Plantation Act Starring Al Jolson, 1926

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Phonofreak
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Plantation Act Starring Al Jolson, 1926

Post by Phonofreak »

I found this on You-Tube. Yes, it's a little racist, but that is part of history. For those who would be offended, please don't watch. I thought the first talkie was in 1927 when the Jazz Singer was produced. This short was produced in 1926, before the Jazz Singer.
Harvey Kravitz

https://archive.org/details/Vitaphone03 ... tionAct10m
Last edited by Phonofreak on Tue Mar 20, 2018 8:22 pm, edited 1 time in total.

estott
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Re: Plantation Act Starring Al Jolson, 1926

Post by estott »

There were efforts to synchronize film and sound since the devices were invented= some quite good: [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8hI1XHsWz6w[/youtube]

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Wolfe
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Re: Plantation Act Starring Al Jolson, 1926

Post by Wolfe »

The Jazz Singer (Vitaphone) was also released in a silent version as many theaters hadn't put in sound systems yet. I guess the success of The Jazz Singer spurred many theaters to put sound in.

Vitaphone is of course sound on disc synched to film. If you want to define that as a sound film, you can find examples of short films that synch to records as far back as the late 19th century. None could surmount the problem of amplifying the sound sufficiently for a theater however. Until Western Electric.

The first Vitaphone sound picture was Don Juan in 1926.

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Re: Plantation Act Starring Al Jolson, 1926

Post by phonogfp »

This was just what Marc Friend's presentation was all about at the APS Banquet in August 2017. Those in attendance saw "talkies" dating decades before The Jazz Singer (which is credited with being the first feature-length talkie). I had never before seen and heard Caruso on film, but a 1908 production was shown in its entirety.

The DVD of Marc's presentation will soon be available on the APS web site.

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Re: Plantation Act Starring Al Jolson, 1926

Post by Wolfe »

Caruso aappeared in a couple of silent movies in the late 'teens, one of which, My Cousin (1918) has him singing the Vesti la giubba from I Pagliacci.

Then there is also this film, which is from 1908 and features the actors miming to one of the Lucia Sextette records that feature Caruso, but Caruso is not in the film. https://youtu.be/zCSRXy2RM3I

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Re: Plantation Act Starring Al Jolson, 1926

Post by phonogfp »

Thanks - I stand corrected. The guy in the film sure looked like Caruso! :)

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Re: Plantation Act Starring Al Jolson, 1926

Post by Wolfe »

I agree. The 'tenor' with the mustache could pass for a younger Caruso.

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Re: Plantation Act Starring Al Jolson, 1926

Post by OrthoFan »

Phonofreak wrote:...I thought the first talkie was in 1927 when the Jazz Singer was produced. This short was produced in 1926, before the Jazz Singer.
Harvey Kravitz

The odd thing about the Jazz Singer is that it mostly a silent film using subtitles to tell the story, but with a synchronized score, along with a few scenes where Jolson is singing. The one famous scene where he talks to his mother was done ad-lib -- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Djd1XfwDAQs At the end of the scene, it reverts back to a silent movie, with subtitles, which is rather jarring if you've seen it.

"The Lights of New York" (1928) is credited with being the first full-length all-talking movie. The famous line culled from that movie was "take...him...for.......a.......ride..."

A number of early sound films appear on YouTube, including some of Edison's attempts. This one, from 1913, is rather creepy -- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rQEImz2P8Cg

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Re: Plantation Act Starring Al Jolson, 1926

Post by estott »

I've seen the restored Edison talking pictures and they have their good points. "Jack's Joke" is quite funny and takes advantage of sound- Jack introduces a man and woman, convincing each that the other is very hard of hearing. They politely scream at each other at the top of their lungs: "DO YOU LIKE TO GO TO THE PIC-TURES? NO - I PREFER CON-CERTS!"

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Re: Plantation Act Starring Al Jolson, 1926

Post by edisonplayer »

In one of my late mom's yearbooks there's a photo of a young lady imitating Jolson for a school assembly.I assume she was lip-syncing to one of Jolson's records.The yearbook dates from 1947.Of course,they wouldn't do that today.The young people today have never heard of Al Jolson.edisonplayer

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