Mechanical TV on Boardwalk Empire

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Mechanical TV on Boardwalk Empire

Postby LuTELLO » Wed Nov 05, 2014 2:03 pm

I've been waiting to see one of these in a movie or TV show!
Which TV is this again?
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Re: Mechanical TV on Boardwalk Empire

Postby Lawnboy » Wed Nov 05, 2014 11:43 pm

Looks like a Western Television Empire State model. There are pictures of it on the etf.org website. Did it appear tall on the show? In actuality the original would have been horizontally scanned, and produced an orange picture.
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Re: Mechanical TV on Boardwalk Empire

Postby Steve_McVoy » Sun Nov 09, 2014 10:49 pm

This is our set. We loaned it to them for the production;

http://www.earlytelevision.org/western_empire.htm
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Re: Mechanical TV on Boardwalk Empire

Postby Panrock » Mon Nov 10, 2014 3:47 am

Steve_McVoy wrote:This is our set. We loaned it to them for the production;
http://www.earlytelevision.org/western_empire.htm


Steve, the working link on your site seems to be http://www.earlytelevision.org/boardwalk_empire.html

This set seems to be showing a 40-line picture, not corresponding to any historic standard I know of. I wonder how it was generated?

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Re: Mechanical TV on Boardwalk Empire

Postby Steve_McVoy » Mon Nov 10, 2014 10:40 pm

Panrock, thanks for the correction.
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Re: Mechanical TV on Boardwalk Empire

Postby Dave Moll » Tue Nov 11, 2014 5:09 pm

Panrock wrote:This set seems to be showing a 40-line picture, not corresponding to any historic standard I know of. I wonder how it was generated?


CGI?

According to the link, the display shown bears no resemblance to that actually produced by the set, which is orange and horizontally scanned.
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Re: Mechanical TV on Boardwalk Empire

Postby McGee2021 » Wed Feb 17, 2016 10:30 am

Would any body know the actual aspect ratio, diameter of the disc, and distance of the first apperature from the outside of the disc? im trying to make a replica picture produced by the set, and one of the only ways to do it would to be a disc of the same measurements!
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Re: Mechanical TV on Boardwalk Empire

Postby Harry Dalek » Wed Feb 17, 2016 4:59 pm

McGee2021 wrote:Would any body know the actual aspect ratio, diameter of the disc, and distance of the first apperature from the outside of the disc? im trying to make a replica picture produced by the set, and one of the only ways to do it would to be a disc of the same measurements!


Well i can see right away due to the aspect ratio its not a disc its a drum of some sort or mirror screw perhaps ...i have made 2 drum monitors that would give that sort of result ...and Holtzman hes is very good ...
viewtopic.php?f=1&t=1269&hilit=compact+drum+monitor
viewtopic.php?f=1&t=1388&hilit=compact+drum+monitor
viewtopic.php?f=1&t=1486&hilit=drum+monitor

You could also do it another way aspect ratio wise but screen size would be smaller .
As in Grahams
Cadbury's drum monitor

viewtopic.php?f=1&t=1960&hilit=drum+monitor
or Troys
viewtopic.php?f=1&t=1550&hilit=troy+tekade
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Re: Mechanical TV on Boardwalk Empire

Postby McGee2021 » Thu Feb 18, 2016 10:44 am

Harry Dalek wrote:
McGee2021 wrote:Would any body know the actual aspect ratio, diameter of the disc, and distance of the first apperature from the outside of the disc? im trying to make a replica picture produced by the set, and one of the only ways to do it would to be a disc of the same measurements!


Well i can see right away due to the aspect ratio its not a disc its a drum of some sort or mirror screw perhaps ...i have made 2 drum monitors that would give that sort of result ...and Holtzman hes is very good ...
viewtopic.php?f=1&t=1269&hilit=compact+drum+monitor
viewtopic.php?f=1&t=1388&hilit=compact+drum+monitor
viewtopic.php?f=1&t=1486&hilit=drum+monitor

You could also do it another way aspect ratio wise but screen size would be smaller .
As in Grahams
Cadbury's drum monitor

viewtopic.php?f=1&t=1960&hilit=drum+monitor
or Troys
viewtopic.php?f=1&t=1550&hilit=troy+tekade


I think you might be speaking of the computer generated picture on the episode. What i need would be the specifications for the actual disc used on the original set. I do know that the disc is 45 lines, has 3 interlacing spirals, and is a lens disc.
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Re: Mechanical TV on Boardwalk Empire

Postby gary » Thu Feb 18, 2016 12:18 pm

This "appears" to be what you are looking for:

http://www.earlytelevision.org/western_ ... assis.html
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Re: Mechanical TV on Boardwalk Empire

Postby Harry Dalek » Thu Feb 18, 2016 12:46 pm

McGee2021 wrote:I think you might be speaking of the computer generated picture on the episode. What i need would be the specifications for the actual disc used on the original set. I do know that the disc is 45 lines, has 3 interlacing spirals, and is a lens disc.


OK looking at some thing similar it might have also have been a lens disk such as below links ...you might find stuff of interest in the television news magazines
there's a bit on lens disks and i recall information on the 3 spiral disc in one of the issues at least

http://www.earlytelevision.org/western_ ... ation.html
http://www.earlytelevision.org/western_empire.html

http://www.americanradiohistory.com/Tel ... _Guide.htm

Gary is faster at the draw than me ! :wink:
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Re: Mechanical TV on Boardwalk Empire

Postby McGee2021 » Thu Feb 18, 2016 1:27 pm

Harry Dalek wrote:
McGee2021 wrote:I think you might be speaking of the computer generated picture on the episode. What i need would be the specifications for the actual disc used on the original set. I do know that the disc is 45 lines, has 3 interlacing spirals, and is a lens disc.


OK looking at some thing similar it might have also have been a lens disk such as below links ...you might find stuff of interest in the television news magazines
there's a bit on lens disks and i recall information on the 3 spiral disc in one of the issues at least

http://www.earlytelevision.org/western_ ... ation.html
http://www.earlytelevision.org/western_empire.html

http://www.americanradiohistory.com/Tel ... _Guide.htm

Gary is faster at the draw than me ! :wink:


The lens disc recievier was the one that was in the set that this topic is about. the picture of the set has the computer generated pictures. the real picture would be scanned horizontally, not vertically.
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Re: Mechanical TV on Boardwalk Empire

Postby gary » Thu Feb 18, 2016 2:04 pm

McGee2021 wrote:The lens disc recievier was the one that was in the set that this topic is about. the picture of the set has the computer generated pictures. the real picture would be scanned horizontally, not vertically.


So true, but it is also important to note that the "guts" of set that they "loaned" to BW was from a model 41 (that's unimportant as far as the BW pictures go and likely it was probably loaned as an empty shell). However if you want to replicate a "real" WES set then you should use the dimensions given on the page I gave you a link to as it shows the original WES "guts" (from a set in the Smithsonian) and gives you the correct dimensions etc of the disk (which is what I am assuming you are after).
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Re: Mechanical TV on Boardwalk Empire

Postby McGee2021 » Thu Feb 18, 2016 3:11 pm

gary wrote:
McGee2021 wrote:The lens disc recievier was the one that was in the set that this topic is about. the picture of the set has the computer generated pictures. the real picture would be scanned horizontally, not vertically.


So true, but it is also important to note that the "guts" of set that they "loaned" to BW was from a model 41 (that's unimportant as far as the BW pictures go and likely it was probably loaned as an empty shell). However if you want to replicate a "real" WES set then you should use the dimensions given on the page I gave you a link to as it shows the original WES "guts" (from a set in the Smithsonian) and gives you the correct dimensions etc of the disk (which is what I am assuming you are after).


Now that you reminded me, i realised im after information i already know! the only thing i dont know would be the picture aspect ratio.
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Re: Mechanical TV on Boardwalk Empire

Postby gary » Thu Feb 18, 2016 3:50 pm

McGee2021 wrote:Now that you reminded me, i realised im after information i already know! the only thing i dont know would be the picture aspect ratio.


Now that is harder to ascertain, however this link indicates it was likely to be 1:1

http://www.earlytelevision.org/mechanic ... dards.html

When measuring the screen and images it appears to be 8:7 but that could be picture distortion I suppose.

Certainly if one could ascertain the television source for these units you could likely work backwards.
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