Theodore Case
| Theodore Case | |
|---|---|
| Born |
Theodore Willard Case December 12, 1888 Auburn, New York, U.S. |
| Died | May 13, 1944 (aged 55) Auburn, New York, U.S. |
| Cause of death | Pneumonia |
| Resting place | Fort Hill Cemetery |
| Nationality | American |
| Education |
St. John's Northwestern Military Academy St. Paul's School |
| Alma mater |
Yale University Harvard University |
| Occupation | Physicist, inventor |
| Years active | 1916-1941 |
| Spouse(s) | Alice Gertrude Eldred (m. 1918–44) |
| Children | 4 |
Theodore Willard Case (December 12, 1888 – May 13, 1944) was an American chemist, physicist and inventor known for the invention of the Movietone sound-on-film sound film system.
Case was born in Auburn, New York into a prominent family. Generations of the Cases lived on Genesee Street in Auburn, which eventually became the residence of Theodore Case's family. He attended St. John's Northwestern Military Academy and St. Paul's School before studying physics at Yale and Harvard University.
On November 26, 1918, Case married Alice Gertrude Eldred. The couple would go on to have four children.
While at Yale, Case became interested in telephonic currents that derived from modulating light. In 1916, he opened Case Research Lab in Auburn where he studied materials that could be altered by light. His studies led to the development of the Thalofide (thallium oxysulfide) Cell, a light-sensitive vacuum tube from 1916 to 1918. The Thalofide Cell was originally used by the United States Navy in a top secret infrared signaling system developed at the Case Lab.
Case began working on his sound-on-film process in 1921. The inventions of the Case Research Lab from 1916 to 1926 were the creation of Case and Earl I. Sponable, who worked with Case at the lab until he went with Case to Fox Film Corporation in 1926. The ship-to-ship signaling system was first tested in 1917 off the shores of New Jersey. Attending the test was Thomas Edison, contracted by the Navy to evaluate new technologies. A complete success, the signaling system was used by the Navy for a number of years. He worked with other people, including Lee De Forest, to create a sound-on-film process similar to the sound film systems used today.
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