First stereo sound movie

First stereo sound movie

'Trains at Hayes Station', 1935

Alan Blumlein (1903-42), the inventor of stereophonic recording, made a few short test films in early July 1935, in which his original intent of having the sound 'follow' the actor was realised fully. The first was 'Trains at Hayes Station'; it is 487 feet, lasts for 5 minutes 11 seconds, and shows various steam trains arriving and departing from Hayes station, filmed looking down from an empty office building. [Alexander]

The Archive of the Alexandra Palace Television Society has a copy of this film.

First stereo sound feature film

The first sound feature film experienced in stereo by contemporaries was This is Cinerama, which premiered on 30 September 1952, at the New York Broadway theatre. It was essentially a 115 minute travelogue, designed to showcase the new 3-projector widescreen format. It was directed by Merian C. Cooper (1893-1973) and Gunther von Fritsch (1906-88).

The first stereo sound feature film, not experienced in stereo when originally shown, but—thanks to the survival of the original microphone tapes—now available with remastered stereo, was the celebrated The Wizard of Oz, of 1939. The director was Victor Fleming (1889-1949). The stereo version has been available since 1999. The 2009 Blu-ray version features a lossless 5.1 Dolby TrueHD audio track.

MGM were in fact using multitrack recording from 1938, but were at that time mixing down to a single optical track on the film itself. On 21 June 1938 Judy Garland recorded "It Never Rains But What It Pours" for the movie Love Finds Andy Hardy—MGM's very first stereo recording. Although the film—directed by George B. Seitz (1888-1944)—is available on DVD, the soundtrack is in mono, and it is not clear whether the stereo soundtrack could be reconstructed. NB According to Schulman the earliest surviving Garland pre-recordings to have been remixed into stereo from individual optical channels were "In-Between" and "Meet the Beat of My Heart", recorded on 24 June 1938 for this film.

Even this may have been preceded: The conductor Leopold Stokowski recorded onto a nine-track sound system at the Academy of Music in Philadelphia, during the making of the movie One Hundred Men and a Girl for Universal Pictures in 1937—director Henry Koster (1905-88). These tracks too were mixed down to mono for the final release, and again it is unclear whether or not a stereo soundtrack could be reconstructed, even given the will.

First surviving stereo sound movie including the human voice

'Stick Trick', 1935

Blumlein's second experimental film, dated 12 July 1935, and known as 'Stick Trick', runs for 116 feet, a total of 1 minute 15 seconds. Three men are shown—Albert Westlake, Philip Vanderlyn and Felix Trott—playing tricks with a short pole which they hold and then try to climb over without removing their hands from the ends. Frank 'Felix' Runcorn Trott (1911-2002) is the only participant who speaks on camera. [Alexander]

The Archive of the Alexandra Palace Television Society has a copy of this film.

First stereo sound movie including a female voice

The first sound feature film experienced in stereo by contemporaries was 1952's This is Cinerama (as above), which appears to have included women's voices, but perhaps only en masse.

The first stereo sound feature film, not experienced in stereo when originally shown, but now available with remastered stereo, was The Wizard of Oz, of 1939 (also as above). This, of course, features the voice of Judy Garland (1922-69).

Earlier examples of stereo sound feature films that included the female voice were Love Finds Andy Hardy and One Hundred Men and a Girl, but, as stated above, it is doubtful whether the stereo soundtracks (if they still exist) are ever likely to be reconstructed.

Earliest-born person whose voice was recorded in a stereo sound film

Probably Charley Grapewin (1869-1956), who played Uncle Henry in The Wizard of Oz.

Earliest-born woman whose voice was recorded in a stereo sound film

Possibly Sybil Thorndike (1882-1976), who played Queen Victoria in the 1953 Melba.

© 2010-2011 Benjamin S. Beck

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