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Author Topic: The Keystone Story
Chris Smart
Junior
Posts: 30
From: Toronto, Canada
Registered: Jul 2019


 - posted August 28, 2019 11:59 AM      Profile for Chris Smart   Email Chris Smart   Send New Private Message       Edit/Delete Post 
While searching for answers to my Keystone 109D Projector problems I found this fascinating booklet that someone scanned into a PDF.

File name is Keystone_Story.1953.pdf
http://www.jollinger.com/photo/cam-coll/manuals/movie/Keystone_Story.1953.pdf

Just thought I'd share!

The factory depicted in the brochure still stands in Boston but was converted into apartments years ago. Its currently a seniors home.
https://goo.gl/maps/oEouCpto8x7XQdQq7

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csmart

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Janice Glesser
Film Goddess

Posts: 3468
From: Sunnyvale, CA USA
Registered: Sep 2011


 - posted August 28, 2019 02:41 PM      Profile for Janice Glesser     Send New Private Message       Edit/Delete Post 
Thanks for posting Chris [Smile] Have seen that brochure before and it is a great piece of history. Good luck with your Keystone K109 and I hope you get it up and running soon.

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Janice

"I'm having a very good day!"
Richard Dreyfuss - Let It Ride (1989).

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Paul Adsett
Film God

Posts: 5003
From: USA
Registered: Jun 2003


 - posted August 28, 2019 02:49 PM      Profile for Paul Adsett     Send New Private Message       Edit/Delete Post 
Wow, what a great read Chris, thanks so much for posting this.
As much as being of great interest to us cine fans, I think this is also a wonderful reflection of the state and vibrancy of America's manufacturing base during the 1950's. Here we read of the pride that Keystone had in their home movie products, all designed, manufactured, assembled, and tested by the working people of post war Boston. You can tell that they were very confident about the future of their company and looking forward to being a big pert of an expanding market. And don't those all metal cameras and projectors look wonderful? Just look at all the jobs involved here, all providing these great men and women a means to support a nice house and family in the Boston area. No robots in sight, no computer aided design, all done with pencil and paper on a drafting board.
I'm sure it was the same story at Bell & Howell in Chicago at this time.
Sadly, the Japanese and European manufacturer's were poised to capture the future engineering prizes and much of the world market in the home movie equipment.

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The best of all worlds- 8mm, super 8mm, 9.5mm, and HD Digital Projection,
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Maurice Leakey
Film God

Posts: 5895
From: Bristol. United Kingdom
Registered: Oct 2007


 - posted August 29, 2019 02:53 AM      Profile for Maurice Leakey   Email Maurice Leakey   Send New Private Message       Edit/Delete Post 
Don't forget that Bell & Howell eventually went to Japan for their projectors to be manufactured, and at the last, even had Eiki projectors badged as Bell & Howell.

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Maurice

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Paul Adsett
Film God

Posts: 5003
From: USA
Registered: Jun 2003


 - posted August 29, 2019 09:54 AM      Profile for Paul Adsett     Send New Private Message       Edit/Delete Post 
You have to wonder why American companies eventually lost all their expertise, competitive edge, and markets to the Japanese. After all, companies like Bell & Howell were the Rolls Royce of movie equipment at one time. They had to be stste of the art in the 1950's and must have been very well positioned to embrace new technology like magnetic sound, automatic cameras, and the new super 8mm. What happened?

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The best of all worlds- 8mm, super 8mm, 9.5mm, and HD Digital Projection,
Elmo GS1200 f1.0 2-blade
Eumig S938 Stereo f1.0 Ektar
Panasonic PT-AE4000U digital pj

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Brian Fretwell
Phenomenal Film Handler

Posts: 1785
From: London, UK
Registered: Jun 2014


 - posted August 29, 2019 11:00 AM      Profile for Brian Fretwell   Email Brian Fretwell   Send New Private Message       Edit/Delete Post 
I assume that, at the time, labour costs were much lower in Japan - now even they have had to move manufacturing out.

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Chris Smart
Junior
Posts: 30
From: Toronto, Canada
Registered: Jul 2019


 - posted September 20, 2019 09:46 AM      Profile for Chris Smart   Email Chris Smart   Send New Private Message       Edit/Delete Post 
Found another PDF but this one is the Keystone Catalog from 1939

http://www.jollinger.com/photo/cam-coll/manuals/movie/Keystone%20Catalog%201939.pdf

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csmart

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Paul Adsett
Film God

Posts: 5003
From: USA
Registered: Jun 2003


 - posted September 20, 2019 10:31 AM      Profile for Paul Adsett     Send New Private Message       Edit/Delete Post 
Did Keystone ever make a sound projector?

--------------------
The best of all worlds- 8mm, super 8mm, 9.5mm, and HD Digital Projection,
Elmo GS1200 f1.0 2-blade
Eumig S938 Stereo f1.0 Ektar
Panasonic PT-AE4000U digital pj

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Trevor Adams
Jedi Master Film Handler

Posts: 763
From: Auckland,New Zealand
Registered: Jun 2003


 - posted September 20, 2019 07:09 PM      Profile for Trevor Adams   Author's Homepage     Send New Private Message       Edit/Delete Post 
https://imgur.com/gallery/jiXJWeo
https://imgur.com/mRuYWXu
https://imgur.com/2qaNbLR

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Trevor

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Joe Taffis
Phenomenal Film Handler

Posts: 1592
From: United States
Registered: Jun 2003


 - posted September 22, 2019 08:09 AM      Profile for Joe Taffis   Email Joe Taffis   Send New Private Message       Edit/Delete Post 
Thanks for those links Trev, that first one looks like my grandfather's 16mm hand crank "toy" projector. I can see how he was able to afford one on a coal miner's salary [Smile]

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Joe Taffis

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Steve Klare
Film Guy

Posts: 7016
From: Long Island, NY, USA
Registered: Jun 2003


 - posted September 22, 2019 08:50 AM      Profile for Steve Klare   Email Steve Klare   Send New Private Message       Edit/Delete Post 
My wife found a Keystone R8 machine in a rummage sale. It's a beautiful thing and as a piece of decoration it's the only projector that's out even when major company arrives.

-still the same, I had to see if it worked. I did a little cleaning, did a little judicious lubrication, powered it up and within 20 seconds was fully up to speed and ready for action.

I realize it's not spectacular where capability is concerned, but there's a lot to be said for simplicity!

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All I ask is a wide screen and a projector to light her by...

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Tom Photiou
Film God

Posts: 4837
From: Plymouth U.K
Registered: Dec 2003


 - posted September 22, 2019 10:47 AM      Profile for Tom Photiou     Send New Private Message       Edit/Delete Post 
Paul,
"You have to wonder why American companies eventually lost all their expertise, competitive edge, and markets to the Japanese. After all, companies like Bell & Howell were the Rolls Royce of movie equipment at one time".

It's the same here Paul. It was too easy to send everything abroad to be made as it was cheaper. This country has lost British Steel, (how can they still call it British?), Rolls Royce, the finest car in the world, just to mention two all now gone into over seas hands. I remember in the 80s people use to say that this country will become the toilet cleaners and waiters of Europe, & we'r pretty much there now.

Was there a British Projector manufacturer after all, according to wiki, the inventor of the very first one was British?

This link may be of interest, many of you would have already seen this page.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Movie_projector

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Brian Fretwell
Phenomenal Film Handler

Posts: 1785
From: London, UK
Registered: Jun 2014


 - posted September 22, 2019 11:20 AM      Profile for Brian Fretwell   Email Brian Fretwell   Send New Private Message       Edit/Delete Post 
I don't know about 8mm but Kalee was a 35mm projector manufacturer.

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Maurice Leakey
Film God

Posts: 5895
From: Bristol. United Kingdom
Registered: Oct 2007


 - posted September 23, 2019 02:53 AM      Profile for Maurice Leakey   Email Maurice Leakey   Send New Private Message       Edit/Delete Post 
The later bronze Kalee 35mm projectors were brilliant pieces of equipment. I really enjoyed my time working with them.
Only one drawback, Kalee hadn't realised a masking change would be later required when CinemaScope came in. The whole rear gate plate containing the film frame slid completely out for cleaning. This involved opening the gate, however the bottom of the gate contained a bracket to hold the film on the intermittent sprocket. Thus, when changing an already laced film, it lost its racking.
We got round this when a CinemaScope trailer was included in the trailer reel by doing a nifty changeover to the second projector which was already prepared for 'scope.
Great days. [Big Grin]
https://collection.sciencemuseumgroup.org.uk/objects/co8188572/gaumont-kalee-gk21-35mm-cinema-projector-cine-projector

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Maurice

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