Perspecta was a directional motion picture sound system invented by the laboratories at Fine Sound Inc. in 1954. The company was founded by Mercury Records engineer C. Robert (Bob) Fine, husband of producer Wilma Cozart Fine. As opposed to magnetic stereophonic soundtracks available at the time, Perspecta's 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 use 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 dialogue or sound effects could be mixed to be directional. Mixed sound effects, dialogue and music could not be suitably mixed. Aside from panning, Perspecta controlled gain levels for each channel through the amplitude of each control signal.
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and Paramount Pictures were major supporters and developers of Perspecta. MGM used it on nearly everything that they released between mid-1954 to approximately 1958, including shorts, cartoons and trailers.
By late 1954, nearly 700 screens were equipped with Perspecta integrators, and by the end of next year this number quadrupled to nearly 2,800 screens.
Paramount used it, uncredited, on all their VistaVision pictures until it fell out of favor around 1958. In theory, the "High Fidelity" in VistaVision's trademark strongly implied high-fidelity sound, but, in reality, the system provided only higher-fidelity visual image, not higher-fidelity sound. Universal-International, Warner Bros. Pictures, Columbia Pictures, United Artists, and Toho were among some of the other major studios to utilize Perspecta regularly. Article originally from International Projectionist.
List of Perspecta features
Studio Film Year Notes Allied Artists Pictures Corporation Invasion of the Body Snatchers 1956 World Without End 1956 Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Knights of the Round Table 1953 Athena 1954 Beau Brummell 1954 Betrayed 1954 Brigadoon 1954 Deep in My Heart 1954 Gone with the Wind 1954 reissue Green Fire 1954 Her Twelve Men 1954 The Last Time I Saw Paris 1954 Rogue Cop 1954 Rose Marie 1954 Seagulls Over Sorrento 1954 Seven Brides for Seven Brothers 1954 Valley of the Kings 1954 Bad Day at Black Rock 1955 also magnetic Bedevilled 1955 also magnetic The Cobweb 1955 The Glass Slipper 1955 Hit the Deck 1955 I'll Cry Tomorrow 1955 It's Always Fair Weather 1955 Jupiter's Darling 1955 Kismet 1955 The Last Hunt 1955 Love Me or Leave Me 1955 Moonfleet 1955 The Tender Trap 1955 The Fastest Gun Alive 1956 Forbidden Planet 1956 also magnetic High Society 1956 Lust for Life 1956 Meet Me in Las Vegas 1956 Somebody Up There Likes Me 1956 The Swan 1956 Tea and Sympathy 1956 The Teahouse of the August Moon 1956 Tom and Jerry (animated shorts) 1956–58 Designing Woman 1957 House of Numbers 1957 Jailhouse Rock 1957 Les Girls 1957 The Reluctant Debutante 1957 The Seventh Sin 1957 Silk Stockings 1957 Tip on a Dead Jockey 1957 Andy Hardy Comes Home 1958 The Brothers Karamazov 1958 Gigi 1958 also magnetic The High Cost of Loving 1958 High School Confidential! 1958 I Accuse! 1958 Imitation General 1958 The Law and Jake Wade 1958 Party Girl 1958 The Sheepman 1958 Torpedo Run 1958 The Tunnel of Love 1958 Paramount Pictures White Christmas 1954 3 Ring Circus 1955 Artists and Models 1955 The Court Jester 1955 The Desperate Hours 1955 The Far Horizons 1955 The Girl Rush 1955 Hell's Island 1955 Lucy Gallant 1955 The Rose Tattoo 1955 Run for Cover 1955 The Seven Little Foys 1955 Strategic Air Command 1955 To Catch a Thief 1955 The Trouble with Harry 1955 We're No Angels 1955 You're Never Too Young 1955 Anything Goes 1956 The Birds and the Bees 1956 The Leather Saint 1956 The Man Who Knew Too Much 1956 Pardners 1956 The Proud and Profane 1956 The Scarlet Hour 1956 That Certain Feeling 1956 War and Peace 1956 Perspecta Stereophonic Sound ® By Suonitalia Studio - RomeFunny Face 1957 Toho The Mysterians 1957 The Hidden Fortress 1958 The H-Man 1958 Varan the Unbelievable 1958 Battle in Outer Space 1959 The Secret of the Telegian 1960 The Last War 1961 also magnetic Mothra 1961 also magnetic Yojimbo 1961 Gorath 1962 also magnetic King Kong vs. Godzilla 1962 also magnetic Sanjuro 1962 High and Low 1963 also magnetic Red Beard 1965 also magnetic United Artists The Barefoot Contessa 1954 Universal-International The Black Shield of Falworth 1954 One Desire 1955 The Spoilers 1955 This Island Earth 1955 Away All Boats 1956 The Benny Goodman Story 1956 Warner Bros. Pictures King Richard and the Crusaders 1954 also magnetic Lucky Me 1954 also magneticA Star Is Born 1954 also magnetic East of Eden 1955 also magnetic
See also Duophonic, another form of "fake stereo"
References
External links Extensive history of Fine Sound Inc. The American Widescreen Museum (Perspecta wing) 1998 interview with Bob Eberenz, chief engineer at Fine Sound Inc. 2017 interview with Tom Fine, Part 1, Part 2, Part 3 – son of Robert Fine and Wilma Cozart Fine