Thank you Greg (and also Jim and Steve for chiming in, and Jim for noting the YouTube videos).
The Youtube video of the live demonstration isn't produced at all; more like home movies, taken at the Franklin Institute upon the dual-event of first public showing of the automaton in some years, combined with a book signing by Brian Selznick back at the place where this vital element of his book (and movie HUGO) was discovered. In the event video, it's fun to hear Brian talk about how we discovered the original writing implement body hidden away within the interior framework of the machine. We still don't know what the original writing tip was, but it's likely that it was a small metal nib for ink. The original, ornamented writing implement body had apparently never been seen in the 80 years that the automaton had resided at the Franklin. Here are the links: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jfeNC28vpYo http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lwkkDfs-RKg On Dec 27, 2011, at 9:27 PM, Greg Bogantz wrote: > Congratulations, Andy, on getting this priceless piece of history restored > to full functionality. That must have been a privelege as well as great fun > to do. What a wonderful challenge in trying to figure out what each piece of > the mechanism did. I'm constantly amazed at the delicacy and precision of > mechanisms such as watches and timepieces that were made hundreds of years > ago. I have often wondered how these precision mechs were even made so many > years ago before the availability of modern materials and processes. I'm > always fascinated by this stuff. Thanks for the link. > > Greg Bogantz > > > > ----- Original Message ----- From: "Andrew Baron" <a...@popyrus.com> > To: "Antique Phonograph List" <phono-l@oldcrank.org> > Sent: Tuesday, December 27, 2011 11:00 PM > Subject: [Phono-L] OT: clockwork automaton article in NY Times today > > >> For those phonograph enthusiasts whose interests extend into other >> mechanical realms, Today's edition of the New York Times (Science Times >> section) ran an article about the drawing/writing automaton that restored >> for Philadelphia's Franklin Institute Science Museum. >> >> Here's the link: >> http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/27/science/maillardet-automaton-inspired-martin-scorseses-film-hugo.html?_r=2&seid=auto&smid=tw-nytimes&pagewanted=all >> >> Best to all, >> Andrew Baron >> _______________________________________________ >> Phono-L mailing list >> http://phono-l.org > > _______________________________________________ > Phono-L mailing list > http://phono-l.org > _______________________________________________ Phono-L mailing list http://phono-l.org
