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Film history Query: Why weren't subtitles used in the silent era?

Posted by Bambi B (A) on April 5, 2005 at 14:55:46

Mates,

TCM had a good run of Harold Lloyd silent movies last evening including the famous 1923 "Safety Last" (re: man hangs from clock). These restored movies with new scores are very entertaining and wonderful to see again, but I'm reminded about the odd character of the dialogue cards that are intersprsed in each scene to explain the action.

It's highly disruptive in silent movies to the action and atmosphere to cut away from the visuals and have to read something, so it got me to wondering: why weren't subtitles used?

There were process shots from the very beginning of film, it seems it would have simple to have a shutter mask that left the bottom 1/10th of the frame black and then run it with another negative with the upper 90% blanked and the dialogue running it the bottom slot.

Subtitles would seem to be well within the technology of 1910, but I've never seen them used in the silent era. Any thoughts as to why such a useful, liberating thing as subtitles was introduced only AFTER sound?

I do find the oddest things to concern myself over..

Cheers,

Bambi B

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