Tesla vs Edison

[Curt A]

http://theoatmeal.com/comics/nikola_tesla_dood

[VintageTechnologies]

I will give Tesla his due as an errant genius who pioneered the theory and application of alternating currents, but I don't understand his cult status. In a broad technical sense, he was a one-trick pony. Edison was far more technically diversified, practical, and financially successful. As Edison developed multiple industries, Tesla descended into madness; apparently some people today can't accept that.

I will risk the treacherous waters of politics and peer-disapproval by advancing my observation that in political online venues people of Liberal mindset identify more often with Tesla and that those of Conservative mindset tend to identify more with Edison. Anti-capitalist sentiment? I'll leave it others to decide why.

[Henry]

For me, the Tesla-Edison "rivalry" is nowhere near as relevant, in light of subsequent developments, as the Edison-Westinghouse one. Edison championed direct current electrification vs. Westinghouse's support of alternating current. We all know that Edison, brilliant though he was (but remember the "90% perspiration" part!) lost that one. As between those two, in terms of politics, I think it's a toss-up!

[estott]

I'm still an Edison fan, but he holds less charm for me as details of his life have come out over the years. He wasn't a particularly good father to his first family. To me he seems more and more like his contemporary industrialists- a man with a keen eye for money and self promotion. It was his wife Mina who had the good sense to see that this was spun to the public as eccentricity.

[Wolfe]

Of course.

Edison, not to belittle his achievements, was a great self-promoter and manipulator of the press.

[Dave]

For me the luster began to really fade from my admiration of Edison after i learned he had attempted to discredit Westinghouse by electrocuting live animals such as dogs, horses,calf's and even an elephant as a propaganda campaign of shocking (no pun intended) the general public and hopefully scaring away investment into AC current delivery as envisioned by Westinghouse and Tesla . It's the most debauching episode for Edison and shows a ruthlessness unbecoming the "Wizard of Menlo Park".

[Curt A]

Just another robber baron of the period... AND his taste in music sucks... Control Freak comes to mind.

[estott]

Just another robber baron of the period... AND his taste in music sucks... Control Freak comes to mind.

Compared to the worst he was fairly benign. Seems to have been a good employer (I haven't heard of any strikes at his works) and he didn't have the grandiose self-importance of his friend Henry Ford - though perhaps that was because Ford put him on a pedestal.

I think that Edison's importance now is not so much his inventions (if he hadn't produced the phonograph and the electric light someone else would have) but that he was brilliant at promotion.

[Victrolacollector]

Edison had his flaws, but who doesn't. Some say his music sucked, but I would say it was right on part with the times by 1926. The problem is that we do not have very many post 1926 records, by that time his sales were down and very few Edison Discs and Blue Amberols are around with his "modern" music.

Truthfully, I probably have more Victor machines, I really like my 78's too. If a copy of The Charleston, Singing in the Rain, etc. is too expensive on Edison DD, I can play those on my Victrola's.

I will say Tesla did contribute immensely to the electrical sector of the business. We have to look at Edison's dealings with Rachmaninoff, after recording a few sides, he ended up moving on to Victor. I think Edison was somewhat of a codger. He was set in his ways, he invented and perfected his product and did not see competition as a threat. If Edison would have been more "open-minded", he would have adapted to public tastes and maybe secured artists such as Enrico Caruso, Helen Kane and others.

When we look at his narcissistic personality, we also see his ill will in hurting others, "Robber Barron" types, you may find some mental illness. I have not read, but there was a rumor that Edison was admitted for psyche evaluation. Regardless, Thomas Edison built a name, many great products and recordings. I don't think a collection would be complete without at least one Edison machine.

[Marco Gilardetti]

I will risk the treacherous waters of politics and peer-disapproval by advancing my observation that in political online venues people of Liberal mindset identify more often with Tesla and that those of Conservative mindset tend to identify more with Edison. Anti-capitalist sentiment? I'll leave it others to decide why.

I have to disagree with that. Tesla, in turn, was not an absent-minded scientist as it is often pictured but has shown brilliant abilities in fundraising. In order to finance his reasearches, that in some cases were dreadfully expensive, he closely cooperated with prominent businessmen (=capitalists) of his time.

I would say instead that Edison is a cult personality mainly in the United States, while Tesla is widely appreciated (way over Edison) in the rest of the world.

I personally have nothing against Edison, which was undoubtedly a skillful inventor, except for few sides of his personality that I tend to dislike (all of them have been already mentioned by previous posters, no need to recall them). I can also forget the AC/DC battle that saw him on the obviously wrong side, and also the fact that perhaps he didn't truly invented the lamp, as well as the fact that he completely ignored the thermionic effect of the filament although it had been put right under his eyes by one of his cooperators.

The point is that, being I graduated in Physics, I remember having studied many many subjects strictly connected to Tesla's researches and achievements, mostly concerning electromagnetism, resonance, induction and high-frequency varying fields, while I don't remember one single formula written or derived from Edison's works. If you ask me, I'm not surprised at all about Tesla's "cult status", but instead of this cult status being somewhat limited to academic societies and (on the opposite side) to freaks searching for UFOs, cosmic energy and amenities like that. This really doesn't do justice to this outstanding man.

You can also add the fact that Tesla had a magnetic (no pun intended) personality and was considered fascinating by men and very attractive by women who had the luck to meet him personally. So not only he had the spark of genius and a solid knowledge of phisics, mathematics and engineering, but he was also very glamorous and charming. To a point that all these aspects still transpire through his photographies, in my humble opinon. He had indeed a remarkable personality from every standpoint.