Perspecta
Encyclopedia
Perspecta was a directional motion picture sound system, invented by the laboratories at Fine Sound Inc. in 1954. As opposed to magnetic stereophonic soundtracks available at the time, its benefits were that it did not require a new sound head for the projector and thus was a cheaper alternative.
Introduced as a "directional sound system" rather than a true stereophonic sound
system, Perspecta did not utilize discretely recorded sound signals. Instead, three sub-audible
tones at 30 Hz, 35 Hz, and 40 Hz are mixed appropriately and embedded in a monaural, optical soundtrack
, in addition to the audible sound. When run through a Perspecta integrator
, depending on whenever each tone is present, the audio is fed into a left (30 Hz), center (35 Hz) and right (40 Hz) speaker. Unlike true stereophonic sound, which would be described as discrete tracks running in synchronization in time and phase, Perspecta merely panned a mono mix across various channels. Because of this, only isolated dialog or sound effects could be mixed to be directional. Mixed sound effects, dialog and music could not be suitably mixed. Aside from panning, Perspecta controlled gain
levels for each channel through the amplitude of each control signal.
MGM Studios
and Paramount Pictures
were major supporters and developers of Perspecta, and used on all Paramount VistaVision
pictures when the system was unveiled in 1954 until it fell out of favor around 1958. Universal-International
, Warner Bros.
, Columbia Pictures
, United Artists
, and Toho
were among some of the other major studios to utilize Perspecta regularly.
Introduced as a "directional sound system" rather than a true stereophonic sound
Stereophonic sound
The term Stereophonic, commonly called stereo, sound refers to any method of sound reproduction in which an attempt is made to create an illusion of directionality and audible perspective...
system, Perspecta did not utilize discretely recorded sound signals. Instead, three sub-audible
Infrasound
Infrasound is sound that is lower in frequency than 20 Hz or cycles per second, the "normal" limit of human hearing. Hearing becomes gradually less sensitive as frequency decreases, so for humans to perceive infrasound, the sound pressure must be sufficiently high...
tones at 30 Hz, 35 Hz, and 40 Hz are mixed appropriately and embedded in a monaural, optical soundtrack
Sound-on-film
Sound-on-film refers to a class of sound film processes where the sound accompanying picture is physically recorded onto photographic film, usually, but not always, the same strip of film carrying the picture. Sound-on-film processes can either record an analog sound track or digital sound track,...
, in addition to the audible sound. When run through a Perspecta integrator
Signal processing
Signal processing is an area of systems engineering, electrical engineering and applied mathematics that deals with operations on or analysis of signals, in either discrete or continuous time...
, depending on whenever each tone is present, the audio is fed into a left (30 Hz), center (35 Hz) and right (40 Hz) speaker. Unlike true stereophonic sound, which would be described as discrete tracks running in synchronization in time and phase, Perspecta merely panned a mono mix across various channels. Because of this, only isolated dialog or sound effects could be mixed to be directional. Mixed sound effects, dialog and music could not be suitably mixed. Aside from panning, Perspecta controlled gain
Gain
In electronics, gain is a measure of the ability of a circuit to increase the power or amplitude of a signal from the input to the output. It is usually defined as the mean ratio of the signal output of a system to the signal input of the same system. It may also be defined on a logarithmic scale,...
levels for each channel through the amplitude of each control signal.
MGM Studios
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc. is an American media company, involved primarily in the production and distribution of films and television programs. MGM was founded in 1924 when the entertainment entrepreneur Marcus Loew gained control of Metro Pictures, Goldwyn Pictures Corporation and Louis B. Mayer...
and Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film production and distribution company, located at 5555 Melrose Avenue in Hollywood. Founded in 1912 and currently owned by media conglomerate Viacom, it is America's oldest existing film studio; it is also the last major film studio still...
were major supporters and developers of Perspecta, and used on all Paramount VistaVision
VistaVision
VistaVision is a higher resolution, widescreen variant of the 35mm motion picture film format which was created by engineers at Paramount Pictures in 1954....
pictures when the system was unveiled in 1954 until it fell out of favor around 1958. Universal-International
Universal Studios
Universal Pictures , a subsidiary of NBCUniversal, is one of the six major movie studios....
, Warner Bros.
Warner Bros.
Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc., also known as Warner Bros. Pictures or simply Warner Bros. , is an American producer of film and television entertainment.One of the major film studios, it is a subsidiary of Time Warner, with its headquarters in Burbank,...
, Columbia Pictures
Columbia Pictures
Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. is an American film production and distribution company. Columbia Pictures now forms part of the Columbia TriStar Motion Picture Group, owned by Sony Pictures Entertainment, a subsidiary of the Japanese conglomerate Sony. It is one of the leading film companies...
, United Artists
United Artists
United Artists Corporation is an American film studio. The original studio of that name was founded in 1919 by D. W. Griffith, Charles Chaplin, Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks....
, and Toho
Toho
is a Japanese film, theater production, and distribution company. It is headquartered in Yūrakuchō, Chiyoda, Tokyo, and is one of the core companies of the Hankyu Hanshin Toho Group...
were among some of the other major studios to utilize Perspecta regularly.
Select list of notable Perspecta features
- AthenaAthena (film)Athena is a romantic musical comedy, starring Jane Powell, Edmund Purdom, Debbie Reynolds, Vic Damone, Louis Calhern, and Norma Varden, and released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer....
(MGM, 1954) - Beau BrummellBeau Brummell (film)Beau Brummell is a historical film released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. It was directed by Curtis Bernhardt and produced by Sam Zimbalist from a screenplay by Karl Tunberg, based on the play Beau Brummell by Clyde Fitch. The music score was by Richard Addinsell with Miklós Rózsa...
(MGM, 1954) - White ChristmasWhite Christmas (film)White Christmas is a 1954 Technicolor musical film starring Bing Crosby and Danny Kaye that features the songs of Irving Berlin, including the titular "White Christmas"...
(Par, 1954) - The Barefoot ContessaThe Barefoot ContessaThe Barefoot Contessa is a 1954 film about the life and loves of fictional Spanish sex symbol Maria Vargas. It was written and directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz and stars Humphrey Bogart, Ava Gardner and Edmond O'Brien....
(UA, 1954) - Gone with the WindGone with the Wind (film)Gone with the Wind is a 1939 American historical epic film adapted from Margaret Mitchell's Pulitzer-winning 1936 novel of the same name. It was produced by David O. Selznick and directed by Victor Fleming from a screenplay by Sidney Howard...
(MGM, 1954 reissue) - King Richard and the CrusadersKing Richard and the CrusadersKing Richard and the Crusaders is a 1954 historical drama film made by Warner Bros.. It was directed by David Butler and produced by Henry Blanke from a screenplay by John Twist based on Sir Walter Scott's novel The Talisman. The music score was by Max Steiner and the cinematography by J. Peverell...
(WB, 1954) (also magnetic) - Lucky MeLucky Me (film)Lucky Me is a 1954 musical-comedy-romance film. The movie starred Doris Day, with co-stars, including, Robert Cummings, Phil Silvers, Martha Hyer, and Eddie Foy, Jr..-Cast:*Doris Day as Candy Williams*Robert Cummings as Dick Carson...
(WB, 1954) (also magnetic) - 3 Ring Circus3 Ring Circus3 Ring Circus is a 1954 film comedy starring Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis. It was shot from February 17 to March 31, 1954 and released on December 25 by Paramount Pictures.The film was the first starring Martin and Lewis to be shot in VistaVision...
(Par, 1955) - Artists and ModelsArtists and ModelsArtists and Models is a 1955 Paramount musical comedy in VistaVision and marked Martin and Lewis's fourteenth feature together as a team. The film co-stars Dorothy Malone, Eva Gabor, Anita Ekberg, and Shirley MacLaine.-Plot:...
(Par, 1955) - Bad Day at Black RockBad Day at Black RockBad Day at Black Rock is a 1955 thriller film directed by John Sturges that combines elements of Westerns and film noir. It tells the story of a mysterious stranger who arrives at a tiny isolated town in a desert of the southwest United States in search of a man...
(MGM, 1955) (also magnetic) - BedevilledBedevilledBedevilled is a 1955 crime film directed by Mitchell Leisen. It stars Anne Baxter and Steve Forrest.-Plot:A novice priest, on his way to take his final vows, offers sanctuary to a girl on the run from gangsters.-Cast:*Anne Baxter as Monica Johnson...
(MGM, 1955) (also magnetic) - East of Eden (WB, 1955) (also magnetic)
- The Far Horizons (Par, 1955)
- Hell's IslandHell's IslandHell's Island is an American color film noir starring John Payne and dircted by Phil Karlson. The film was the last teaming of actor Payne and film director Karlson. The film was shot in the VistaVision wide-screen format...
(Par, 1955) - Run For Cover (Par, 1955)
- The Seven Little FoysThe Seven Little FoysThe Seven Little Foys is a 1955 film starring Bob Hope as Eddie Foy. James Cagney reprises his role as George M. Cohan for an energetic tabletop dance showdown sequence. In addition to the famous film, the story of Eddie Foy, Sr...
(Par, 1955) - The SpoilersThe Spoilers (1955 film)The Spoilers is a 1955 film directed by Jesse Hibbs, adapted to sceen by Oscar Brodney and Charles Hoffman from the novel and play by Rex Beach. The movie is set in Nome, Alaska during the 1898 Gold Rush, with Anne Baxter as Cherry Malotte, Jeff Chandler as Roy Glennister, and Rory Calhoun as...
(U-I, 1955) - Strategic Air CommandStrategic Air Command (film)Strategic Air Command is a 1955 American film starring James Stewart and June Allyson, and directed by Anthony Mann. Released by Paramount Pictures, it was the first of four films that depicted the role of the Strategic Air Command in the Cold War era....
(Par, 1955) - To Catch a ThiefTo Catch a Thief (film)To Catch a Thief is a 1955 romantic thriller directed by Alfred Hitchcock and starring Cary Grant, Grace Kelly, Jessie Royce Landis and John Williams. The movie is set on the French Riviera, and was based on the 1952 novel of the same name by David Dodge...
(Par, 1955) - This Island EarthThis Island Earth (film)This Island Earth is a 1955 American science fiction film directed by Joseph M. Newman. It is based on the novel of the same name by Raymond F. Jones. The film stars Jeff Morrow as the alien Exeter, Faith Domergue as Dr. Ruth Adams, and Rex Reason as Dr. Cal Meacham. The film was one of the first...
(U-I, 1955) - We're No Angels (Par, 1955)
- You're Never Too YoungYou're Never Too YoungYou're Never Too Young is a comedy film starring the team of Martin and Lewis, released on August 25, 1955 by Paramount Pictures, and co-starring Diana Lynn, Nina Foch, and Raymond Burr.-Plot:...
(Par, 1955) - Away All BoatsAway All BoatsAway All Boats is a 1956 American war film produced by Universal Pictures. It was directed by Joseph Pevney and produced by Howard Christie from a screenplay by Ted Sherdeman based on the 1953 novel by Kenneth M. Dodson....
(U-I, 1956) - Lust for LifeLust for LifeLust for Life may refer to:* Lust for Life , a 1934 biographical novel about Vincent Van Gogh, written by Irving Stone* Lust for Life , a 1956 film based on the novel, starring Kirk Douglas...
(MGM, 1956) - Forbidden PlanetForbidden PlanetForbidden Planet is a 1956 science fiction film directed by Fred M. Wilcox, with a screenplay by Cyril Hume. It stars Leslie Nielsen, Walter Pidgeon, and Anne Francis. The characters and its setting have been compared to those in William Shakespeare's The Tempest, and its plot contains certain...
(MGM, 1956) (also magnetic) - Invasion of the Body Snatchers (UA, 1956)
- High Society (MGM, 1956)
- VertigoVertigo (film)Vertigo is a 1958 psychological thriller film directed by Alfred Hitchcock and starring James Stewart, Kim Novak, and Barbara Bel Geddes. The screenplay was written by Alec Coppel and Samuel A...
(Par, 1958) - GigiGigi (1958 film)Gigi is a 1958 musical film directed by Vincente Minnelli. The screenplay by Alan Jay Lerner is based on the 1944 novella of the same name by Colette...
(MGM, 1958) (also magnetic) - The Hidden FortressThe Hidden Fortressis a 1958 jidai-geki film directed by Akira Kurosawa and starring Toshirō Mifune as General and Misa Uehara as Princess Yuki. A literal translation of the Japanese title is The Three Villains of the Hidden Fortress.-Plot:...
(Toho, 1958) - Yojimbo (Toho, 1961)
- SanjuroSanjurois a 1962 black-and-white Japanese samurai film directed by Akira Kurosawa and starring Toshirō Mifune. It is a sequel to Kurosawa's previous film Yojimbo, with Mifune reprising his role as a wandering ronin...
(Toho, 1962)