FIRST - GAS LIGHTING - (1792)
- See: [MURDOCK, WILLIAM]
1800
19TH CENTURY STAGE LIGHTING - (1800's)
At the beginning of the 19th Century stages were illuminated by
[ARGAND] oil burners. They were provided as footlights, stage side
lights and by overhead chandeliers. For stage use, the glass chimney
was often made from colored glass. During the Century, [GAS LIGHTING]
developed and flourished. Other sources such as the [ELECTRIC ARC] lamp
and the [LIME LIGHT] were also developed and put to use on stage.
However, up until this point in time, all lighting devices had one
major drawback - they all were flame sources. They had to burn right
side up, be supplied with air, protected from objects that might catch
fire, and be protected from drafts. Also, they were difficult to start,
and they were a source of pollution.
Additional Reading: Legge, Tabs September 1968.
INFRARED - (c 1800)
About 1800, an astronomer, William Herschel discovered that the
spectrum of the sun contains more than invisible colors. Using a prism
to split the sun into a spectrum, he experimented with a thermometer,
and measured the temperature of each color. He found that the highest
temperature reading came from the region beyond the red, where no color
could be seen. Herschel had discovered that infrared energy is a form
of invisible light.
Energy, with a greater wavelength than 0.0008 millimeters fall in the
range of the infrared range. We experience these rays as heat. The
longer such heat rays are, the more insensitive to them, our eyes
become.
ULTRAVIOLET LIGHT (UV) - (1801)
The 'dark portion' of the solar spectrum (adjacent to violet light) was
discovered in 1801 by the German physicist Johann Wilhelm Ritter and
was named 'ultraviolet' radiation.
Today we classify UV radiation as follows:
UV-A (320-400 nanometers) - which is adjacent to visible light, is
often referred to as near-UV or black light. This band is the least
energetic UV radiation.
UV-B (290-320 nanometers) - lies in the middle spectrum. It is commonly
known as erythemal UV and is the band that converts ergosterol in the
skin to vitamin D.
UV-C (160-290 nanometers) - is the shortest UV wavelengths, and
because of its effectiveness of killing one cell organisms, is called
germicidal UV. The shorter wavelengths produce ozone in air (oxygen).
See also: [SUNLIGHT AND CANCER] - (a 1990)
WINDSOR, FREDERICK ALBERT - (1804)
In 1804 Frederick Albert Windsor, a German entrepreneur, demonstrated
and lectured on gas light at the Lyceum Theatre in London. His main
interest in gas was for street lighting. Windsor acquired a house in
Pall Mall, London and on June 4th, 1807, the King's birthday, he
exhibited lights and a gas-lit transparency along the walls. In
1809-10, Windsor established the first public gas company, The Gas
Light and Coke Company, which remained in existence until the company
was nationalized in 1948.
ELECTRIC ARC LIGHT/ CARBON ARC LIGHT - (1809)
In 1809, SIR HUMPHREY DAVY first demonstrated the electric carbon arc
at the Royal Institution in London. The electric arc was also used for
lighting at the Paris Opera. At that time and until about 1860, the
only source of electrical power came from batteries. After the electric
generator developed sufficiently, there was a surge of activity from
1878 onwards. (B.S.M.)
Electric arc lamps were introduced outside the Paris Opera in 1877.
These were [JABLOCHKOFF] candles in which two parallel sticks of carbon
where separated by an insulator which was melted slowly away by the
arch thus self-feeding the two carbons.
By 1884 there were 90,000 electric arc lamps burning by night in the
USA, where development was on a greater scale than elsewhere.
The principal of the electric arc is still used today by many older
followspots and film projectors, used in entertainment facilities
around the world. Modern followspots and projectors now tend to rely on
a High Intensity Discharge, (Xenon, CSI, HTI, etc.) lamps, instead.
See also: [FIRST - FOLLOWSPOT]
BUNSEN, ROBERT WILHELM - (1811 - 1899)
In 1855, Bunsen (German chemist) was given credit for inventing the
Bunsen Burner. The burner is a short, vertical tube of metal connected
to a gas source and perforated at the bottom to admit air. The flow of
air is controlled by an adjustable collar on the tube. He also was a
co-inventor of the [SPECTROSCOPE] along with the German physicist
Gustav Robert Kirchhoff.
Contrary to popular belief, he had little to do with the invention of
the Bunsen burner, a burner used in scientific laboratories. Although
Bunsen popularized the device, credit for its design should go to the
British chemist and physics Michael [FARADAY]. Among Bunsen's
inventions are the ice calorimeter, a filter pump, and the zinc-carbon
electric cell. He used the cell to produce an [ELECTRIC ARC] light and
invented the photometer to measure its luminosity.
ANGSTROM, ANDRES JONS - (1814 - 1874)
(Also: ANGSTROM) - Angstrom was a Swiss (Swedish?) physicist known for
his study of light. He studied spectrum analysis and mapped the sun's
spectrum. He discovered hydrogen in the solar atmosphere and was the
first to examine the spectrum of the [AURORA BOREALIS]. The unit of
wavelength, the angstrom, was named after him.
GAS LIGHTING - ENGLAND - (1814)
The first general use of gas street lighting took place in London in
1814. By 1823 nearly 40,000 lamps had been installed in 215 miles of
London streets.
It was the introduction of gas lighting to the theatre that began the
first real advance in theatre lighting. Gas was manageable and
controllable. Centralized remote control systems were developed,
usually in wings, backstage. The 'gas plate' contained control valves
between the main gas supply and each gas lighting 'circuit', and
allowed the footlights, wing lights, etc. to be dimmed, brightened or
extinguished at will.
By 1817, Covent Garden, Drury Lane and the Lyceum were all lit by gas.
The last London theatre to adapt to gas was the Haymarket, where
candles and oil lamps were used until April 1843.
GAS LIGHTING - AMERICA - (1816)
Gas lighting was introduced to the American theatre in 1816 at the
Chestnut Street Theater in Philadelphia. In 1926 the Bowery Theater was
the first in New York, to be lighted by gas. The theatre burned nine
times before it was demolished in 1930. There was no gas lighting in
Chicago theatres, prior to 1850, when the first municipal gas works
were constructed.
As municipal gas companies did not exist throughout the country, each
theatre had to manufacture their own supply of gas. Although gas had
many advantages over oil lamps and candles, it is said that several
hundred theatres burned down in Europe and America from the use of gas
lighting.
By 1817, the development of gas production, storage and metering was
virtually complete. By 1860, gas jets were lighted with electric
sparks and most fixtures had glass chimneys.
Additional Reading: Theatre Design & Technology, May 1969. (& photos)
HELMHOLTZ, HERMAN - (1821 - 1894)
Helmholtz, (helm'holts) Germany, was a pioneer of physiological optics
and acoustics and he made fundamental contributions to the physiology
of the senses of sight and hearing. He also studied electricity,
magnetism and higher mathematics.
Additional Reading: Microsoft Encarta 1997 Encyclopedia
CON EDISON - (1823)
Con Edison, which traces the corporate lineage of its electric company
back to Edison, has been part of New York City since 1823, when its
founding corporate ancestor, the New York Gas Light Company, was
chartered. Con Edison, as we know it today, is the result of the
acquisitions, dissolutions, and mergers of more than 170 individual
companies. By far, the most historically significant of those companies
was the Edison Electric Illuminating Company of New York, formed by
Thomas [EDISON] in 1880.
PHOTOGRAPHY, MODERN - (1826)
After the early work of Schultz, Wedgewood, Davy and Herschel, it was
Joseph Niepce who made the next major advancement in the field of
photography.
In 1826, Joseph Nicephore Niepce, a French lithographer used a small
camera obscura to capture an eight hour exposure on a sensitized sheet
of pewter. Although the results would have been quite crude, Niepce had
brought together the concept of the camera obscura with the ability to
form an image through a chemical reaction triggered by light.
In 1829 Niepce began to work with Louis Daguerre, a Parisian painter
and scenic designer for the Paris stage. Niepce died in 1833. Daguerre
eventually succeeded in developing the first practical photograph - the
daguerreotype in 1839. A lens was added to the camera obscura about
this time resulting in sharper images using less light. The
Daguerreotype Camera soon followed. See also: [DAGUERRE].
In 1840 William Henry Fox Talbot developed a paper 'film', treated with
silver chloride crystals. When exposed and chemically treated, the
paper would produce a negative image. This negative image could be
pressed against a similarly treated paper and exposed to sunlight to
make a positive print. Any number of prints could be made from a single
negative. Until this time, the image was formed completely in the
camera.
In 1847, Claude Niepce (a cousin of Joseph Niepce) invented the
photographic glass plate. The light sensitive emulsion was applied
directly to the glass plate, yielding a negative far superior in image
quality, to that of previous methods.
In 1881 the halftone printing process was developed making possible the
reproduction of photographs in magazines and books.
In 1884 Eastman produced a celluloid film that both produced high
quality images and could be rolled into a compact spool. After
development, the negative image could be printed directly on to
sensitized paper. See also: [EASTMAN].
Eastman coined the word 'Kodak' and in 1888 started to market a compact
hand held box camera, using his new film.
In 1861 James Clerk Maxwell demonstrated the first color photographs.
He exposed the same plate three times through filters of red, green and
blue. See also: [MAXWELL].
See also: [PHOTOGRAPHY, EARLY]
DRUMMOND, THOMAS - LIMELIGHT - (1826)
The limelight was invented an Englishman, Thomas Drummond, about 1826.
He discovered that a piece of lime glowed brilliantly when heated by an
oxygen and hydrogen flame. When placed at the focus of a parabolic
reflector, it allowed him to signal from Antrim to Ben Lomond Scotland,
a distance of 95 miles. Details were first published in his '
Philosphical Transactions' in 1826, in which he described how he ad
achieved a light 83 times brighter than the brightest flame from an
Argand burner.
It wasn't until about 1856 that the first theatrical use seems to be
made at the Princesses Theatre, London, where a lens was placed in
front of a limelight to give a spotlight. By 1860 limelight was in
common use, and was useful for the provision of sunlight moonlight, or
for use as a followspot. In its popular form, for magic lanterns and
for stage lighting, coal gas was substituted for hydrogen. The
limelight had an exceptionally long run in the theatre and was still in
regular use in London theatres until about 1910.
FRICTION MATCH - (1827)
The friction match was invented in England in 1827, by a druggist, John
Walker, and were known as 'lucifers'. Until that time, all lamps and
candles had to be lighted from either another flame or from fire struck
with flint and steel. Now man had the additional freedom to produce
fire, anywhere, on demand.
MAXWELL, JAMES CLERK - (1831 - 1879)
Maxwell was a Scottish physicist born in Edinburgh. Like Newton before
him, Maxwell made contributions of fundamental importance to many
branches of physics. In 1873 he found that magnetism and electricity
were related and he formed a single unified theory of electromagnetism
Maxwell realized that light was electromagnetic radiation and as such
must consist of a wave with two components, an electric field and a
magnetic field that vibrate at right angles to each other. Maxwell also
developed a quantitative theory of color vision - and even produced one
of the first (if not the first) color photographs.
FARADAY MICHAEL - (1832)
In 1832, Michael Faraday (England) announced that he had converted
magnetism into electricity. He had sent a current through a coil of
wires, creating a magnetic field which induced a momentary current in a
second coil. In America Joseph Henry affirmed that he had done much the
same thing at about one year earlier. The discovery of electromagnetic
induction led to the development of electric motors, generators and
dynamos.
LANGLEY, SAMUEL PIERPONT - (1834 - 1906)
An instrument with which heat rays can be measured with the utmost
precision in the bolometer, so named because in Greek 'bole' is
equivalent to 'ray'. Bolometers have been known for a comparatively
long time. The first instrument of the kind was a 'resistance' bridge
invented by the American Samuel Pierpont Langley (1834-1906), consisted
of four fine, blackened iron wires. They formed the branches of a very
sensitive measuring instrument that operates on the zero principle.
When no current is flowing through the instrument, the needle of a
galvanometer connected to it shows no deflection. In Langley's bridge,
two of the wires were connected to a small battery, and the other two
to the terminals of a sensitive galvanometer. When a beam of light was
directed at one of the wires through a narrow slit, the wire was
heated. This altered the electrical resistance and the electrical
equilibrium on the bridge was thereby upset, so that a current was set
up in one arm of the bridge and deflected the needle of the
galvanometer.
Also see: [INFRARED].
MONET, CLAUDE - (1840 - 1926)
Monet was a French landscape painter and one of the founders of
impressionism. Monet is also considered to be one of the leading
landscape artists of all time. Later in his career he devoted himself
to painting the changes of light and atmosphere caused by different
seasons and different times of day. He broke light down into its
component colors much as does a prism. He repeatedly painted such
subjects as haystacks, Rouen Cathedral, and the great lyrical series of
water lilies (1899 & 1904-1925) in his garden at Giverny.
EDISON, THOMAS ALVA - (1847 - 1931)
Thomas Alva Edison was born at Milan, Ohio, and spent most of his
boyhood at Port Huron, Michigan. His first love was chemistry. In 1877
Thomas Edison became interested and experimented with electric lighting
but abandoned his work later that year due to a lack of funds and other
pending developments. In 1878, his friend Grosvenor P. Lowrey, a patent
attorney helped raise $300,000 from investors to back Edison's
experiments. On October 15, 1878, the Edison Electric Light Company was
incorporated. The objectives of the company were: "to own,
manufacturer, operate and license the use of various apparatus used in
producing light, heat or power by electricity."
Edison patented more than 1000 inventions. Besides the incandescent
lamp, Edison is given credit for inventing a system of electric
generation, the phonograph, and the kinetoscope (motion picture camera)
and the motion picture projector (the Vitascope patented in 1896).
"Genius is ninety-nine percent perspiration and one percent
inspiration" - (Thomas Edison).
See also: [EDISON LAMP].
WAGNER, RICHARD - (1849)
Wagner showed great interest in the operation of the theatre and
created a demand, for extensive technical elements. He was concerned
with staging, scenic and lighting effects, and to a limited degree,
theatre architecture. In 1849 he published his conceptions of a new
art, under the title of 'The Work of Art of The Future'.
SPEED OF LIGHT - (1849)
A ray of light directed along the 25,000 miles of the earth's equator
would return to its starting point in 0.13 seconds. In one second it
would have covered the distance seven or eight times. By comparison,
sound, which travels at only 1,086 feet per second, would require 33.3
hours, while an express train with a speed of sixty miles per hour
would need 17 days, assuming its journey were unbroken.
Speed of Light: All forms or radiant energy are transmitted at the same
speed, in a vacuum. After early calculations by Roemer and British
astronomer James Bradely, the French physicist Armand Fizeau (30), in
1849 established the speed of light at approximately 186,300 miles
(300,000 kilometers) per second.
In 1968, in accordance with recommendations from the International
Astronomical Union (Hamburg) the speed of light was established at
299,792.5 kilometers per second or 186,282.3976 statute miles per
second. Solar parallax, 8".794; constant of nutation, 9".210 and
constant of aberration, 20".496.
Light travels at different speeds in different media. In the vacuum of
space, light travels at approximately 186,000 miles per second. It is
slower in air and still slower in glass.
And Finally:
Nothing is faster than the speed of light... To prove this to yourself,
try opening the refrigerator door before the light comes on. (Anon.)
See also: [ROEMER] and [EINSTEIN].
SPECTROSCOPE - (c 1850)
The credit for investigating the light of flames (after Agricola and
[MELVILL]) belongs to two Heidelberg professors; the physicist Gustav
Robert Kirchoff (1824-1887) and the chemist Robert Wilhelm [BUNSEN]
(1811-1899). At first they made use of a prism only. When the light of
flames so colored was passed through a prism, sharply defined single
lines in unmistakable colors appeared. To be able to observe these
better, the two scientists constructed a simple but highly effective
and sensitive instrument. The whole apparatus was rigged up from an
empty cigar box, a prism, and parts of an old, discarded telescope. It
was the first spectroscope, a little thing on three legs like a
microscope, and provided with an eye-slit. Inside it the light rays
made their way through lenses and the prism. With this instrument, it
was possible to study the spectra of red-hot bodies and gases, much
more accurately than with a prism alone.
PROFESSOR PEPPER - (c 1850)
During the mid-1800's an illusion was described and illustrated, that
later became know as 'Pepper's Ghost'. The illusion consisted of the
merging of live actors with reflected (ghost) images of hidden
backgrounds or other actors. The technique had several variations
however all used an angled sheet of glass, separating the audience from
the illusion.
Dr. John Henry Pepper was Director and Professor of Chemistry at the
Royal Polytechnic Institution, London, (founded in 1838). Pepper
presented the illusion in the form of 'The Knight Watching his Armour'.
Others with patents for the illusion include Munro in 1863 and Maurice
in 1865.
The illusion is still used today in many a 'Haunted Castle' and themed
exhibits and dark rides throughout the world.
KEROSENE LAMP - (1853)
The kerosene lamp was introduced in Germany in 1853. Kerosene was
distilled from petroleum obtained from oil shale, found in mines. By
1856 Kerosene was used to light homes in New York (gas came to that
city in 1864.)
EASTMAN, GEORGE - (1854 - 1932)
Eastman (USA) invented roll film and the name 'Kodak'.
In 1885 American inventor George Eastman marketed his first box camera.
It sold for $25.00, a considerable sum in those days. The Kodak camera,
the first camera designed to use roll film, came with the film already
installed. After the purchaser took 100 pictures, the camera had to be
returned to the factory, where the film was removed and processed and
new film was installed.
FIRST - FOLLOWSPOT SPOTLIGHT - (c 1856)
The followspot is simply a high power spotlight mounted on a stand. An
operator (or stagehand) controls the lamp and is able to pan and tilt
the spotlight, following an actor anywhere on stage. Although it is not
certain when the concept of the followspot was developed and first used
for theatrical applications there is documented evidence that a
limelight with a lens was used in a London theatre, about 1856.
Today, the followspot fixture is still commonly used, for theatre,
dance, opera and other entertainment events. Over the decades, the
followspot has evolved from the [LIME LIGHT] to the [ELECTRIC ARC] to
the modern Xenon units of today. Leading manufacturers of followspot
products include: [STRONG] [ALTMAN], Lycian and Phoebus.
See also: [LIME LIGHT], [ELECTRIC ARC].
THOMPSON, SIR JOSEPH - (1856 -1940)
Joseph J. Thompson, (British) investigated the properties of cathode
rays under the influence of magnetism and electrically charged plates.
He constructed a specially designed 'cathode ray tube' and identified
the radiation and the particle we now call the 'electron'. At the age
of twenty-four he was made a Fellow of the Royal Society, and a year
later was elected to professorship at Cambridge. In 1906 he received
the Nobel Prize for physics, and he was knighted in 1908.
HERTZ, HEINRICH RUDOLF - (1857 - 1894)
Hertz was a German physicist who produced and studied electromagnetic
waves (radio waves), which he showed are long transverse waves that
travel at the speed of light. Further he showed that these waves can be
reflected and refracted, like light. The unit of frequency, the hertz,
is named after him.
PLANCK, MAX - (1858 - 1947)
Max Planck (German), derived quantum theory from study of black body
radiation. This was a modern form of the corpuscular theory [NEWTON],
based on the following premises: That energy is emitted and absorbed in
discrete quanta (photons) and that the magnitude of each quantum may be
calculated in accordance with Planck's constant.
MUNSELL, ALBERT H. - (1858 - 1918)
Albert H. Munsell, (American) published his first edition of "A Color
Notation" in 1905. This was followed by the production of his first
color chart. During the next ten years. he prepared a series of color
charts which he later assembled into the "Munsell Color Atlas".
Today, the Munsell System, is the most widely accepted method of
accurately describing object color. (assumes a normal observer,
daylight illumination and observation of the color samples against a
gray to white background). In the Munsell System, colors are specified
in terms of three (3) attributes: hue, value and chroma.
CANDLEPOWER - (1860)
In 1860, one of the basic lighting measurements, the candlepower, was
established using a Spermaceti candle, of a specific weight and burning
at a particular rate, as the basis.
See also: CANDELA.
APPIA, ADOLPHE - (1862 - 1928)
Appia was a Swiss theorist of stage lighting and decor. His use of
light and shade when staging [WAGNER'S] operas revolutionized modern
scene design and stage lighting. He was also one of the first to
realize the great potential of light in the theatre, once electricity
had been introduced. Appia rebelled against naturalism and defined the
stage in terms of time and space and suggested the use of light to
create mood and composition.
He called the familiar light of his time (from borderlights and
footlights) general illumination (Helligkeit). According to Appia, this
type of light was useful, perhaps, but inadequate, there must be a new
kind of light, a 'form revealing light' (gestaltendes Licht) to give
objects on stage their natural three-dimensional quality - there must
be 'living light' for living people.
Additional Reading: Norman Marshall, Tabs, September 1969.
KLIEGL, JOHN H. - (1869 - 1959)
John Kliegl - was one of the founders of the American lighting
manufacturer [KLIEGL BROTHERS].
KLIEGL, ANTON - (1872 - 1927)
Anton Kliegl - was one of the founders of the American lighting
manufacturer [KLIEGL BROTHERS].
CRAIG, EDWARD GORDON - (1872 - 1966)
Edward Craig (British) began his career as an actor but unable to work
freely in England moved to the Continent. He spent most of his life
battling against what he considered the egotism and stupidity of the
actor, the inadequacy of the producer, the crudity of the usual scene
designer. He revolted against the conventions of the theatre and
demanded the use of light as scenery and compositional elements with
the play.
PHOTOGRAPHY, MOTION PICTURES - EARLY - (1872)
For centuries, adults and children alike have been amused by toys that
utilized the persistence of vision to present the appearance of a
moving picture. One early device was the Zoetrope, a revolving drum
with pictures inside. Spin the drum and when viewed from the right
angle, the pictures would blend together into a moving picture.
Eadweard Maybridge in 1872 snapped 12 consecutive photos of a horse
galloping. His technique for talking sequential photos with the
phenomenon of the persistence of vision provided the basis for motion
pictures. Eastman's celluloid film which could be rolled into a
cylinder, made it practical.
REINHARDT, MAX - (1873 - 1943)
Max Reinhardt was the first director to make an international
reputation. He dominated the theatre of Central Europe for more than
twenty-five years, refusing to be confined to the proscenium arch, and
setting his plays in a ballroom, a circus, a cathedral square, or an
exhibition hall, anywhere in fact, where he could find space for his
grandiose projects. The most memorable of them was "The Miracle", a
vast spectacle whose crowds he manipulated with ease. His extensive
travels brought him into prominence everywhere. He finally settled in
the United States in 1933.
Reinhardt also applied the principals of [APPIA] and [CRAIG] and used
light as a dramatic medium.
ELECTRIC LIGHTING
FIRST - ELECTRIC FILAMENT (INCANDESCENT) LAMP - (1874)
Although Edison did not invent the electric filament lamp, he did
however turn theory into practicable form and was one of the first to
successfully market incandescent lighting. We must not over look the
work done before him by [SWAN] (Britain), Cruto, Gobel, Farmer, Maxim,
Lane-Fox, Sawyer, and Mann, to name only a few. The first Canadian
patent covering an incandescent lamp was submitted by Henry Woodward
and Matthew Evans, dated July 24, 1874 - approximately five years
before the development of the Edison lamp. It was probably however, the
German chemist Herman Sprengel who pioneered the vacuum light bulb in
1865.
Reference: for further information consult the MIT studies of invention
publication, authorized by Arthur A. Bright, entitled "The Electric
Lamp Industry".
See also: [EDISON LAMP] & [SWAN LAMP].
TELEVISION, THE CONCEPT - (1875)
The first electric TV system was proposed by George Carey of Boston in
1875, and was based on selenium cells.
See also: [FIRST - PHOTOCELL], (1880)
JABLOCHKOFF, PAUL - (1878)
By 1878, Paul Jablochkoff had developed an arc in the form of an
electric candle. It was made of two carbon rods, side by side, with an
insulating material placed between them, that burned away at the same
rate as the carbons. In 1879 a theatre in France was equipped with some
of them, but the development of the incandescent lamp prevented them
from appearing in general use.
EDISON LAMP - (1879)
Edison's first successful lamp used carbonized cotton thread as a
filament, installed in a glass bulb, with all air evacuated. On the
afternoon of October 21, 1879, Edison's prototype had lasted 45 hours.
The next day Edison began to experiment using cardboard as a filament.
The cardboard filament was even more successful, and in a couple of
months, production of his lamps had increased. On New Year's Eve,
December 31, 1879, Edison gave his first public demonstration of his
new invention, at Menlo Park, New Jersey. Special trains were run on
the Pennsylvania Railroad to accommodate the masses of visitors. About
100 cardboard filament lamps were used in this demonstration, lighting
the streets, the laboratory, and the station at Menlo Park. Each lamp
was rated at 16 candlepower and consumed about 100 watts. (Average life
was about 100 Hrs.)
In 1880 Edison experimented with other materials for filaments,
including wood, grasses, hair and bamboo. Of the over 6000 specimens
tested by his laboratory, bamboo, became commonly used for filaments.
In 1880, on January 17, Patent number 223,898 was issued to Edison for
the T.A. Edison Electric Lamp.
In 1881, two years after the first incandescent lamp left Edison's
workshop, the steamship 'Columbia' was fitted with a thousand of them.
Within another two years, there were over 300 electric power stations
in existence, feeding over 70,000 incandescent lamps, each with an
average life of 100 hours.
See also: [FIRST - ELECTRIC FILAMENT LAMP] - (1874)
SWAN LAMP - (1879)
Along with [EDISON], (and others) Joseph Swan, is also credited with
inventing the incandescent lamp. Swan demonstrated a carbon filament
lamp to about 700 people in Newcastle-upon-Tyne on February 5, 1879.
Swan's development of the incandescent lamp was reported in the Oct.
29th, 1880 issue of "Engineering", which quotes him as follows: (SWAN)
"Electric lighting by incandescence is just as simple as arc lighting
is difficult, all that is required is a material which is not a very
good conductor of electricity, highly infusible and which can be formed
into a wire or lamina, and is neither combustible in air, or if
combustible, does not undergo changes in a vacuum".
The first premises to be lighted by the new Swan lamp were those of Sir
William Armstrong at Cragside near Newcastle in December 1880.
See also: [FIRST - ELECTRIC FILAMENT LAMP] - (1874)
PHOTOELECTRIC CELL - See: [FIRST - PHOTOCELL] - (1880)
FIRST - PHOTOCELL - (1880)
The first means for converting sunlight directly into electrical energy
date back to 1880. In that year the first selenium cells were
constructed by Charles Summer Tainter (American) The photoelectric
cell, as it called, has been improved in recent years, however the
typical output of a single cell is still not be enough to light a small
flashlight bulb (lamp). Photo cells are also used in light meters and
in other optical measurement equipment.
PHOTOPHONE - (1880)
In 1880, The Photophone was developed by Alexander Graham Bell. This
device used a mirror to transmit a speakers voice over a beam of
reflected sunlight. The transmitter mirror was modulated by the
speakers voice. The receiver used a rod of selenium, a metal whose
resistance changes with the intensity of light falling on it.
Electricity turned out to be more reliable than sunlight and Bell
turned his efforts to the telephone. Bell apparently wanted to name his
second daughter after the Photophone as she was born a few days after
his first successful demonstration of the device in February 1880.
Apparently Mrs. Bell did not share his enthusiasm.
Modern day versions of the Photophone even exist today. From time to
time many of the popular electronics magazines provide construction
projects for 'light beam communicators'.
LIGHT PIPE - (1880)
In 1880, William Wheeler of Concord, Massachusetts, applied for and
received a patent, on light pipes. His idea was to use pipes with
reflective inner surfaces to direct light from a source at one end,
along the length of the pipe. Concord's prototype was not very
efficient and most of the light was absorbed by the mirrors.
The light pipe uses the principal of 'total internal reflectance'. This
principal was noted about ten years earlier by John Tyndal, when he
shone a light at a spout of water as it gushed out of a tank. The water
fell in an arc and the light went with it. The outer edge of the water
spout was acting as a mirror, reflecting the light that reached it back
toward the interior of the spout. Total internal reflection only works
when light strikes the air/water boundary at a small glancing angle. At
larger angles the light passes through, the water like transparent
glass.
The principal of total internal reflection is used by the modern light
pipe and by fiber optics.
See also: [TIR SYSTEMS].
See also: [FIBER OPTICS].
CARTE, RICHARD D'OYLEY - (1881)
Richard D'Oyley (often: D'oyly) Carte, was the enterprising manager of
the new Savoy Theatre in London. In 1881 he opened the theatre and
advertised that the Savoy was the first public building lighted
'entirely' by electricity. In fact, there were a total of 1158 of the
new Swan lamps, used to light the auditorium, the dressing rooms, the
corridors and the stage. The electrical and dimmer system was by
Siemens Brothers and Company, one of the early pioneers in stage
lighting control systems. There were six (6) dimmers in all.
An article published in 'Engineering, March 3, 1882' reported: "In an
artistic and scenic point of view nothing could be more completely
successful than the present lighting of the Savoy Theatre the
illumination is brilliant without being dazzling, and while being
slightly whiter than gas, the accusation of "ghastliness," so often
urged against the light of the electric arc, can in no way be applied.
In addition to this the light is absolutely steady, and thanks to the
enterprise of Mr. D'Oyley Carte, it is now possible for the first time
in history of the modern theatre to sit for a whole evening and enjoy a
dramatic performance in a cool and pure atmosphere".
At the same time, the Grand Opera in Paris installed the Swan lamp.
LANGMUIR, IRVING - (1881 - 1957)
Irving Langmuir (General Electric Research Lab.) pioneered the
development of the first gas-filled electric lamp, at atmospheric
pressure. He demonstrated that it was not the vacuum in the bulb that
allowed the filament to burn for a long time. Instead he showed that by
simply adding nitrogen gas, evaporation of the filament was slowed,
prolonging the life of the lamp. Later, Langmuir later substituted
argon for nitrogen. See also: [GAS FILLED LAMP] - (1913)
TELEVISION, EARLY - (1884)
Some of the earliest work on television began in 1884, when the German
engineer Paul Nipkow designed the first true television mechanism. In
front of a brightly lit picture, he placed a scanning disk (called a
Nipkow disk) with a spiral pattern of holes punched in it. As the disk
revolved, the first hole would cross the picture at the top. The second
hole would passed across the picture a little lower down, the third
hole still, and so on. With each complete revolution of the disk, all
parts of the picture would be briefly exposed in turn. The disk
revolved quickly, accomplishing the scanning within one fifteenth of a
second. Similar disks rotated in the camera and receiver. Light passing
through these disks created crude television images.
Nipkow's mechanical scanner was used from 1923 to 1925 in experimental
television systems developed in the United States by the inventor
Charles F. Jenkins, and in England by the inventor John L. Bard. The
pictures were crude but recognizable. The receiver also used a Nipkow
disk placed in front of a lamp whose brightness was controlled from the
light-sensitive tube behind the disk in the transmitter. In 1926 Baird
demonstrated a system that used a 30-hole Nipkow disk.
GAS MANTLE / WELSBACH - (1885)
Some improvement in gas lighting was made over the years by the
development of new types of burners. It was not, however until Welsbach
introduced the gas mantle in 1885 that gas lighting was greatly
improved. A gas mantle is made from a small knitted bag, dipped into
chemical and then dried. When a new mantle is tied to a gas jet and the
gas is lighted, the knitted material will burn away leaving a fragile
shell of chemicals which glow brightly in the heat of the gas flame.
Many 'gasoline' type and camper lanterns today still use mantles.
Credit for the first metal filament lamp also goes to Welsbach. He
developed a rather efficient lamp with a filament of the rare metal
Osmium in 1905. However, this metal was even more rare and expensive
than platinum and the lamps were not highly successful.
WESTINGHOUSE - (1886)
Westinghouse was founded in 1886 by George Westinghouse. Westinghouse
received more than 400 patents for his many inventions, including the
air brake (1882) and a method of transmitting electrical power. He also
refined the transformer, providing a practical method of distributing
A.C. power over a large network. Edison at the time rejected
alternating current in favor of direct current.
Westinghouse has grown to be a world wide supplier of electrical
components, appliances and lamps. In 1995 Westinghouse purchased CBS
for $5 Billion (US), just one day after the Walt Disney Co. announced
its purchase of Capital Cities/ABC Inc.
DUBOIS, RAPHAEL - (1887)
Dubois, in 1887 demonstrated the existence of a specific compound he
called luciferin, which interacts with an enzyme, luciferase and oxygen
to produce light. See also: [BIOLUMINESCENCE].
FINSEN, N.R. - (1889)
It was in 1889 than Niels Ryberg Finsen, a Dane, discovered that the
ultraviolet component of natural sunlight, in fact, was responsible for
sunburn. Finsen received the Nobel Prize in 1903 (04?) for his
pioneering work - which led to widespread study of UV and its effects.
Finsen investigated the photo biological effects of sunlight and even
had an engineer commissioned to build a large [ELECTRIC ARC] lamp so
that he could further experiment with the effects of artificial
sunlight for therapeutic purposes. The arc lamp operated at a current
of twenty-five amperes and was rich in ultraviolet rays. {1ST SUNLAMP}
See also: [ULTRAVIOLET].
Additional reading: UV Lamps, LDA, June 1980.
Additional reading: The Magic of Rays, Johannes Dogigli, 1961
LEONARD, HARRY WARD - (1889)
Inventor, Ward Leonard worked with Thomas [EDISON] to introduce the
central station electrical system concept to cities in America. Leonard
in 1892 received a patent for an electric elevator.
WILFRED, THOMAS - (1889 - 1968)
Thomas Wilfred, was born in Nestvad, Denmark. Between 1905 and 1911 he
studied music and art in Copenhagen, Paris and London - and became a
singer of old songs. He began to experiment with color mixing and
projection and developed a device called the 'Clavilux' (1919). It
consisted of spot and flood lights, rheostats, screens, filters and
prisms, all controlled by an elaborate control console.
In 1916 he came to the United States and continued his career as a
singer in order to gather funds for his experiments in the use of light
as an art medium. Wilfred debuted his Clavilux at the Neighborhood
Playhouse in New York in 1922. Between 1922-1929 he made tours and gave
concerts in the USA and Canada. In 1925 he appeared in Paris, London
and Copenhagen. Later he founded the Art Institute of Light in West
Nyack, New York. He continued lecturing, creating and writing, until
his death in 1968.
See also: [COLOR ORGAN].
Additional Reading: The Art of Light & Color, Tom Jones (1972).
GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANY - (1892)
Created in 1892 through a merger of Edison's General Electric with
Thomson-Houston Electric Co. The Edison name was eliminated because it
had lost prestige since an electric chair fiasco two years earlier.
Edison still insisted that DC not AC current should be used.
Today, General Electric has grown to be one of the largest suppliers of
electrical components, appliances, equipment and machinery, in the
world. The company is a major manufacturer of lamps (light bulbs) for
all applications. In 1985 General Electric purchased RCA and its
National Broadcasting Co. for $6.3 billion US dollars.
http://www.ge.com
INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF THEATRICAL STAGE EMPLOYEES - (1893)
I.A.T.S.E. (IATSE) - is a professional union with more than 75,000
members in over 500 locals, throughout the United States and Canada.
The 'I.A.' serves the technical needs of most professional stage
productions, arena shows and films, throughout North America.
ARGON - (1894)
Argon, (Ar), from argon, or inactive, was discovered in 1894 by
Scottish chemist William Ramsay, who removes from air, various known
gases including nitrogen, oxygen, and carbon dioxide and find an inert
gas remains. The most abundant of noble gases, argon is used in welding
applications, as it provides an inert atmosphere, in which welded
metals will not burn. It is also the gas that fills most incandescent
lamps.
ROENTGEN, WILHELM - (c 1895)
About 1895, Roentgen (German) discovered X-Rays. These rays could
penetrate most forms of solid matter, as ordinary light passes through
glass. Today his discovery is used for a number of medical diagnostic
and therapeutic uses. Roentgen died in 1894 at the early age of 37.
KLIEGL BROTHERS - (1896)
Kliegl Brothers of New York, was founded in 1896 and was one of the
oldest if not 'the oldest' stage lighting manufacturer, established in
North America. The company made high quality lighting fixtures and
control systems for the stage and studio industries. Unfortunately
after a turbulent decade of changes, the company ceased operation in
the 1990's.
The company was founded by American lighting experts John H. Kliegl
(1869-1959) and Anton Kliegl (1872-1927). Kliegl was the manufacturer
of the 'Klieglight, a powerful carbon-arc lamp, producing an intense
light, used initially for film lighting. It was first introduced in
1911 and then later, the 'Klieglight' was redesigned for the
incandescent lamp.
NEON - (1898)
Neon, (Ne), from neos, or new, was discovered in 1898 and is the best
known of the inert gases. When an electric current is passed through a
minute amount of neon, enclosed in a glass vacuum tube, it glows bright
orange red.
Red neon tubes (for display) were first made by Claud in France in
1910. On January 19, 1915, the first patent was issued for a neon sign.
In 1925, blue tubes containing argon and mercury first appeared in
central London, and sometime later, a green light was produced (simply
by enclosing a blue tube in yellow glass). It wasn't until 1933 that
fluorescent power coating of neon and mercury discharge tubes produced
a whole new range of colors. Neon lamps have almost an indefinite life.
XENON - (1898)
Xenon, (Xe), (pronounced: Zee-non) - from xenos, or stranger, was
discovered in 1898. The properties of an electric discharge arc in an
atmosphere of xenon gas under high pressure was investigated by
Aldington in 1947, and a few limited but important commercial
applications followed. Today, the Xenon lamp is used in the commercial
[STROBE] (or stroboscopic or high speed flash), as well as a source for
projection equipment and followspots.
RADIUM - (1898)
Radium (Ra), from radius, or ray, was discovered in 1898 by Pierre and
Marie Curie. It is the sixth rarest of the elements. Radium bromide is
often mixed with zinc sulphide to produce a mixture used for luminous
watch dials. The radium gives off dangerous radiation which causes the
zinc sulphide to glow.
ELECTRICITY - (1899)
Although many early men experimented with electricity, none knew that
electricity was atomic in nature. It was the English physicist Joseph
John (later Sir Joseph) Thompson, who finally lifted the veil shrouding
the phenomenon of electricity. In 1899, he demonstrated that electrons
are the carriers of electricity, and, further that each of them carries
an elementary quantum of a negative electric charge.
1900
THE 20TH CENTURY - (1900's)
Although the principals of lighting design had been well established
during the oil and gas light eras, it wasn't until the development of
the incandescent lamp (c1879), that stage lighting could really
flourish as an art form. Now for the first time in history it was
possible to provide odorless and controlled lighting. The development
of lighting fixtures flourished. The gas; striplight, box flood and
footlights were redeveloped using the incandescent lamps.
BOX FLOOD / SCOOP / FLOODLIGHT - (1900's)
The 'Box Flood' is an early type of basic stage lighting fixture.
Before the widespread use of electricity and the incandescent lamp,
candles, oil lamps and gas were all used for stage lighting. Long ago,
some brilliant designer enclosed a typical flame source with a cube
type housing, having only one open side. Voila, a significant
development in lighting fixture design. First, the enclosure would have
shielded the source from the audience, increasing visibility and visual
comfort. Second, the enclosure would have acted as a crude reflector,
helping to direct additional reflected light out of the front opening
(or aperture).
Soon after the development of the incandescent lamp, the gas floodlight
fixture would have been redesigned to incorporate this new technology.
The electric box flood was the most basic of all stage lighting
fixtures, as all that was required was a metal box, a socket, a power
cord and a lamp. No lens or mechanical controls were required.
The illustration above shows a modern day floodlight fixture, using an
electric filament lamp. This fixture, known as the 'Scoop', evolved
from the simple box flood and provides a soft wide wash of light. Today
modern fixtures often incorporate special asymmetrical reflectors, to
help provide an even distribution of light on a vertical surface
(backdrop or cyclorama). Some floodlights are also available in
multi-cell designs, incorporating 2, 3 or 4 partitioned lamps, each
with a different color filter. Modern floodlights typically come in
wattages of 300 - 1000 watts.
LINNEBACH PROJECTOR - (c 1900)
Adolf Linnebach was the technical director of the Munich Opera in the
early 1900's. He developed a simple projector for background and scenic
projection. The projector did not use a lens. Instead, it simply cast a
shadow of a silhouette cutout, placed in front of the shielded, light
source. The results was a simple, effective image projection, with a
soft focus. (Bentham).
The modern Linnebach projector uses a slide size of 24x24 or 36x48
(inches). KLIEGL BROTHERS lighting, claims to have introduced the
Linneback projector to the American market in 1922.
FOOTCANDLE (and LUX) - (a 1900)
It was in the early days of electric lighting that users began to ask
how much light they needed. The measurement unit of the footcandle was
developed as a measure of 'illumination'.
DEFINITION - footcandle, fc: The unit of illuminance when the foot is
taken as the unit of length. It is the illumination on a surface, one
square foot in area on which there is a uniformity distributed flux of
one lumen, or the illumination produced on a surface all points of
which are at a distance of one foot from a directionally uniform point
source of one [CANDELA]. (REF: IES Lighting Handbook, Ref. Vol. 1981).
The International (metric) unit of illumination is the 'lux'. It is the
illumination produced on a surface one square meter in area at a
distance of one meter from a uniform point source.
Lux / Footcandle conversions:
FC = LUX x .0929 - Example 1: 500 LUX x .0929 = 46.5 FC
LUX = FC x 10.76 - Example 2: 50 FC x 10.76 = 538 LUX
Generally you may multiple FC by 10 to obtain LUX - or, divide LUX by
10 to obtain FC.
The recommended illuminance levels for various activities and tasks are
published by the Illuminating Engineering Society. Today we know that
it is not just the 'amount' of light that affects visibility. Other
factors such as contrast and glare are equally important.
The illumination from the sun on the earth's surface can exceed 100,000
LUX, (or 10,000 FC) during a summer day. At night the reflected light
from the moon might be as high as 0.2 LUX, (or .002 FC).
SALTWATER DIMMER - (a 1900)
Soon after the development of the electric filament lamp, applications
were immediately found in the theatre for this exciting new invention.
New lighting fixtures and methods of control were quickly developed and
put into use. One early means of lamp 'dimming' was through the use of
the salt water dimmer. The dimmer consisted of a tank (or barrel) of
salt water brine with a permanent electrode submerged. As a second
electrode was slowly raised (or lowered) into the brine, the
conductivity between the two electrodes would increase (or decrease)
respectively. Lamps connected in series to the dimmer, would be dimmed
accordingly. It was not uncommon for a theatre to have a large number
of these dimmers and it is said that the heat from the boiling brine
would often help to heat the backstage areas. Undoubtedly messy and
difficult to operate and maintain, the electric salt water dimmer was
soon to be replaced by the somewhat more efficient (and dryer)
electrical resistance dimmer.
See also: RESISTANCE DIMMER, AUTOTRANSFORMER DIMMER, SCR DIMMER.
MCCANDLESS, STANLEY - (c 1900 - 1967)
Stanley McCandless (American) is often regarded as the 'father' of
modern stage lighting design. He worked as a teacher, educator and
lighting designer, throughout his career. After graduating from the
University of Wisconsin, "Mac" got his degree in architecture at
Harvard. He then worked as an architect for some time and in the late
1920's he opened an office in New York City as an independent lighting
consultant. He was the architectural lighting consultant for Radio City
Music Hall and many other important projects. With the opening of the
Yale School or Drama in the 1920's he was asked to teach stage
lighting. He taught at Yale between 1925 and his retirement in 1964.
McCandless wrote two very important books on stage lighting "A method
of lighting the Stage" (1st published, 1928), and "A Syllabus of Stage
Lighting". McCandless provided a 'method' of lighting that is still the
foundation of modern lighting methods today. He taught visibility of
the actor first, and illumination of the surrounding scenery, second.
He proposed a system of dividing a typical (proscenium) stage in to
'acting areas'. Each area was lighted with two fixtures - placed at 90
degrees to each other, and in a 45 degree frontal position to the
actor. For additional interest, McCandless recommended a 'warm' color
from one side and a 'cool' color from the other.
McCandless was also the holder of numerous patents in the architectural
lighting field. He consulted on some of the largest and most important
projects at the time in the American nation. He taught many lighting
professionals in the field and lectured and wrote extensively in
architectural and illumination publications.
RAMBUSH, HAROLD W. - (c 1900 - 1981)
Harold Rambush was the interior designer of many American and Canadian
cathedrals and church interiors, (over 500) as well as the decorator of
numerous American theatres, including the Roxy and Radio City Music
Hall. He also served as the director of the Rambusch Company, a leading
American manufacturer of church lighting fixtures, founded by his
father in 1898.
MIELZINER, JO - (1901 - 1976)
Jo Mielziner designed sets and lighting for more than 300 productions.
He designed his first Broadway play in 1924 and was active in the
theatre until his death in 1976. Among his most famous Broadway
productions were "Carousel", "Annie Get Your Gun", "A Streetcar Named
Desire", "Death of a Salesman", "The King and I", "South Pacific",
"Look Homeward Angel" and "Gypsy". (BW)
Additional Reading: Theatre Design & Technology, May 1969
HIGH INTENSITY DISCHARGE (HID) LAMP - (1901)
High Intensity Discharge (HID) lamps and lighting have been in use
since the early days of the 20th Century, as an alternative to the
electric filament lamp. The first HID lamp introduced was the mercury
lamp in 1901. Later, low pressure sodium, high pressure sodium and
metal halide lamps, were developed. All of these sources consist of
electric arcs, operating in a gaseous environment, sealed within a
glass tube or bulb. HID light sources are all more efficient than the
electric filament lamp, however they also have limited color rendering
abilities, due to their 'line' spectrum (not continuous spectrum). Many
HID lamps are now also provided with a phosphor coating on the inside
of the bulb. This coating causes additional secondary emissions of
visual radiation, providing a wider 'spectrum' of light and color.
Typical applications include industrial, commercial and architectural
lighting.
See also: [METAL HALIDE LAMP], [MERCURY-VAPOR LAMP], [SODIUM LAMP]
MERCURY-VAPOR LAMP - (1901)
The first practical mercury-vapor lamp was the Cooper-Hewitt lamp
developed by Peter Cooper Hewitt in 1901. This was a tubular source
about 4 feet long which produced light that was distinctly bluish green
in color. The first high pressure mercury lamps similar to the ones
used today, were introduced in 1934 in the 400 watt size. Today,
mercury lamps now available, range in size from 40 watts to 1000 watts.
Mercury lamps produce approximately 55-60 lumens per watt.
Operation: the arc tube of the mercury lamp has argon gas and a little
pearl of mercury as filling ingredients. It's electrodes are made of
tungsten and carry an emitter paste, e.g. a barium-yttrium compound,
that reduces the ignition voltage required to start the lamp. Within
three to five minutes after ignition, the mercury is completely
vaporized and the characteristic blue-green spectrum of the mercury
discharge is emitted. It contains strong ultraviolet radiation at
wavelengths of 254 nm and 365 nm. Radiation in the red area of the
spectrum is virtually negligible. A mercury lamp's color temperature
ranges between 4000K and 4500K, while its color rendering index (CRI)
is only approximately 20, for a clear bulb. Applying phosphor coatings
to the outer bulb increases the light output by 10 to 15 percent and
improves the CRI to approximately 50.
ALBERT EINSTEIN - 1905
THE SPEED OF LIGHT - In 1905 Einstein postulated that nothing in the
universe travels faster than the speed of light and he put forward his
Special Theory of Relatively. Although many scientists have tried to
test his theory, none have proven him wrong. In the vacuum of space,
light travels at approximately 186,000 miles per second. This gave rise
to a special T-shirt design worn at such places as MIT and Caltec:
186,000 MILES PER SECOND
IT'S NOT JUST A GOOD IDEA
IT'S THE LAW!
LIGHTYEAR
The lightyear is an astronomical measurement used to measure distance,
not time. There are approximately 31.5 million seconds in a year. This
means that light can travel a distance of 5.60 trillion miles in one
year. The metric light year is approximately 9.5 trillion kilometers.
The Milky Way is approximately 100,000 lightyears in diameter.
ILLUMINATING ENGINEERING SOCIETY - (1906)
I.E.S. (IESNA/IES) - The Illuminating Engineering Society of North
America. The I.E.S. was formed in 1906 and has approximately 10,000
members world wide. Its membership includes; lighting consultants,
engineers, architects, users, educators, equipment sellers and others,
dedicated to the areas of lighting and illumination. Through its
activities in research in all phases of lighting application, it has
achieved recognition as the authority for recommended illumination
practices in North America. The I.E.S. also makes available a great
many lighting related publications. The society is located at 345 East
47 Street, New York, NW, 10017 (212) 705-7926.
Honorary IES membership was presented to Thomas Alva Edison on February
10, 1916 at the Hotel Biltmore in New York City.
INVENTION OF THE VACUUM TUBE - (1906)
In 1906, the American engineer, Lee De Forest, patented the triode
vacuum tube. By 1920 the tube had been improve to the point where it
could be used to amplify electric currents for television.
TUNGSTEN FILAMENT LAMP - (1907)
Prior to 1880 all filaments were either carbonized paper or cotton
thread. From 1880 to 1894 bamboo was the usual filament material. In
the 1888-1890 period, the squirted cellulose filament appeared. The
tantalum lamp was introduced in 1908 and the first tungsten filament
lamps were used about 1907-1910.
The first electric lamps using tungsten filaments first appeared in
America in 1907, and were made in wattages up to 500 watts. The
filaments were extremely fragile however.
The ductile tungsten filament was developed about 1911 by William D.
Coolidge, (General Electric, Research Laboratory). This resulted in a
much more durable and rugged lamp design. Tungsten has a melting point
of 3370 degrees C. (Visible light is produced when a filament reaches
572 degrees Fahrenheit - 'DuroTest').
Additional Reading: LDA, July, 1980, file
ROSCO LABORATORIES - (1910)
Rosco manufacturers and supplies a wide range of products for the
entertainment industry and has offices in New York, Hollywood, Toronto,
London, Madrid and Sydney. Products include 'Roscolux' brand lighting
filters, stainless steel projection templates (gobos), scenic paints,
fabrics, plastics, projections screens, flooring, software and many
other unique items.
"In 1915, the Rosco swatchbook had three blues: Medium Blue, Dark Blue
and Green Blue. By the 1930's the range had expanded to six blues,
including Daylight Blue, Pale Blue and No Color Blue". Rosco began
producing color in 1910. (REF: quote, Rosco advertisements, Theatre
Crafts, Feb/1989, pg 4).
See also: [ROSCOLUX].
Rosco Laboratories
30 Bush Avenue
Port Chester, NY, 10573, USA
Fax: 914-937-5984 (New York)
800-ROSCONY (New York)
800-ROSCOLA (Hollywood)
WWW/: http://www.rosco.com.
RESISTANCE DIMMER - (a 1910)
One of the earliest electrical dimmers put to use in the theatre (after
the [SALTWATER DIMMER]) was the 'resistance dimmer'. The resistance
dimmer was simply a long length of wire, usually wound in the form of a
coil. A 'wiper' contact would move along the coil, usually controlled
by a manual leaver (or motor control). As the contact moved along the
coil, the coil resistance would decreasing or increase accordingly.
This coil resistance was placed in series with one or more electrical
filament lamps to provide a relatively efficient means of dimming.
Stage lighting switchboards were large and heavy. Many used an
elaborate system of sub-switches and interlocking control levers.
Master leavers were often provided to allow a single operator to raise
or lower the control handles of a number of dimmers, all at the same
time. It usually required considerable skill to achieve a smooth fade.
KELLY, RICHARD - (1910 - 1977)
Richard Kelly was an American, architectural lightning designer and
consultant, with a vast number of projects credits. He also did
extensive work with day lighting. He was familiar with the destructive
characteristics of light (UV) and provided the lighting for a number of
leading art galleries and museums.
BAY, HOWARD - (1912 - 1986)
Howard Bay has designed the sets and lighting for over 170 Broadway
shows. He had designed fifty-seven Broadway productions by the time he
was thirty-six. Among his credits are "Man of La Mancha", "Music Man",
and "Show Boat". His Broadway career began in 1933 with 'There's a Moon
Tonight'. His first designs for a musical were for 'Count Me In'.) His
book, "Stage Design" is one of the most popular textbooks of its type.
Additional reading: Theatre Design and Technology, December 1969.
ROSENTHAL, JEAN - (1912 - 1968)
Jean Rosenthal born, N.Y.C. Studied at Yale with Stanley McCandless (c.
1932), and later went on to become one of the leading lighting
designers on Broadway and in modern theatre. She was a pioneer in the
art and craft of lighting design. Over her 30 year career, she is said
to have designed over 400 productions, including plays, musicals, opera
and ballet. Among her best known Broadway shows were "West Side Story",
"Plaza Suite", "Becket", "Hello Dolly", "Hamlet" (with Richard Burton",
"The Odd Couple", "Cabaret", "The Sound of Music" and "Fiddler on the
Roof". Her well known book; "The Magic of Light", is published by
Little, Brown and Company in association with Theater Arts Books.
COOLIDGE, WILLIAM DAVID - (1913)
Coolidge was a General Electric research worker who in 1913 received a
patent for "tungsten and method for making same for use as filaments of
incandescent electric lamps". Tungsten will now replace carbon
filaments in the manufacture of Edison and Swan lamps
GAS FILLED LAMP - (1913)
Up to this time, all lamp filaments operated in a high vacuum. After
the introduction of the tungsten filament, by [COOLIDGE] the next
highly significant step in the development of the incandescent lamp,
came in 1913 when [LANGMUIR] (G.E. Research Lab.) made the first
gas-filled lamp, at atmospheric pressure. He found that the higher
pressure did reduced evaporation of the tungsten, but so much heat was
conducted away by the gas that the lamp efficiency was reduced. He
discovered that coiling the filament reduced the effective area exposed
to the gas and thus minimized the loss of heat. Coiled filament
gas-filled lamps in 500, 750 and 1000 watt sizes were introduced in
1913. They gave a much better light at higher efficiency with the same
life as former lamps. Nitrogen gas was used in the first lamps but
argon was substituted in 1914. Argon has lower heat conductivity than
nitrogen. These lamps could be made smaller than carbon lamps and
produced three times the light per watt.
Now the development of advanced lighting fixtures and projectors, using
lenses, was possible. See also: [IRVING LANGMUIR] (1881 - 1957).
HUB ELECTRIC COMPANY INC - (c 1915)
Hub was a large American manufacturer of theatre lighting products,
located in Illinois. The company was active in educational theatre and
provided a wide range of dimming products and design services.
MAJOR CONTROLS - (1916)
'Major' was formed in 1916 and is one of the oldest manufacturers of
theatre lighting systems.
Major Controls,
740 Industrial Drive,
Cary, Illinois, 60013, USA
Tel: (312) 639-8200.
STRAND ELECTRIC COMPANY - (1917)
STRAND LIGHTING
The Strand Electric Company was established in 1917 in London, to serve
the needs of the London theatre district. Strand Lighting Canada began
operations in 1958. In 1969 the Rank Organization acquired both Strand
Lighting and the American company of Century Lighting and consolidated
them as Strand Century. Rank combined all of its Strand Century
Companies into one international group under the Strand Lighting name
in August 1985. In 1986 Rank acquired Electro Controls (Controls
Lighting) of Salt Lake City, Utah and Calgary and Quartzcolor Ianiro
SPA of Rome. In the fall of 1996 Schroder Ventures purchased the Strand
Lighting International Group of companies from Rank. Today 'Strand',
with offices around the world, manufacturers one of the most
comprehensive ranges of lighting fixtures, dimming and control
equipment for theatre and television, in the industry.
See also: [CENTURY LIGHTING]
Strand Lighting
18111 South Santa Fe Avenue
Rancho Dominguea, CA, 90221, USA
310-637-7500
800-733-0564
WWW: http://www.strandlight.com
See also: [CENTURY LIGHTING].
ADB LIGHTING - (1920)
ADB is a large European lighting company currently based in Belgian.
The company was founded by Adrien De Backer in 1920 and started as
manufacturers of electrical equipment including rheostats.As eqrly as
1925 ADB had developed rheostats to control the lighting for stages,
music halls and movie theatres. Today the company manufactures a wide
range of luminaires, accessories, dimming and controls, for the theatre
and television markets. ADB has been a 'Siemens' company since 1987.
STRIPLIGHT / COMPARTMENT BATTEN - (1920's)
The striplight (compartment batten, in Britain) is a stage lighting
fixture, designed to provide a linear 'wash' of light. In addition to
being used for the lighting of scenery, striplights are also useful for
the lighting of cycloramas and backdrops. Early striplights would have
used candles, oil or gas and would have been most unpractical to handle
and difficult to control.
In England, the compartment batten was made popular by Adrian Samoiloff
who used many for his color lighting stunts, which hit the headlines in
the early 1920's. Prior to the compartment batten, color was obtained
by dipping the individual lamps in lacquer.
Today, the modern striplight is 6 to 10 feet in length and, wired in 3
or 4 circuits. Usually lamps of 100 - 500 watts are used behind plastic
or glass filters. Sometimes the primary colors of light, red, green and
blue are used. When the colors are 'mixed' together with dimmers, a
wide range of dramatic colors may be attained. Often striplights will
be used to illuminate large sky cloths. They are usually placed end to
end, above the cloth, running from one side of the stage to the other.
Additional striplights are often also placed on the floor, parallel to
the cloth. The floor strips can provide an assortment of horizon
lighting including sunrise and sunset effects.
FIRST - FRESNEL LENS SPOTLIGHT - (c 1920)
The modern fresnel spotlight is one of the most basic tools used by
lighting designers for spot-lighting applications. The fresnel
spotlight, in its simplest form consists of a housing, a light source
and a 'fresnel' lens. When the source is moved slightly towards (or
away) from the lens, the size of the light beam changes, from spot
focus to flood focus. Early fresnel type lighting fixtures would have
included, gas, oil, electric arc and other sources, and were commonly
used as lighthouse type fixtures, able to project a narrow concentrated
beam, a great distance.
The modern fresnel lighting fixture uses either a tungsten halogen or a
discharge type of lamp. Fresnel fixtures are available in lens
diameters of 3 inches to 36 inches or more. The typical stage and
studio fresnel has a lens diameter of 6, 8 or 10 inches.
Today, the fresnel with its adjustable beam size is invaluable for area
lighting and color wash applications. The fresnel fixture produces a
'round' beam with an intense 'hot' center and a 'soft', yet defined
edge. Fresnel fixtures come in wattages of 150 to 10,000 watts and
have adjustable beam spreads of from 10 to 60 degrees.
The fresnel lens and the early fresnel fixture was developed by and
named for, [AUGUSTIN JEAN FRESNEL], (1788 - 1827).
[KLIEGL BROTHERS] (in a 1969 catalog) claims the incorporation of a
fresnel lens into a theatrical lighting fixture, in 1929.
LEVE, CHARLES - (1922 - 1985)
Charles Leve was a graduate of Yale University Drama School and later
went on to be the director of development of lighting, for Strand
Century, a position he held for 34 years, since 1951. Leve was also the
designer of the Light Palette, a computerized lighting control system
that did much to revolutionize theatre lighting of Broadway shows.
Prior to his death Leve also had worked with Colortran Inc. and Four
Star Stage Lighting.
SCHWABE - (1923)
Schwabe (Germany) was a leader in the development of early stage
lighting fixtures (not dimmers and control). The firm of 'Reiche and
Vogel' is a descendent of the Schwabe Company. Schwabe made a number of
theatre lighting installations in London, as early as 1923. (St.
Martin's Theatre).
REICHE AND VOGEL - (1923)
- see: SCHWABE
NIETHAMMER, EMIL - (c 1924)
Emil Niethammer, founded about 1924, is a large manufacturer of high
quality stage and studio lighting fixtures. The company is located in
Stuttgart, West Germany and was purchased by [AVAB] in the late 1980's.
All fixtures are designed and manufactured to a very high standard, and
optical performance is among the best in the world.
STROBOSCOPE (ELECTRONIC STROBE) - (c 1926)
EARLY STROBOSCOPE
The stroboscope is a device for viewing a rotating object by making the
object appear to be at rest. In its simplest form, it consists of a
rotating disk with one or more viewing slits, through which the object
can be viewed. The observer looks through the viewing slit and sees the
object in exactly the same position each time the slit passes the
observers eye. The disk must be rotated in precise synchronization with
the object. If the disk is rotated slightly slower than the object, the
object will appear to be moving slowly in the direction of its actual
motion. If the disk is turning faster that the moving object, then the
object will appear to move slowly in the direction opposite to its
actual motion.
The stroboscope is of great use in engineering studies of moving parts,
as they can actually 'freeze' and view the image in real time.
ELECTRIC STROBOSCOPE
Modern stroboscopes no longer use the rotating wheel with slits.
Instead electric lamps are utilized that produce short flashes of light
at the same rate that the object is revolving. The high speed gas
discharge lamp, stroboscope was developed by Harold Eugene Edgerton and
his associates at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology around
1926 to 1931. Today, [NEON] lamps are also commonly used for low power
stroboscopic applications, producing a flash rate synchronized with a
50/60 cycle frequency, of the standard A.C. (alternating current) power
line.
ENTERTAINMENT APPLICATIONS
On a darkened stage in a theatre, a single flashing light source can
provide a very striking and dynamic - stop action effect, of all moving
objects on stage.
During the mid-1900's, a device known as the 'lobsterscope' was
developed for theatre and stage applications. The device consisted of a
spinning disk with apertures to mechanically 'chop' the beam of light
produced from an incandescent spotlight. This produced a rapid
flickering light, able to 'freeze' the action on stage.
During the 1960's the [XENON] 'Strobe' was frequently used for
discotheque lighting applications. Designers tried to build the
'ultimate' strobe and units continued to became larger, brighter and
more sophisticated. Often several powerful strobe units would be used
in a single stage production, with control systems developed to
synchronize their firing from a number of inputs (audio beat, keyboard,
programmer, etc.)
Today strobe technology in the entertainment industry is stronger than
ever. Large productions might incorporate 50-100 or more units, usually
mounted in banks of several fixtures each.
FIRST - PUBLIC TELEVISION - (1926)
On January 27, 1926, the first public demonstration of television was
given. The first commercial color TV broadcast was presented by CBS on
June 25, 1951.
CENTURY LIGHTING - (1926)
Century Lighting opened for business in New York in 1926. The company
later was purchased by [STRAND ELECTRIC] to become 'Century Strand',
then 'Strand Century' then finally [STRAND LIGHTING], in the 1990's.
'Century Lighting' (USA) made many fine lighting products, including
fixtures, dimmers and accessories for stage and television lighting.
Century also produced the well known 'leko', (ellipsoidal reflector
spotlight), in a number of different sizes and wattages.
The company was founded by Ed Kook and Joseph [LEVE].
MOLE-RICHARDSON CO. - (c 1927)
Established about 1927, Mole Richardson is one of the leading
manufacturers in the world of motion picture, television and
professional photographic lighting. They manufacturer an extensive
range of lighting fixtures and related accessories and are located in
Hollywood California, USA.
Mole-Richardson
937 North Sycamore Avenue
Hollywood CA, 90038-2384, USA
Tel: (213) 851-0111
Fax: (213) 851-5593
SKELTON, THOMAS R. - (1928 - 1994)
Tom Skelton, was an well known American stage lighting designer. He
died, August 10, 1991. at the age of 66. "The late Tom Skelton was an
artist truly revered in the entertainment industry. He began his
lighting career as an apprentice to Jean Rosenthal. He went on to
inspire other great designers including Jennifer Tipton and Paul Gallo.
Skelton was a brilliant lighting designer and innovated color
techniques for both theatre and dance. He designed for the Jeffrey, New
York City, Paul Taylor, Jose Limon and the Ohio Ballet, which he
co-founded. His Broadway credits include "A Few Good Men", "Peter Pan",
"Oklahoma", "Brigadoon", "The King and I", "Carousel", and the revivals
of "The Iceman Cometh", and "Death of a Salesman". He received 3 Tony
nominations, the Carbonelle Award. and the Los Angeles Drama Critics'
Award during his career." (REF: quote from, Rosco, Pattern Catalog,
1996).
CLEMANCON - (1928)
The French firm of Clemoncon, was founded in Paris in 1928, and has a
long record in the manufacturing of stage lighting equipment.
UNION CONNECTOR CO., INC. - (1929)
In 1929, the Union Connector Company was founded by William J. Wolpert,
as a manufacturer of stage lighting connectors. Today, the company
makes a large variety of high quality electrical connectors for the
stage, motion picture and television industries.
Union Connector Co., Inc.
300 Babylon Turnpike
Roosevelt, New York, 11575, USA
Tel: (616) 623-7461
Fax: (616) 623-7475
PANI, LUDWIG - (1930)
The Viennese firm of Ludwig Pani, is one of the world's leading
manufacturers of projection and lighting equipment. The firm was formed
in 1930 as a division of the optics firm: 'Optischen Werke C. Reichert,
Wien'. Herr Pani who headed the projection division of the parent
company, gave his name to the new firm. Pani manufacturer a number of
different high powered, optical projectors, accessories and lenses.
Pani has several models including a 2000 and 5000 watt incandescent
model and a super bright 4000 watt HMI model. These projectors are
suitable for large scale scenic projection, for opera and other large
scale projections including outdoor architectural and building
projection, at night. Pani projectors are very expensive, but very
impressive. In the USA, the firm is represented by Production Arts,
(New York City, USA).
FLASHBULB - (1930)
The photographic flashbulb was patented by a German inventor, Johannes
Ostermeir. A small filament in the 'flash lamp' heated to ignite foil
inside the bulb, providing a bright, smokeless, flash of light. This
provided a much safer and more practical means of photographic
illumination than did previous methods using flash powder.
TIMES SQUARE CORP. - (a 1930)
TIMES SQUARE THEATRICAL AND STUDIO SUPPLY CORP. was established around
1930 in New York City. Since its inception, the company has grown to be
a leading supplier lighting equipment and accessories to the stage,
studio and entertainment industries, around the world.
Times Square Lighting,
Industrial Park, Route 9W.
Stony Point, N.Y., 10980, USA,
Tel: (914) 947-3034,
Fax: (914) 947-3037
COMMISSION INTERNATIONAL DE L'ECLAIRAGE, (CIE) - (1931)
C.I.E. (CIE) - The International Commission on Illumination, in 1931,
adapted a set of tables to define the color matching characteristics or
a standard observer and establish a framework for the specification of
colors. This was the trichromatic system of color measurement. The
recommendations were for pure spectrum colors and were based on a
number of research programs which dated from at least as early as
MAXWELL'S work in 1854, and continued by other researchers until 1931.
Additional reading: Measurement of Color, W.D. Write, 1964, Hilger &
Watts Ltd., London.
LAND, EDWIN HERBERT
- See: [POLAROID FILTER], [POLAROID CAMERA]
POLAROID FILTER - (1932)
The principals of polarized light have been known for many years,
having been discovered by [HUYGENS] in 1678. It was the American
inventor Edwin Herbert Land however who in 1932 invented a material to
conveniently produce polarized light from ordinary light. The light
gray glass or plastic filters are relatively inexpensive, and only pass
light waves vibrating in one direction. The filter material is now
known by the trademark 'Polaroid'.
Today, there are several modern uses of polarized light. Glare from the
sun (or other source) reflecting off of a shiny surface will often
reflect polarized light. If the glare is viewed through a polarization
filter, the glare will disappear and reappear, as the filter is slowly
rotated around a central axis. This is the exact principal used in
polarized sunglasses. The orientation of the filter tends to block any
reflected polarized glare, that is not on axis with the filter.
'Polaroid' sunglasses were introduced by Land-Wheelwright Laboratories
in 1936. The following year the company changed its name to the
Polaroid Corp.
Polarized light also has several spectacular visual properties
associated with it. For example many crystals and plastics produce
impressive and dramatic colors when illuminated with and viewed under
polarized light. This principal is used in the study of stress in
engineering structures. A scale model (of a bridge for example) will be
constructed from clear plastic. The model will be illuminated with
polarized light and viewed through a polarized filter. Any loads or
stresses placed on the scale model will immediately produce dynamic
color effects, showing stress lines throughout the structure. The
crumpled plastic from a cigarette package and two small polarized
filters can demonstrate this colorful experience.
In the 1960's and early 1970's many 'light shows' made and projected
slides, made from crumpled and scrunched pieces of clear plastic
sandwiched with a polarized filter. When projected from a source with a
polarized filter on the lens, the image would become alive with color.
When the filter at the lens was rotated the images would swirl, flicker
and dance in a psychedelic display of color.
See also : [POLARIZATION/POLARIZED LIGHT]
SODIUM LAMP - (LOW PRESSURE) - (1932)
L.P.S. (LPS) - Research into low pressure sodium gas discharge lamps
started in the 1920's. The first commercial application was a road
lighting installation that was put into service between Beek and Geleen
in the south of the Netherlands on July 1, 1932. The installation
employed low pressure sodium lamps with a lumen efficacy 40 lumens per
watt. In the same year, the Purley Way in London was also lit by low
pressure sodium lamps. Today, the modern low pressure sodium lamp, is
considered to be the most efficient lamp available, providing more than
220 lumens per watt. Low pressure sodium lamps can be recognized from
their deep amber color.
Additional Reading: LDA, June 1983, Low pressure sodium lighting, the
past, present and future - (file)
See also: SODIUM LAMP - (HIGH PRESSURE)
ELLIPSOIDAL REFLECTOR SPOTLIGHT - (1933)
Although not completely certain, the invention of the modern
ellipsoidal reflector spotlight often goes to [KLIEGL BROTHERS] (USA).
In 1933, the first KLIEGLIGHT, was used in the spectacular outdoor
pageant "Romance of the People", at the Polo Grounds in New York. Its
first indoor use was in the Earl Carrol Vanities of the same year.
Century Lighting (USA) produced a similar fixture in the same year
known as the [LEKOLITE].
Today, the ellipsoidal reflector spotlight is still one of the basic
tools of the stage lighting designer for spot-lighting applications.
The 'ER' as it is often known, is also used to a lesser extent in
modern television and film lighting applications. In Britain the 'ER'
is referred to as a 'profile spotlight' or a 'mirror spot'.
In its simplest form, the ER fixture consists of a housing, a light
source, an ellipsoidal reflector and a plano convex lens. The light
beam produced by an ER fixture is round (or 'conical') with a sharp
defined cut-off edge. The fixture is actually a simple projection
device and will optically project the image of anything placed at its
focal point. The typical ER fixture has 4 integral framing shutters or
an iris - to provided limited beam shaping. In addition, and of
particular importance the ER fixture will also accept and project the
design of a metal pattern, commonly known as a template or gobo. There
are hundreds of different stock patterns and designs available from
various manufacturers.
The typical ER spotlight uses a tungsten halogen type of lamp. Fixtures
are available in lens diameters from about 4" to 10" and with wattages
from 500 to 2000 watts. The typical stage and studio ER fixture has a
lens diameter of 6 inches and a 1000 Watt lamp.
The ER spotlight is selected by beam spread. Fixed beam spreads are
available as follows: 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 35, 40, 50 degrees.
Formerly in North America (1950's-1980's) beam spread was designated by
specifying first the diameter and then the focal length of the lens.
Example: a 6x9 (pronounced 6 by 9) was a fixture with a 6" diameter
lens and a 9" focal length. In order to determine the spread in degrees
of any particular fixture, the designer still needed to consult the
manufacturers data sheet as the designation did not accurately identify
the beam spread of the fixture. Today spotlights are specified in
'degrees' only. The following table shows approximate beam spread of
several common ER spotlight fixtures:
- 6x9 - 40 degrees
- 6x12 - 30 degrees
- 6x16 - 25 degrees
- 6x22 - 15 degrees
- 8x9 - 20 degrees
- 8x13 - 13 degrees
- 10x20 - 15 degrees
'LEKO' (also LEKOLITE) - (1933)
About the same time that [KLIEGL BROTHERS] developed the first
ellipsoidal reflector spotlight, [CENTURY LIGHTING] also developed a
similar type of lighting fixture known as the [LEKO] or [LEKOLIGHT].
Joseph [LEVE] and Edward F. Kook were founders of Century Lighting and
in 1933 they filed a patent for a new type of reflector spotlight. Each
gave one half of their names LE and KO to their joint development. The
'leko' used an ellipsoidal reflector with beam shaping controls
(shutters & templates). The leko is still manufactured today by [STRAND
LIGHTING], however it has gone through many improvements over the
years. Although the term 'Lekolite' is often used to generically refer
to any type of ellipsoidal reflector, lighting fixture, the name is now
owned by Strand and Strand alone, has the right to use the name.
See also: [ELLIPSOIDAL REFLECTOR SPOTLIGHT]
GOBO/TEMPLATE - (a 1933)
The development of the modern [ELLIPSOIDAL REFLECTOR SPOTLIGHT] (1933),
provided an effective acting area type of fixture. It also provided,
however, a 'crude' but effective method of image projection.
Typically a pattern is cut or etched into a thin metal plate. When the
plate is inserted into a slot, at the focal point of the fixture, an
image of the pattern is projected. As the pattern or template was 'to
go between' the lamp and the lens - it is was nicknamed: 'gobo'.
The use of template projection is a very valuable tool for the modern
lighting designer. Many designers use gobos to provide 'texture' to
acting area lighting. Other designers use gobos to provide interesting
floor patterns, or to texture the scenery. The image may often be
slightly softened, by placing the lens out of focus. Alternately a
sharp image may be produced, by 'hard' focusing the lens. Focus may
sometimes be made even sharper by the addition of a 'donut' in the
color frame. Typically a donut for a 6" ellipsoidal reflector spotlight
consists of a 7.5" x 7.5" foil mask, with a 2-3 inch hole, punched in
the center. Although the image will be sharpened, by the use of the
donut, some intensity, will also be lost.
Several companies produce 'stock' pattern designs precision etched in
stainless steel. Both the [GREAT AMERICAN MARKET] and [ROSCO] produce
hundreds of unique designs in several different sizes. It is also
possible to custom etch your own projection templates using brass shim
stock and an etchent of potassium ferra-chloride.
AUTOTRANSFORMER (DIMMER) - (c 1933)
The first autotransformer was developed and patented about 1933 by
General Radio Company (USA). This device was a continuously variable
transformer with the trade name of "Variac". The Variac provided a much
more efficient means of dimming electric lighting fixtures in theatres,
than did the existing resistance and saltwater dimmers of the time.
In the 1960's, the American Superior Electric Company, produced a
number of autotransformer dimming systems for theatre and television
applications. These products had the trade name 'Luxtrol' or
'Powerstat' and were used extensively across Canada and the United
States. Portable systems of 6 or 12 dimmers in a single (heavy) metal
enclosure were common. Each dimmer had a handle to provide direct and
individual control. When the operator 'rotated' a dimmer handle, it
would interlock to a 'master' handle to facilitate the fade-up or
fade-down of all selected dimmers at once. Some theatre installations
remained in operation in North America well into the 1970's. Now all
modern theatre dimming systems employ the [SILICON CONTROLLED
RECTIFIER] dimmer.
Autotransformers can also be motorized for remote operation. The
autotransformer dimmer is still used today in some applications
(recording studios & hospitals) as they do not generate radio frequency
interference (RFI) as does a modern SCR type dimmer.
See also: [SALTWATER DIMMER], [RESISTANCE DIMMER], [SCR DIMMER].
FLUORESCENT LAMP - (1937)
The fluorescent lamp was first introduced to the public at the New York
World's Fair in the late thirties (1937). The lamps were introduced
commercially in about 1938. The fluorescent lamp is a low pressure gas
discharge source, in which the light is produced predominantly by
fluorescent powders activated by ultraviolet energy generated by a
mercury arc. Typically, a fluorescent lamp must efficiently generate
253.7 millimicron ultraviolet radiation to excite the phosphors coating
the inside of the tubular glass bulb.
The lamp is usually in the form of a long tubular bulb with an
electrode sealed at each end. The modern fluorescent lamp has an
efficacy of approximately 65-80 lumens per watt. Today fluorescent
lamps are also available in circular and 'folded' shapes. Lamps with
various different color temperatures and color rendering properties are
commonly available. The most common fluorescent lamp is the CW or cool
white version, although new 'warmer' versions are now gaining
popularity, worldwide. All fluorescent lamps require a ballast, for
operation.
Developed in the late 1980's the compact fluorescent lamp
revolutionized the lighting industry. This lamp (also referred to as
the PL lamp), is simply a folded fluorescent tube, sometimes no larger
than a standard 'light bulb'. The ballast is usually mounted in the
base pf the lamp. This new lamp allows most household incandescent
lamps to be replaced with these new energy saving fluorescent lamps. In
addition to retrofit applications, new 'pot light' fixtures have been
developed specifically for the PL lamps, for residential, commercial
and industrial lighting applications. PL lamps are available in various
wattages from approximately 9 - 50 watts, and are available from all
major lamp manufacturers.
PAR LAMP (SEALED BEAM LAMP) - (a 1940)
The PARABOLIC ALUMINIZED REFLECTOR (or PAR lamp) is a sealed beam type
of lamp, similar to an automotive headlamp. The filament, reflector and
lens are all optically aligned at the factory, and sealed into a single
lamp - resulting in a highly efficient source. As the PAR lamp is a
complete lighting unit, fixtures for them are very simple indeed.
Today, PAR lamps are available in various diameters (4.5" to 8"), and
various wattages (75-1000 w.) The highly efficient PAR64 lamp (8' lens)
is extensively used by the theatre and entertainment industry and the
fixtures are often referred to as 'PAR cans'.
The PAR lamp is also sometimes known in Europe as the 'pressed glass
reflector lamp'.
There are some historical pictures showing one of the inventors, Dick
Thayer, with prototype lamps made from "Pyrex" custard cups purchased
from the local hardware store. That was in 1937. The first sealed beam
automotive headlamps appeared on the 1940 model cars.
The author's research has also uncovered an early patent drawing of a
sealed beam lamp dated Feb. 21, 1939. The drawing is numbered 2,148,314
and is signed Daniel K. Wright, Inventor. The lamp looks very similar
to a modern PAR lamp. The lamp was thought to have been placed into
production, shortly thereafter.
HEMSLEY, GILBERT V. JR. - (a 1945)
Gilbert Hemsley (USA) was a Professor at the University of Wisconsin at
Madison and a well liked and respected stage lighting designer.
Unfortunately, he passed on, before his time.
PHOTOGRAPHY - POLAROID CAMERA - (1947)
In 1947, American Edwin Land invented the Polaroid instant camera.
Land's big contribution was to develop a film that developed a positive
image within seconds. Both the negative film and the positive paper
were sandwiched together in the film pack. After being exposed, when
the film is pulled from the camera it passes through rollers that break
a chemical pod releasing chemicals that develop the film and transfer
the image to the positive paper. The Polaroid camera is still very much
in use today by both professional and amateur photographers alike. Film
packs are available for both black & white and color prints. In 1963
one-step color film became available.
See also: [POLAROID FILTER].
FROST, ROBERT - (1947)
It Bids Pretty Fair (from Steeple Bush - 1947)
The play seems out for an infinite run.
Don't mind a little thing like the actors fighting
The only thing I worry about is the sun.
We'll be all right if nothing goes wrong with the lighting.
STRONG ELECTRIC COMPANY - (a 1947)
STRONG INTERNATIONAL, (established about 1947) is the oldest American
manufacturer of motion picture projection light sources and followspots
in the entertainment industry. 'Strong' followspots are of high quality
and performance and are known around the world. Their products include:
the Super Trouper (carbon arc spot), the Gladiator and the Trouperette.
Most current models now use a [XENON] lamp.
Strong International
4350 McKinley Street
Omaha, NE, 68112, USA
402-453-4444.
WWW: http://www.strongint.com
CANDELA - (1948)
The modern unit adapted in 1948 for the measurement of light intensity
is the candela (cd). One candela is equal to one square centimeter of a
blackbody radiator at the temperature at which platinum solidifies
(2046 degrees Kelvin). The former unit of intensity was the
candlepower. This term is sometimes still used interchangeably with
candela, today.
See also: [CANDLEPOWER].
SYLVANIA/OSRAM - (a 1950)
Sylvania is a large North American based lamp manufacturer. They are
one of the largest in the world. About 1994, they combined forces with
'Osram' a large European lamp manufacturer. They are now known world
wide as 'Osram/Sylvania'.
UNITED SCENIC ARTISTS - (a 1950)
The United Scenic Artists is an American based association of
professional stage designers. Membership in the USA is generally
considered necessary in order to be able to design on Broadway in New
York City. Members include set designers, lighting designers, costume
designers, and others. Requirements for membership are quite stringent
and require both a written and practical examination, in most cases.
SON ET LUMINAIRE - (a 1950)
The French phenomenon of the Son et Luminaire (or light and sound show)
has been produced at various antiquities around the world. These shows
use large scale automated lighting and sound systems to produce
scripted presentations, usually for the tourist. Large Son et Luminaire
shows are regularly provided in Rome, Athens and Cairo.
PATTERN 23 - (1952)
The famous Pattern 23, - 500 watt Baby Mirror Spot, was introduced by
STRAND ELECTRIC in 1952. This highly efficient and compact spotlight,
became known as the PATT-23 and used for many years in theatres around
the world. Different lens configurations were available, 4 framing
shutters were standard, and the PATT-23 had optional accessories,
including iris and template holder. The PATT-23 was finally retired
about 1980, with fixtures of an even more efficient design. Note: many
modern theatre spotlights (of similar size, weight and wattage) do not
perform as well as this early fixture.
FIBER OPTICS - (1955)
The invention of fiber optics changed the world of communications and
technology. The principal of 'total internal reflectance' had been
known for some time and was demonstrated about 1870 by TYNDAL, when he
shone a light at a spout of water as it gushed out of a tank. The water
fell in an arc and the light went with it. See also: LIGHT PIPE, 1880.
The invention of modern fiber optics is credited to Kapany (British) in
1955 and at about the same time to Brian O'Brien Sr. at the American
Optical Company in America. During the 1960's early fiber optics were
developed as a means of transmitting messages as an alternative to
electrical wires. By 1970 the Corning company produced the first
practical fiber optic cable. It could transmit light about a third of a
mile before most of the light was absorbed. By 1990 fiber optics were
transmitting light more than 20 miles without a repeater.
Fiber optics consist of small hair like optical fibers, bundled
together within a plastic jacket. They come in various diameters and
are quite flexible. Using high speed light pulses (traveling at the
speed of light) fiber optics are able to transmit data, audio, video
and telecommunications from location to location. Fiber optics can
transmit far more information than electrical wire transmission
systems, making them invaluable for computer and telephone
applications.
Unlike conventional copper wires, fiber optic signals are not subject
to electromagnet interference from nearby motors, ballasts, relays or
electronic dimmers.
Fiber optics also transmit light in automotive, aircraft and medical
equipment. Often car headlights are simply 'monitored' by running a
fiber optic from the headlight to an indicator on the dashboard. The
driver always knows 'for sure' if a headlight is operating or not, as
the fiber optic is literally 'watching' the light from the headlight.
In addition, there is no 'bulb' to burn out (and replace) in the
dashboard. The system is truly maintenance free.
Fiber optics may also be manufactured as 'coherent' bundles, that is
with all of the hundreds of individual similarly aligned at each end.
An optic of this type is able to transmit and actual picture or image
from one end to the other. This principle is used in the endoscope, an
instrument used to look inside the body. Endoscopes are used to explore
and biopsy such areas as the colon and the bronchi of the lungs as well
as to perform surgery through small incisions.
See also: [LIGHT PIPE].
DICHROIC LAMPS - (a 1955)
These special reflector floods incorporate a dichroic reflector. In a
lamp with a conventional reflector, much of the infrared energy (heat)
from the source is reflected into the beam. In a lamp using a dichroic
reflector, some infrared energy is dissipated out through the
reflector, and not into the beam, resulting in a cooler beam. These
'cool beam' lamps are particularly useful for museum or gallery
lighting applications where excess heat [INFRARED] could damage
precious artwork or artifacts. Dichroic lamps are manufactured in MR11,
MR16 and in various PAR sizes to PAR38.
ALTMAN STAGE LIGHTING - (c 1955)
The Altman Stage Lighting Company (U.S.A.) was established in the
1950's and has become one of the leading manufacturers of stage
lighting fixtures, in the world. The Altman 360Q series of ellipsoidal
reflector spotlights have become an international standard for
performance and efficiency vs size and weight. Altman manufacturers a
full range of all equipment types in various sizes and wattages. The
company is located in Yonkers New York.
The company is very much a family business, started by Charlie Altman.
In the start-up days, Charlie liked to compete with his brothers;
Edward owned Capital Stage Lighting, Arthur owned Eastern Stage
Lighting. Charlie Altman, Alice his wife, and other family members
worked hard over the years. By the 1980's, Altman was the dominate
lighting fixture manufacturer in North America and perhaps in the
entire world. Alice Altman died in 1990. Charlie Altman died on May 5,
1995. He lived to be over 90 years old. The company is now run by
Robert Altman, by children of Ronald Altman, and by other family
members.
Altman Stage Lighting
57 Alexander Street
Yonkers, NY, 10701, USA
914-476-7987
800-4ALTMAN
WWW: http//www.altmanltg.com
COLORTRAN - (a 1955)
Colortran is a leading American manufacturer of theatre and television
lighting fixtures, dimmers, control systems and accessories. In 1964
Colortran won an Academy Award for its development of the tungsten
halogen fixture. During the 1970's and 1980's the company built a full
and comprehensive range of products. The company changed ownership
several times becoming first 'Berkey Colortran' and then later 'Lee
Colortran'. In the late 1990's, the product line was taken over again
by 'NSI Corporation', an already existing manufacturer of stage
fixtures, dimming and control.
Colortran
A division of NSI Corporation
9126 SW Ridder Road
Wilsonville, OR, 97070, USA
503-576-6060
WWW:http//www.colortran.com
SCR DIMMER - SILICON CONTROLLED RECTIFIER - (1958)
S.C.R. (SCR) - In 1958, General Electric announced the introduction of
the silicon controlled rectifier. This semiconductor device was about
to revolutionize dimming applications for theatre and television
lighting around the world. Previous to this time, dimming systems were
large, generally inefficient and mechanically very complex.
The SCR allowed the design of compact, remote controlled dimming
systems - with no moving parts in the dimmer. By 1960 [KLIEGL] was
installing SCR systems, and [CENTURY] Lighting was installing their
C-Core line. The SCR is still the basis of modern electronic dimming
systems today.
The typical modern SCR dimmer employs two PNPN semiconductor devices
commonly know as silicon control rectifiers, or thyristors, connected
in inverse parallel and in series with the lamp load. A signal applied
to the control gates of these devices is utilized to control their
conduction period. The dimmer thereby controls the effective power
dissipated in the lamp load and, thus the intensity of the lamps. The
dimmer is completely inert and requires no maintenance.
MANITOBA THEATRE CENTRE (MTC) - (1958)
M.T.C. - In Canada, the 1950's to mid-1960's constituted the "regional
theatre era". Each province was endowed with a government supported,
permanent professional theatre. The Manitoba Theatre Centre founded in
1958 was the country's first. It was built following the landmark
report issued by the government sponsored Massey-Levesque Commission
which 1.) affirmed such a thing as Canadian culture did exist; 2.)
devised the current system of government arts funding; and 3.)
recommended the establishment of a federal arts funding body (The
Canada Council) to be supplemented by provincial and municipal
agencies.
The Manitoba Theatre Centre is still active today, producing or
co-producing approximately 10 - 12 productions a year, between its two
stages (Mainstage and Warehouse Theatres).
LASER - (1960)
The 'laser' - or - (light amplification by stimulated emission of
radiation) was perfected in 1960, by research scientist Theodore Maiman
at the Hughes Laboratory in Malibu California. The actual term 'laser'
originated about 1957 by Gordon Gould (40) at the University of
Columbia, where his notarized notebooks show the basic laser concept.
Gould tried to interest American defense officials in the development
of a potential 'death-ray', but as he was involved in some left-wing
political activities in the early 1940's, the Defense Department
classified his patent application secret, denied him security
clearance, and confiscated his notebooks.
Physicists Charles H. Townes and his brother-in-law Arthur Schawlow
were the first to actually apply for a patent on the laser and they
were the first to publish their findings in scientific journals.
The He-Ne laser (red beam) was in commercial use, by 1968. Today many
different types of lasers exist, for a wide range of applications.
Lasers are used for surgery, for cutting metal, for determining
distance, for projecting 3-dimensional holographic images, for computer
printing and for entertainment lighting applications.
Laser light differs from ordinary light in four ways. Briefly it is
much more intense, directional, monochromatic and coherent. Most lasers
consist of a column of active material with a partly reflecting mirror
at one end and a fully reflecting mirror at the other. In a typical
solid laser material, a ruby crystal, the active ingredients are
chromium atoms interspersed in the crystal lattice of aluminum oxide.
The laser is primed by pumping these atoms, by means of a flash of
intense light, to an excited state. This causes the system to produce a
cascade of photons, all of the same wavelength and all in step with
each other.
See also: [HOLOGRAM/HOLOGRAPHY]
HOLOGRAM/HOLOGRAPHY - (a 1960)
The term 'holography' was coined by Hungarian physicist Dennis Gabor in
1947, to describe a new form of three-dimensional images. His work
related to the area of electron beam microscopes, however it became
evident that a coherent light source was required to make a hologram
and it was not until the laser was fully developed that his concepts
were realized.
In the early, 1960's Emmet N. Leith and Juris Upatnieks of the
University of Michigan working with a laser, created the first hologram
or holographic image.
A hologram is created by splitting the beam of light from a laser into
two, using a beam splitter and mirrors. One beam illuminates a
photographic plate (the hologram). The other beam illuminates the
object and reflects its image to the plate. The two beams set up an
interference pattern that is recorded on film. The object can be
captured in three-dimensions. To reconstruct the image, simply shine a
laser of identical wavelength on the developed holographic plate. The
image forms in mid-air. If you move around the image you will be able
to view it from different angles in three-dimensions. Tear off a small
piece of the hologram and you will still see the complete
three-dimensional image. All of the information is contained in any
part of the hologram.
LUMINAIRE - (a 1960)
A lighting fixture is properly referred to as a 'Fixture' or as an
'Instrument', in North America.....as a 'Light Fitting' or a 'Lantern'
in Britain...and as a Luminaire (the 'e' is silent), in other parts of
the world and by the engineering community. All of these terms are
taken to mean: 'a complete lighting unit', usually consisting of; a
metal housing, socket, lamp, reflector, electrical cord, connector and
(lens). The term 'luminaire' is also commonly used by electrical
engineers and architectural lighting designers. Although the word
luminaire (from the French) has been in use for sometime, it is only in
the 1960's that the term started to be used in North American theatre
by the architectural and theatre lighting industries.
CCT THEATRE LIGHTING - (a 1960)
CCT was a large British based manufacturer of high quality stage and
studio lighting fixtures. Installations include; the Bolshoi (Moscow),
La Scala (Spain), the Lido (Paris), the Orpheum (Vancouver), the Sydney
Opera House and the National Theatre (Britain). W.J. Furse & Co.
Limited (Nottingham, England) acquired CCT about 1988.
FOUR STAR STAGE LIGHTING - (a 1960)
Four Star is a large New York based lighting company with a long
reputation for lighting sales, rentals and service.
Four Star Lighting
30 Warren Place
Mount Vernon, N.Y., USA
914-667-9200.
IMERO FIORENTINO ASSOCIATES - (1960)
Founded in 1960, Imero Fiorentino Associates was originally a firm of
leading television lighting directors and consultants. The firm has now
expanded to provide lighting and staging consulting to concert,
corporate and industrial projects. IRA has offices in New York, Las
Vegas and Hollywood.
TEATRO - (a 1960)
Teatro is an Italian manufacturer of high quality stage and studio
lighting fixtures. They make a wide range of fixtures from fixed and
zoom ellipsoidal reflector spotlights, to floodlights and fresnel type
fixtures.
Teatro
slr Via Inghilterra
2-4602 Castel Goffredo (Mn) Italy
Tel +39 (0)376-780702
Fax:+39 (0)376-780888
UNITED STATES INSTITUTE FOR THEATRE TECHNOLOGY (USITT) - (1960)
U.S.I.T.T. (USITT) - Non-profit membership association comprised of
individuals, organizations, manufacturers and suppliers specializing in
all aspects of technical production and design in the performing arts
industry. USITT produces an Annual Conference and Stage Expo, publishes
TD&T and Sightlines, sponsors projects, programs, research symposia and
exhibits, and assists in developing industry standards for safe,
efficient and ethical practices. Founded in 1960, the mission of the
institute is to actively promote the advancement of the knowledge and
skills of its members.
USITT
6443 Ridings Road
Syracuse, NY, 13206, USA
315-463-6463 TEL
315-463-6525 FAX
800-93USITT
WWW:http://www.ffa.ucalgary.ca/usitt/
QUARTZ HALOGEN LAMP - (1960)
(Also the TUNGSTEN HALOGEN) lamp was introduced in 1960 for use by the
stage and studio market. General Electric often claims to have invented
the halogen lamp in 1957.
The bulb of a typical tungsten filament lamp, blackens with age as the
filament boils off and the tungsten is deposited on the bulb wall.
Halogen lamps are 'self-cleaning'. Halogen vapor present in the lamp
combines with particles of tungsten that have been evaporated from the
filament and redeposits them on the filament. For this process to take
place, bulb wall temperatures should not be below. 482ø F., (250 øC.)
Hot spots on the bulb wall may go as high as 1250ø F., (700ø C.) Lamp
base temperatures should not exceed 622ø F., (350ø C.), as above that
point, lead wires may deteriorate and the basing cement may loosen,
causing premature lamp failure.
METAL HALIDE LAMP - (a 1960)
The first metal halide lamp was developed about 1960. Metal Halide
lamps are essentially mercury high pressure discharge lamps that have
additional metal halides in their arc tubes. Metal Halide lamps provide
improved efficiency and improved color rendering qualities over mercury
lamps. The modern metal halide lamp has a luminous efficiency of 85-115
lumens per watt.
THORN LIGHTING - (a 1960)
Thorn was a leading European manufacturer of high quality lighting
fixtures, lamps and accessories. Their lamp division was taken over by
the General Electric Company in the early 1990's. Several years later
the company ceased all operations.
'CINEMOID' COLOR FILTERS - (a 1960)
In the early days of the electric filament lamp, gelatin color filters
were used to color stage lighting fixtures. Gelatin filters dissolved
when wet, and could not withstand the high heat from the tungsten
halogen lamp (developed in the early 1960's). As a result, a new type
of filter, 'Cinemoid', was developed by [STRAND ELECTRIC] (London).
Cinemoid used a colored acetate sheeting, with inherent
self-extinguishing properties. Less than 60 colors were shown by a 1966
product catalog sheet. 'Cinemoid' is no longer produced and has been
replaced by polyester based materials, such as 'Roscolux' and 'Lee'
filters.
See also: [ROSCOLUX], [LEE]
LIGHTING TEMPLATE - (a 1960)
Lighting designers working in theatre and television often must produce
a drawing known as the 'light plot'. This drawing will use a number of
specialized symbols to represent the specific type of lighting
fixtures, required. The fixtures will usually be shown to scale, and
will be drawn in their exact position.
About 1960, the plastic drafting template was developed, specifically
for the lighting designer. This greatly assisted in the drawing of
lighting symbols. Although plastic drawing templates are now widely
available through any stage lighting supply company, Lighting
Associates has long produced a number of different lighting templates
specifically for the lighting, sound and scenic designer.
Lighting Associates
P.O. Box 229
Chester, CT, 06412, USA
Tel: (203) 526-9315
LIGHT BULB JOKES - (c 1960)
Somewhere around 1960, the 'light bulb' jokes started to appear
throughout North America. Some of the best of the worst, are as
follows:
Q: How many Californians does it take to change a light bulb?
A: Six. One to turn the bulb, one for support, and four to share the
experience.
Q: How many Oregonians does it take to screw in a light bulb?
A: Five. One to change the bulb and four more to chase off the
Californians who have come up to share the experience.
Q: How many New Yorkers does it take to screw in a light bulb?
A: None of your damn business!
Q: How many Union Electricians does it take to screw in a light bulb?
A: 50 - its in the contract.
Q: How many straight San Franciscans does it take to screw in a light
bulb?
A: Both of them.
Q: How many WASPs does it take to change a light bulb?
A: Two. One to call the electrician and one to mix the martinis.
Q: How many Psychiatrists does it take to change a light bulb?
A: Only one, but the bulb has got to really WANT to change.
Q: How many `Real Women' does it take to change a light bulb?
A: None: A 'Real Woman' would have plenty of real men around to do it.
Q: How many `Real Men' does it take to change a light bulb?
A: None: `Real Men' aren't afraid of the dark.
Q: How many Jewish mothers does it take to screw in a light bulb?
A: None. ("That's all right...I'll just sit here in the dark...")
Q: How many mice does it take to screw in a light bulb?
A: Two. (Hint:They are small enough to fit inside).
Q: How many valley girls does it take to change a light bulb?
A: Oooh, like, manual labor? Gag me with a spoon! For sure.
Q: How many managers does it take to change a light bulb?
A: Three. One to get the bulb and two to get the phone number
to dial one of their subordinates to actually change it.
Q: How many lawyers does it take to change a light bulb?
A: How many can you afford?
Q: How many Jewish-American Princesses does it take to screw in
a light bulb?
A: Two. One to get a Tab and one to call Daddy.
Q: How many accountants does it take to screw in a light bulb?
A: What kind of answer did you have in mind?
Q: How many mystery writers does it take to screw in a light bulb?
A: Two, one to screw it almost all the way in and the other to
give it a surprising twist at the end.
Q: How many consultants does it take to change a light bulb?
A: I'll have an estimate for you a week from Monday.
Q: How many people from New Jersey does it take to change a lightbulb?
A: Three. One to change the light bulb, one to be a witness, and the
third to shoot the witness.
ASSOCIATION OF BRITISH THEATRE TECHNICIANS - (1961)
A.B.T.T. (ABTT) - was founded in 1961 to provide a forum for discussion
among theatre technicians, to collect and disseminate information of a
technical nature and to advise and assist all those involved in the
planning and construction or reconstruction of new and existing
theatres. The organization is based in London.
SKIRPAN ELECTRONICS - (1965)
Skirpan Electronics was founded in 1965 by Stephen J. Skirpan. The
company (located in Long Island City, N.Y.) rapidly grew to be a
leading manufacturer of computer assisted lighting control systems.
Their control system known as the "Autocue", used a light pencil and
video monitor, for operator input. Their "Astral" dimmer was one of
the first compact dimmers produced by the industry. It was a small
'strip' (1.75" high), dimmer, packaged for installation in a standard
19" rack. Unfortunately Skirpan Electronics closed their doors about
1980.
ASSOCIATED DESIGNERS OF CANADA - (1965)
A.D.C. (ADC) - Founded in 1965, (Canada) the A.D.C. represents
professional designers working in the theatre and film industries.
Members include; set, costume, lighting and sound designers located
across Canada. The organization is dedicated to promoting professional
and public recognition of the designer's role, as well as increasing
communications among Canadian designers. Although not a union, the
A.D.C. provides a similar function, as does the United Scenic Artists,
in America. Currently, the A.D.C. has approximately 150 members,
located across Canada.
LIGHT EMITTING DIODE - (a 1965)
The light emitting diode (LED) is p-n junction semiconductor lamp which
emits radiation then biased in a forward direction. The emitted
radiation may be either invisible (infrared) or in the visible
spectrum. Visible solid state lamps are used for long life indicator
service. Infrared diodes have outputs carefully matched to silicon
photoreceivers. They are used in conjunction with the receivers, for
counting, sensing, and positioning applications. LED's generally
operate in the range of 1 to 3 volts at currents of 10 to 100,
milliamperes continuous.
LED's are commonly used in indicator lighting applications. Due to
their very long life and low operating current, they are ideal
replacements for incandescent indicator lights. Early LED's came in red
only. Next green and amber were introduced. By the mid 1990's blue and
white LED's had been developed.
PABLO LIGHT SHOW - (a 1966)
Pablo, was a New York City company of light show artists, and
technicians that performed throughout the late 1960's and 1970's.
Experts in projection techniques, the artists at Pablo provided some of
the most detailed and dynamic projection shows, using a wide range of
photographic and hand painted slides.
One special projection technique used, was the 'amoeba'. The amoeba was
performed using a horizontal (overhead type) projector and two large
watch glasses of about 14" and 12" in diameter. The larger glass was
placed on the projector and filled with various oils, alcohols and
waters, colored with dye. Next the smaller dish was gently placed on
top of the mixture and then 'squashed' in time with the music. When
projected on a 20 ft. x 20 ft. rear screen behind a performer the
effect was usually quite spectacular, as a giant, kinetic, dancing blob
constantly changed in color, complexity and form. It was totally
psychedelic.
Pablo's multi-media presentations included theatre and television
productions, corporate presentations, fashion shows, discotheques and
concerts. The Pablo Light Show provided visual support to virtually all
of the major rock groups of the time. The founders of the company
included: Patrick Firpo, Jay Moss and Bob Quinn.
JOSHUA LIGHT SHOW - (a 1966)
Under the creative guidance of Joshua White, the Joshua Light Show
Group consisted of several talented projection artists and technicians.
For a period of time, the New York City based group was the resident
light show at the Fillmore East. They also provided special effects for
films (including Midnight Cowboy), stage productions and television.
The Joshua Light Show provided the colorful background to many musical
performers and groups in the late 1960's and early 1970's. The show was
projected on a large rear screen (20' x 40' typical) and used a wide
range of projection equipment, including slide, overhead and film
projectors. Equipment was typically modified to suit the specific needs
of the 'light artists.' Usually working from a scaffolding behind the
rear screen, the artists would create a kinetic and always changing
blend of light and imagery, always synchronized with the music. The
affect was mind blowing (or so it seemed at the time).
SODIUM LAMP - (HIGH PRESSURE) - (1966)
H.P.S. (HPS) - The high pressure sodium lamp has steadily developed and
gained in popularity, since its introduction 1966. It provides a more
economical source of illumination than mercury, fluorescent, or
incandescent and has a more natural color than low pressure sodium. The
H.P.S. sodium lamp has a luminous efficacy of approximately 80-140
lumens per watt.
See also: SODIUM LAMP - (LOW PRESSURE)
'LEE' COLOR FILTERS - (1967)
'Lee' (by Lee Electric Lighting, Britain), manufacturers a wide range
of filter and light control products for stage, film and television
lighting applications. The company was founded by David Holmes an
accomplished lighting cameraman. The company is known around the world
for their extensive product range of color filters for the stage and
color correction filters for the film and television industries. All
Lee's light control and color effect filters are made from a tough
polyester film base, which is impervious to water, is totally
transparent and has a high melting point. 1500 meter rolls of the film
are coated with specially prepared lacquers. Each formula is recorded
on a computer, to ensure the exact reproduction of color, from batch to
batch. The lacquer coating is applied to both sides of the film, is
also tough and flexible and has a high resistance to water and heat.
Lee Filters
2301 W. Victory Blvd.
Burbank, CA, 91506, USA
818-238-1220
800-576-5055
Canada: 416-890-0935
COLOR ORGAN, (EARLY ELECTRONIC) - (c 1967)
For centuries, man tried to provide a scientific correlation between
the color spectrum and the audio spectrum. It wasn't until mid 1960's
that a practical color organ device was developed for entertainment
lighting applications. This was the 'electronic' color organ. At first
transistors and then later SCR's were used to drive a number of
incandescent lamps. The typical color organ had three (3) channels.
Different colored lamps would be attached to each channel. Each channel
would be controlled by a separate audio input, tuned to a specific
audio frequency. A typical three (3) channel unit might be wired as
follows:
Channel Lamp Color Frequency
------------------------------------------
1 Red Hi (10-20Kz)
2 Green Mid ( 5-10Kz)
3 Blue Low ( 0 5Kz)
When activated, the 3 channels of lights would automatically dance and
respond to the beat of the music. More advanced color organs might
contain as many as 15 individual channels. This color organ became
popular for discotheque and psychedelic lighting applications. Today,
many entertainment lighting control boards now also contain advanced
color organ functions.
HMI LAMP - (1969)
The HMI lamp (mercury medium arc iodides), first appeared in Germany.
These metal halide lamps were developed by OSRAM GmbH to meet a need
established by the German Federal Television System in 1969, and their
use quickly spread throughout Europe and to the rest of the world.
Although originally designed for television lighting, they are now used
for location film lighting and as a source for many common followspot
spotlights. The modern HMI lamp is highly efficient (100-110 lumens per
watt), and produces a daylight type spectrum with a color temperature
of 5600 degrees K. Lamp wattages currently range from 200 to more than
12,000 watts.
The HTI lamp is a more recent version of the HMI. They area available
with an integral reflector and are often used in followspots, fiber
optic illuminators and in slide projectors.
Although not widely know in the name HMI, the H stands for mercury
(Hg), M indicates presence of Metals and the I refers to the addition
of halogen components (iodide, bromide). HMI is the registered
trademark of Osram Lighting.
See also: [OSRAM] and [METAL HALIDE].
USHIO - (c 1969)
Ushio is a leading manufacturer of stage, studio and specialized lamp
products.
Ushio America, Inc.
20101 S. Vermont Avenue
Torrance, CA 90502
Tel: (800) 326-1960
Tel: (213) 329-1960
GREAT AMERICAN MARKET - (a 1970)
G.A.M. (GAM) - The Great American Market Company supplies a great many
products to the professional theatre and stage industries. Products
include color filters, [GOBOS], projection equipment, lighting control
systems, and other speciality products. They are also the North
American distributor for the RDS projection system, marked under the
name of the Great American Scene Machine.
Great American Market
826 N. Cole Avenue
Hollywood, CA 90038
Tel: (213) 461-0200
Tel: (213) 461-4308
EARLY AUTOMATED LIGHTING - (a 1970)
Automated luminaires first started to appear in the USA in the early
1970's. One of the first was the 'Moto-Light' manufactured by
Dyna-Light, Springfield, MO. Another early automated lighting fixture
was the 'Mac Spot' from Europe. The Mac Spot retrofitted a conventional
Par64 fixture, allowing remote horizontal and vertical positioning
(physical movement of the fixture). It did nothing else. Modern
automated fixtures, in addition to pan and tilt movement, also provide
variable color, focus and template adjustments.
See also: [VARI-LITE] and [AUTOMATED LIGHTING FIXTURES].
AVAB - (1972)
AVAB Electronik AB, one of the world's leading manufacturers of
professional stage and studio dimming products, has its headquarters in
Gothenberg, Sweden. Their control and dimming systems have always been
considered to be state-of-the-art in design and engineering around the
world. AVAB purchased EMIL [NIETHAMMER] (c 1982) a large German
manufacturer of lighting fixtures. Avab founded around 1972 now also
has an office in the USA.
AVAB Transtechnik AB
Salsm„staregatan 32
S-422 46 Hisings Backa Sweden
+46 31 585 200
Email: sales@avab.se
DHA LIGHTING INC - (1972)
(D.H.A.) - Founded by lighting director [DAVID HERSEY], the British
firm specializes in lighting equipment design and manufacturing, with
products ranging from slides to moving effects, fiber optics and
software. The company also specializes in etching metal and glass
[GOBOS] from custom artwork. In North America, the company is
represented by [ROSCO].
DHA Lighting Ltd.
284-302 Waterloo Road
London SE1 8RQ
Tel: 44-171-771-2900
Tel: 44-171-771-2901
THEATRE MAGIC - (1974)
Founded in 1974, Columbus OH USA based Theatre Magic, sells special
effect equipment and accessories for the stage and studio industries.
They have an extensive range of etched metal projection patterns
[GOBOS]. In 1992 they changed their name to SFX DESIGN.
SFX Design
6099 Godown Road
Colombus OH 43235 USA
Tel: 614-459-3222
Fax: 614-459-5087
AUTOMATED LIGHTING FIXTURES - (c 1975)
The development of the automated lighting fixture in the early 1980's
caused a revelation and a breakthrough in entertainment lighting
design. Although several different automated fixtures first appeared in
the 1970's, most were crude and mechanically awkward. Early products
included the 'MacSpot' and the 'Moto-lite'. They used conventional
stage lighting fixtures (PARS's, lekos, etc,) fitted with a large
mechanized yoke. The yoke allowed the fixtures to pan, tilt, and not
much else.
In 1981 the American company [VARI-LITE] was the first to make a
successful automated fixture that gained wide acceptance. The fixture
was called the Vari*Lite and allowed remote control of pan, tilt, and
color. The fixtures were and are still today, mechanically,
electrically and optically complex. For this reason Vari*lite provides
a technician, on-site to service equipment as needed.
Today, there are now several other manufacturers providing reliable and
comprehensive automated lighting fixtures. Both [HIGH END SYSTEMS INC]
and [MARTIN], now provide a wide range of automated lighting products
gaining acceptance throughout the world. Other manufactures include
Clay Paky, Coemar Nat and [STRAND].
ELECTRONIC THEATRE CONTROLS INC. - (1975)
E.T.C. (ETC) is a leading American manufacturer of theatre; control,
dimming, and lighting fixtures. Their dimmers and control systems are
clearly among the best in the industry. In the mid 1990's E.T.C.
developed a series of 575 watt spotlights, known as the 'Source-4'
series. These fixtures are generally smaller, more compact, and more
efficient than any similar fixtures, available to date - marking a new
generation in fixture design and development.
E.T.C. also makes a fixture known as the 'Source-4-Par'. This fixture,
provides a beam similar to a PAR64 lamp, except the beam is round and
not oval. All fixtures use the same single ended tungsten halogen lamp,
however the beam spread is controlled by using one of the four 'spread
lenses' included with each fixture, allowing; spot, medium flood, wide
flood and flood capabilities, all from the same fixture.
Electronic Theatre Controls
3030 Laura Lane
Middleton, WI, 53562, USA
608-831-4116
INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF LIGHTING DESIGNERS - (a 1975)
I.A.L.D. (IALD) - is a professional organization for lighting designers
whose education and training may be in architecture, interior design,
theatre or electrical engineering. Dedicated to the professional
advancement of lighting design, IALD members may not be involved in any
way with the sale of lighting products.
I.A.L.D.
18 East 16th Street
Suite 208
New York, NY, 10003
212-206-1291.
DESISTI LIGHTING - (a 1975)
De Sisti Lighting, (also Desisti) is a leading manufacturer of high
quality lighting fixtures and accessories for the stage, film and
television industries. Desisti makes a wide range of spotlights and
floodlights, for both incandescent and discharge type lamps. They have
offices and representatives, located around the world.
De Sisti Lighting Srl
00040 Cecchina - Albano Laziale (Rome) - Italy
Tel: 06/9344414
Fax: 06/9343489
JULIAT, ROBERT - (a 1975)
Robert Juliet a French based firm, manufactures a broad line of HMI and
tungsten profile spotlights, fresnels, and followspots. Many units are
of extremely high quality in respect to design, engineering and
construction.
Robert Juliat
62/64 rue Danielle, Casanova F
93207 Saint-Denis Cedex
tel: (33) 1.42.43.35.35
fax: 1.42.43.08.05.
THEATRE BOOKS - (1975)
Theatre Books (Book shop) was established in 1975 in Toronto Canada. It
is a large specialized store (at 11 St. Thomas Street) handling a vast
collection of arts, theatre and motion picture books. (416) 922-7175.
AMX192 - (c 1975)
AMX192 is an older control protocol standard for dimmers. The standard,
adapted by the United States Institute for Theatre Technology, is non
proprietary and may be used by all manufacturers. AMX192 uses a small
twisted pair cable to communicate with a maximum of 192 dimmers. The
data signal is 'de-multiplexed' (usually at the dimmers) resulting in
individual 'analog' control signals (usually 0-10 volt, DC). A newer
control protocol [DMX512] provides digital control to a maximum of 512
dimmers, on a single twisted pair cable.
'ROSCOLUX' COLOR FILTERS - (1978)
'Roscolux' color filters were introduced by the American company
[ROSCO] in about 1978. Today Roscolux with more than 140 different
colors has become one of the most recognized and widely used filters in
the world. The filters are designed to withstand the high temperatures
of stage and studio lighting fixtures, unlike earlier filters made from
acetate or gelatin. Some filter manufacturers simply surface coat clear
plastic to form their colors. These filters may scratch and the surface
color may actually vaporize from the surface, through atmospheric
contact. Roscolux filters are colored when the plastic is in the resin
stage before the polymer is cast into film. This results in a tough,
resistant and durable filter with the color actually part of the
plastic, instead of just applied to it.
WESTSUN - (1978)
From its inception in 1978 as a local lighting rental house, Westsun
has grown to a recognized international supplier to the event and
entertainment industries. With companies and equipment stocks located
throughout Canada and the United States, Westsun offers comprehensive
lighting, sound, staging, and drapery - sales and rentals. Extensive
fabrication shops allow for the design and construction of automated
scenery, specialized staging and custom lighting products. In 1997,
Westsun International Inc. moved into a new 70,000 square foot
corporate headquarters in Winnipeg, Canada. Recently, Westsun Show
Systems Inc. has provided lighting or sound to a number of
'mega-musicals', including; Disney's 'The Lion King', 'Show Boat', 'The
Phantom of the Opera', 'Rag Time' and 'Sunset Boulevard'.
Westsun Winnipeg Inc.
Attn: Marc Raymond
1390 Pacific Avenue
Winnipeg, Canada, R3E 1G6
204-774-7800
800-WESTSUN
WWW: http://www.westsun.com
TIR SYSTEMS - (a 1980)
The commerical light pipe is a Canadian invention, developed by TIR
Systems Ltd., (Burnaby, BC). Single point source luminaires direct
light into hollow linear light guides to produce, through the principle
of Total Internal Reflection, lines of brilliant white or colored
light. Light pipes are made of extruded, impact resistant, clear
acrylic, and use a 250 watt, metal halide lamp, with a life of
approximately 10,000 hours. One luminaire is required for every 44-foot
run of light guide.
Various architectural and decorative lighting applications are ideally
suited to use of the light pipe. As the entire length of the 'pipe'
emits light, the light pipe might be used to provide lighting above a
swimming pool or to other generally inaccessible locations. The
luminaire is usually located in an accessible location, along the side
of the pool area.
See also: [LIGHT PIPE].
VARI-LITE - (1981)
VARI*LITE - Although a number of attempts had been made in recent years
at developing a 'moving' or automated, lighting fixture, the Vari*Lite
was the first to gain acceptance. In fact the Vari*Lite revolutionized
the music and entertainment lighting industry. Automated fixtures, that
pan, tilt, change color, project different patterns - are extremely
complex devices. The Vari*Lite, Model 1, was introduced on the Genesis
tour in 1981, by Showco, USA.
VL1 - introduced in 1981
VL2C - spot luminaire, introduced in 1993, (uses 600 watt HTI source)
VL5 - wash luminaire. incandescent model.
VL5A - wash luminaire, 575W MSR, twice as bright, as VL5.
Also see: [AUTOMATED LIGHTING FIXTURES]
Additional reading: Lighting Dimensions Nov. 1986 (great photos)
Vari-Lite Inc.
201 Regal Row
Dallas, TX, 75247, USA
214-630-1963
WWW: http://www.vari-lite.com
DMX512 - (1986)
DMX512 is a standard for digital data transmission between lighting
controllers and dimmers. A committee of the United States Institute for
Theatre Technology developed DMX512 as a non proprietary digital
protocol to be used by all manufacturers. DMX512 uses a small twisted
pair cable to communicate with a large number of dimmers. It does so by
digitally encoding the dimmer level information and sending the data
for multiple dimmers over the control cable, one dimmer at a time, one
after another. The dimmer level is encoded as one byte (eight bits).
The information is sent to the dimmers at a rapid rate, and has to
always be present to keep the dimmer from going to black. Update rate
of 20 - 40 times per second are common.
Up to 512 dimmers can be controlled on a single twisted pair. Often a
second twisted pair is also run for 'talkback' or other applications.
DMX applications typically use 5 pin XLR type connectors. The use of 3
pin XLR connectors is not recommended by the USITT standard.
Pin 1 - shield - ground
Pin 2 - black - data (-)-
Pin 3 - white - data (+)
Pin 4 - green - spare data (-)
Pin 5 - red - spare date (+)
See also: [AMX192].
Additional reading: Recommended Practice for DMX512 by Adam Bennette,
1994, published by PLASA & USITT.
ENTERTAINMENT SERVICES & TECHNOLOGY ASSOCIATION - (1987)
E.S.T.A. (ESTA) - Founded in 1987, ESTA is a non-profit trade
association representing the North American entertainment technology
industry. Many of the members are equipment dealers or manufacturers.
Other members provide services only. In addition to members in the
United States and Canada, ESTA has members in a number of countries,
throughout the world.
ESTA
875 Sixth Avenue
New York, NY, 10001, USA
212-244-1505
WWW: http://www.esta.org/
SUNLIGHT AND CANCER - (a 1990)
It was in the early 1990's when modern medicine brought us the bad new
regarding sun and skin cancer. Now the evidence is clear and
indisputable. There is no such thing as a 'nice natural tan' anymore .
Although we still worship the sun, as did our ancestors, we now do so
with a whole new respect.
There are three kinds of skin cancer, basal cell carcinomas, squamous
cell carcinomas, and melanomas. In the US there were 500,000 cases of
the first, 100,000 of the second, and 27,600 of the third in 1990.
[Wayne] More than 90% of the skin carcinomas in the US are attributed
to UV-B exposure: their frequency varies sharply with latitude, just as
UV does. The mechanism by which UV-B induces carcinomas has been
identified - the pyrimidine bases in the DNA molecule form dimers when
stimulated by UV-B radiation. [Taylor] [Tevini] [Young et al.].
Fortunately, these cancers are relatively easy to treat if detected in
time, and are rarely fatal. Skin carcinoma rates vary sharply with
latitude, just as UV-B does. Fair-skinned people of North European
ancestry are particularly susceptible; the highest rates in the world
are found in Queensland, a northerly province of Australia, where a
population of largely English and Irish extraction is exposed to very
high natural UV radiation levels.
Malignant melanoma is much more dangerous, but its connection with UV
exposure is not well understood. There seems to a correlation between
melanomas and brief, intense exposures to UV (long before the cancer
appears.) Melanoma incidence is definitely correlated with latitude,
with twice as many deaths (relative to state population) in Florida or
Texas as in Wisconsin or Montana, but this correlation need not imply a
causal relationship. Some claim that UV-A, which is not absorbed by
ozone, may be involved. [Skolnick] [Setlow et al.]
SULFUR LAMP - (1994)
One of the more exciting recent developments in light source technology
is the sulfur lamp. This source was developed in 1994 by Fusion
Lighting (USA), with support from the U.S, Department of Energy. About
the size of a golf ball, the sulfur lamp consists of a quartz bulb
containing non-toxic sulfur and inert argon gas at the end of a thin
glass stick. A microwave energy source of 2.45 Ghz. (magnetron)
bombards the lamp while a fan cooled motor spins the lamp at 3400 rpm.
The microwave energy excites the gas, which heats the sulfur, forming a
brightly glowing plasma that can illuminate a very large area.
The first early prototype lamps were 5.9 Kw. units with a system
efficacy of 80 lumens per watt. Correlated color temperature was about
6000K with a color rendering index of 79 CRI. The sulfur lamp starts
within seconds even at low ambient temperatures and can be dimmed. The
surfer lamp emits no electric or magnetic fields and the light output
remains constant over its life.
A new version, the LightDrive 1000, is a 1425 watt device that produces
135,000 lumens after about 20 seconds. The current technology produces
approximately 120 lumens per watt (including losses).
The energy output is continuous throughout the visual spectrum (much
like sunlight) however the source is low in both the ultraviolet and
infrared energy. The design life of the lamp is currently approximately
60,000 hours, however the design life of the magnetron is currently
only about 15,000-20,000 hours.
One of the first early fixtures to use the sulfur lamp was developed by
Cooper Lighting (USA). The fixture was incorporated into a free
standing kiosk, providing uplight to the ceiling and a fixture
efficiency of 85-88 percent. Other lighting companies are currently
working with Fusion lighting to develop new fixtures and equipment for
the sulfur lamp.
Fusion Lighting, USA, 301-284-7236.
MODERN STAGE LIGHTING DESIGNERS
BENTHAM, FREDERICK
Frederick Bentham (Britain) is an acknowledged pioneer and authority on
lighting for the stage. He was in charge of research and development at
[STRAND ELECTRIC] from approximately 1935, until 1965. He was
responsible for the technical development of many early Strand lighting
fixtures and related products.
Bentham published a book on 'The Art of Stage Lighting' in 1968. This
publication has been revised and is still today considered to be a
major textbook on the subject.
Bentham was also the author of "Tabs" from its inception in 1938 until
1973.
BILLINGTON, KEN
Ken Billington is a well known, New York based stage lighting designer.
He studied at The Studio and Forum of Stage Design in New York, and
later went on to assist Tharon Musser, Tom Skelton, and others. He has
designed the lighting for over 50 Broadway productions (including;
Fiddler on the Roof & Sweeney Todd) and his concert credits include
work with Shirley MacLaine, Ann-Margaret and Liza Minnelli. He won a
Tony award for his lighting of 'Chicago'.
BRIDGE, ANDREW
"Stage lighting designer (British). Bridge won the Tony, Drama Desk and
Outer Critics' Circle Awards for his designs for the "Phantom of the
Opera". West End credits include the Musicals, "Time", "Oliver", "An
Evening with Tommy Steele", "Troville and Dean", "Bing Crosby" and many
others". (REF: quote from, Rosco, Pattern Catalog, 1996)
CLARK, PEGGY
Peggy Clark is a leading American stage lighting designer (American).
DAVIDSON, DAVID
"Davidson, has designed the lighting for some of the most acclaimed
performers and acts in the world. A partial list of his most recent
clients includes Bon Jovi, Van Halen, Jackson Brown, and Kiss. In
addition, he has designed lighting for such acts as Ted Nugent, Stray
Cats, The Kinks, Englebert Humperdinct, The Jacksons, Santana, The
Blues Brothers and Hot Tuna." (REF: quote from, Rosco, Pattern
Catalog, 1996)
FEDER, ABE
Abe Feder was one of the first independent lighting designers in both
the theatrical and architectural worlds. His Broadway credits include
"My Fair Lady" and "Camelot". His architectural lighting credits range
the world and include the United Nations in New York, the Israel
National Museum in Jerusalem, Philharmonic Hall in Lincoln Center and
the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C.
FEHER, ERWIN M.
Studied stage design at the Federal Institute of Technology, Graz,
Austria and at Columbia University. He worked in the graduate school of
Yale University-MFA program. He joined with JO MIELZINER in planning
for the New York World's Fair in 1964, and for a time was a specialist
for projection design at New York's Metropolitan Opera. Erwin Feher
published a number of books, including the very comprehensive "Towards
a Theater of Light".
FINGERHUT, ARDEN
Stage lighting designer (American)
FISHER, JULES
Jules Fisher is a well known American lighting designer, who works
extensively in both theatre and architectural lighting design. His
Broadway credits include the lighting for "No No Nanette", "Hair",
"Lenny", "Pippin", "Butterflies are Free", "Half a Sixpence", "High
Spirits", and many more. He has won 6 Tony Awards and in his spare
time, he practices magic.
GALLO, PAUL
Paul Gallo (New York), has designed the lighting for many Broadway
productions, including "Six Degrees of Separation", "The Little Foxes",
"Grown Ups", "Heartbreak House", and many others. He has received Tony
nominations for "Anything Goes" (1988), "The House of Blue Leaves"
(1988) and "The City of Angels" (1990). He is also the recipient of two
Obe Awards and the Maharam Award. (REF: quote from, Rosco, Pattern
Catalog, 1996).
GLEASON, JOHN
Gleason (American) was the Associate Chair of the Department of Design
at New York University and was the resident lighting designer for the
Repertory Theater of Lincoln Center from 1967 to 1972. He designed the
acclaimed revival of "A Streetcar Named Desire". On Broadway, he has
designed more than 90 shows, including: "My Fair Lady", "Hello Dolly",
"The Great White Hope", and "Over Here".
HERSEY, DAVID
David Hersey, (American) stage lighting designer, has lived in London
for over twenty years and has designed over 200 production for major
national theatre, operas and ballet companies. West End productions
include: Cats, Starlight Express, Les Mis‚rables, Chess and Miss
Saigon. For ten years he was lighting consultant for the National
Theatre in London. His work has also been seen in New York on Broadway.
David Hersey also manages D.H.A., a leading British supplier of
specialized lighting accessories and effects.
MUSSER, THARON
Tharon Musser is a well known American stage lighting designer. She has
received three Tony Awards for her work on "Follies", "A Chorus Line",
and "Dream Girls". Her many contributions include being the first
lighting designer to use a computer lighting system on Broadway. She
has designed plays and many musicals and operas around the world. Her
work on Broadway includes: "The Sunshine Boys", "A Little Night Music",
"Applause", "A Long Day's Journey Into Night", "42nd Street", "The
Wiz", "Chorus Line", "Follies" and "Ballroom".
Additional reading: Lighting Dimensions, March 1990.
PILBROW, RICHARD
Richard Pilbrow (Britain) is a leading designer and authority on the
subject of stage lighting. His work since 1958 has been seen in more
than 200 productions, principally in London but also in New York and
Moscow. His excellent book on lighting; "Stage Lighting", first
published in 1970, is often considered to be a leading text on the
subject. His new book "Stage Lighting Design" was published in 1997.
Richard Pilbrow is also founder of Theatre Projects, a large London
based theatre consulting firm, now also based in the USA. As theatre
consultant, he has designed the stages and lighting for a number of
theatres, including the National Theatre of Great Britain, the Calgary
Centre for the Performing Arts (Canada), and the Barbican Theatre for
the Royal Shakespeare company.
LESTER POLAKOV
Stage designer (U.S.A.) Polakov formed and ran the Lester Polakov
Studio and Forum of Stage Design at 727 Washington Street in New York
City for many years. Reid is a well known British lighting designer and consultant.
He is also the author of a great many articles relating to theatre and
stage lighting.
SVOBODA, JOSEF
One of the most renowned and inventive designers in the world today is
the contemporary Czech designer, Josef Svoboda. With hundreds of
productions to his credit, Svoboda is best known for his remarkable
technical innovations in lighting, projection and kinetic scenery.
Svoboda views science and technology as a means to an end, as
instruments to be controlled by an artistic vision. More often than is
generally thought, his scenography employs the simplest of technical
devices or virtually eliminates them. What is almost never absent from
his work however is a poetic, theatrically organized sensibility.
Additional reading: Theatre Design and Technology, Summer 1976 and
February 1970)
TIPTON, JENNIFER
Jennifer Tipton (American), is a well known lighting designer for
theatre dance and opera. She has designed the lighting for such leading
choreographers as Jerome Robbins, Mikhall Baryshnikov and Twyla Tharp.
She won a Tony award for her lighting of "The Cherry Orchard". Her many
lighting awards include two Bessies, two Tonys, a Joseph Jefferson
Award, a Kudo, and others. Ms. Tipton also teaches lighting at the Yale
University School of Drama.
WECHSLER, GIL
Stage lighting designer (American)
WHITFIELD, MICHAEL
Michael Whitfield has designed over 50 productions for the Canadian
Opera Company in Toronto and more than 80 productions for the Stratford
Shakespearean Festival where he is the resident lighting designer. The
operas cover the entire range from Albert Herring to Idomeneo and
include among others Fidelio, Aida and Electra. In addition to
productions at Stratford, he has designed such productions as Cabaret,
Carousel and Our Town. His designs have also been seen at the San
Francisco Opera, the Welsh National Opera, De Nederlandse
Operastichting, the National Ballet of Canada, Canadian regional
theatres and in London's West End. (REF: quote from, Rosco, ad. TCI.
April 1993).
WILLIAMS, BILL
Bill Williams is a well known Canadian lighting designer, working in
the fields of stage and architectural lighting design. Williams studied
lighting design in New York, at The Studio and Forum of Stage Design,
where his work was strongly influenced by one of his teachers, lighting
designer Tom Skelton. In the 1960's Williams worked as a designer with
the New York based, multimedia group 'Pablo', where he designed and
developed special effects and projection equipment for one of the
world's leading 'light shows'.
In the early 1970's, Williams returned to Canada and established an
active design practice in Winnipeg. When not designing for the stage,
he works as a theatre consultant, assisting architects with the design
of theatres and cultural facilities. Subsequent work has included more
than 500 projects in over a dozen countries, around the world. Bill
Williams is a member of the Associated Designers of Canada and is also
the author of this file.
LIGHT - NATURAL PHENOMENA
SUN & SUNLIGHT
For years, man thought that the earth was the center of the known
universe, not the sun. It was only in the 16th Century that COPERNICUS
finally proved the sun to be the center of our solar system.
The main part of the sun's radiation at sea level, lies between about
290 and 3,500 nanometers The shorter wavelengths are [ULTRAVIOLET], and
the longer are [INFRARED]. Visible wavelengths lie in the relatively
narrow wavelength band of 380 to 770 nanometers. Intensity and spectral
composition of natural daylight vary with time of day, season,
geographical location and weather.
MOON & MOONLIGHT
The moon shines solely by virtue of its ability to reflect sunlight. It
is approximately 238,000 miles from the earth. It takes about 8 minutes
for the light of the sun to reach the moon and another 1.3 seconds for
the light reflected from the moon, to reach the earth.
Illumination on the earth's surface by the moon may be as high as 0.2
lux, (.002 fc).
LIGHTNING
Lightning is a meteorological phenomenon arising from accumulation, in
the formation of clouds, of large electrical charges. The charges are
(usually positive) are suddenly released in a spark type of discharge.
About 100 times every second, the earth is struck with lightning, which
streams down in belts 1,000 to 9,000 feet long. A single bolt may
develop 3750 kilowatts. About 75 percent of the energy in lightning is
dissipated as heat that rises the temperature of surrounding air to
about 27,000øF. This causes the air to expand quickly, like the gases
in an explosion. The movement creates sound waves that can be heard as
thunder for distances of up to 18 miles. ..(REF: Time, Energy, 1963)
(PHOTO: Time, Energy, 1996)
Divide time delay (in seconds) between lightning and thunder by 5, to
calculate approximate storm distance (in miles).
AURORA BOREALIS (NORTHERN LIGHTS)
"These hazy horizontal patches or bands of greenish light on which
white, pink or red streamers sometimes are superimposed appear 60 to
120 miles above the earth. They are caused by electron streams
spiraling into the atmosphere, primarily at polar latitudes". (REF:
quote from: I.E.S. Lighting Handbook - Ref. Vol. 1881)
AURORA AUSTRALIS (SOUTHERN LIGHTS)
The same phenomenon of the Northern Lights, also exists in the southern
hemisphere and is know as the Aurora Australis.
See also: [AURORA BOREALIS].
BIOLUMINESCENCE
"Living Light - is a form of chemiluminescence in which special
compounds manufactured by plants and animals are oxidized, producing
light. Although is has been proven that oxygen is required to produce
bio luminescence, there is no evidence that the light producing
compound must be a 'living' material The light producing compound may
be dried and stored for many years and upon exposure to oxygen, emit
light". (REF: I.E.S. Lighting Handbook - Ref. Vol. 1981)
MAN MADE LIGHT SOURCES
"Historically, light sources have been divided into two types -
incandescent and luminescent. Fundamentally the cause of light emission
is the same , i.e., electronic transitions from higher to lower energy
states. The mode of electron excitement is different, however, as well
as the spectral distribution of radiation. Incandescent solid
substances basically emit a continuous spectrum, while gaseous
discharges radiate mainly in discrete spectral lines, however there is
some overlapping. Incandescent rare earth elements can emit lines,
whereas high pressure discharge produces a continuous spectrum".
LIGHT - QUOTATIONS
We owe a lot to Thomas Edison - if it wasn't for him, we'd be watching
television by candlelight. (Milton Berne)
Many a man has fallen in love with a girl, in a light so dim, he would
not have chosen a suit by it. (Anon)
And GOD said "Let there be light", and there was light, and GOD saw
that is was good, and put the bloody electricity bill up by 4 pence a
unit. (Anon)
The weight of moonlight on the oceans causes the water to spread out to
the edges of the land. (G.E. Last, 19th Century)
The Speed of light is very fast. (Carl Sagan)
Nature and nature's laws lay hid in night, God said, "Let Newton be,"
and all was light. (Anon)
Genius is one per cent inspiration and ninety-nine per cent
perspiration. (Thomas Alva Edison)
All art is quite useless. (Oscar Wilde)
No great artist ever sees things as they are. If he did he would cease
to be an artist. (Oscar Wilde)
She is like most artists; she has style without sincerity. (Oscar
Wilde)
Writing about art is like dancing about architecture. (Anon)
The sun was shining on the sea,
Shining with all his might:
He did his very best to make
The billows smooth and bright --
And this was very odd, because it was
The middle of the night.
(Lewis Carroll)
We will have solar energy as soon as the utility companies solve one
technical problem -- how to run a sunbeam through a meter. (Anon)
CROSS REFERENCE
CENTER - also try: CENTRE (for British references)
CENTRE - also try: CENTER (for American references)
COLOR - also try: COLOUR (for British references)
COLOUR - also try: COLOR (for American references)
THEATER - also try: THEATRE (for British references)
THEATRE - also try: THEATER (for American references)
QUARTZ HALOGEN - also try: TUNGSTEN HALOGEN
BLACKLIGHT - see: ULTRAVIOLET and UV
BLACK BODY - see: BLACKBODY
BLACK LIGHT - see: ULTRAVIOLET
CAMERA - see: PHOTOGRAPHY, CAMERA OBSCURA
FIXTURE - see: LUMINAIRE/LEKO/FRESNEL/ELLIPSOIDAL
FLOOD LIGHT - see: FLOODLIGHT
FOLLOW SPOT - see: FOLLOWSPOT
FOOT CANDLE - see: FOOTCANDLE
FOOT LIGHT - see: FOOTLIGHT
GREECE - see: GREEK
LANTERN - see: LUMINAIRE/LEKO/FRESNEL/ELLIPSOIDAL
LIGHT HOUSE - see: LIGHTHOUSE
LIGHT YEAR - see: LIGHTYEAR
LIME LIGHT - see: LIMELIGHT
MAGIC LANTERN - see: LATERNA MAGICA
PHOTO CELL - see: PHOTOCELL
PROFILE SPOT - see: ELLIPSOIDAL REFLECTOR
ROME - see: ROMAN
SALT - see: PHOTOGRAPHY
SALT WATER - see: SALTWATER
SPOT LIGHT - see: SPOTLIGHT
STRIP LIGHT - see: STRIPLIGHT / COMPARTMENT BATTEN
SULPHUR - see: SULFUR
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Bailey, Donald M. "Greek & Roman Pottery Lamps", British Museum (1972)
Bamber, Gascoigne "World Theatre" Little Brown & Co. (1968).
Bova, Ben "The Beauty of Light", John Wiley & Sons Inc. (1988).
Cohen, Bernard "Franklin & Newton", Harvard University Press, (1966)
Dogigli, Johannes "The Magic of Rays" Knopf Inc. (1961).
Feher, E.M. "Towards A Theatre Of Light", (c 1970).
Hartnoll, Phyllis "A Concise History of the Theatre" Thame & Hudson 74.
Holt, Reinhart & Winston Inc. "Modern Physics", (1960).
Illuminating Engineering Society, Lighting Handbook, Applications (1987)
Illuminating Engineering Society, Lighting Handbook, Reference (1981)
Life Science Library "Planets", (1966).
Life Science Library, "The Scientist", (1964)
McCandless, Stanley, "A Syllabus of Stage Lighting" Yale Univ. (1964)
Penzel, Frederick "Theatre Lighting Before Electricity" Wesleyan (1978)
Pilbrow, Richard "Stage Lighting" (1970)
Rodgers, A. "History of Light Sources" (Slide Set & text), c 1974).
Time-Life Books "The First Men - Emergence of Man" (1973)
Trevor-Roper, Patrick "The World through blunted sight" B.Merril (1970)
Sagan, Carl & Leonard. Jonathan "Planets", Time/Life. (1966)
Schawlow, Arthur "Laser Light', Scientific American, Sept. (1968).
World population figures: "The Beauty of Light", Ben Bova, (1988)
Write, W.D. "Measurement of Color", Hilger & Watts Ltd, London. (1964)
COPYRIGHT NOTICE
This electronic publication is copyright by the author and may not be
distributed, copied or reproduced in any way (in whole or in part),
without the written permission of the author.
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(c) 1999 by Bill Williams