1 00:00:02,600 --> 00:00:05,800 Speaker 1: You're listening to American Shadows, a production of I Heart 2 00:00:05,880 --> 00:00:16,439 Speaker 1: Radio and Grim and Mild from Aaron Mankey. The war 3 00:00:16,600 --> 00:00:20,240 Speaker 1: came to an end with the World's Fair in Chicago. 4 00:00:20,960 --> 00:00:23,919 Speaker 1: It didn't end with a final shot or a white flag, 5 00:00:24,120 --> 00:00:28,040 Speaker 1: but with brilliant white lights, a hundred thousand of them, 6 00:00:28,080 --> 00:00:31,800 Speaker 1: to be exact. The beginning of the end happened during 7 00:00:31,800 --> 00:00:35,760 Speaker 1: the planning phase. Organizers wanted to make the fair grander 8 00:00:35,760 --> 00:00:38,680 Speaker 1: and more advanced than the much talked about Paris World's 9 00:00:38,720 --> 00:00:45,120 Speaker 1: Fair of American technology had seen amazing innovations in recent years. 10 00:00:45,720 --> 00:00:50,320 Speaker 1: Internal combustion powered tractors, the incandescent lamp, and the rotary dial, 11 00:00:50,520 --> 00:00:54,360 Speaker 1: just to name a few. And one more marvel the 12 00:00:54,440 --> 00:00:58,400 Speaker 1: introduction of the skyscraper right there in Chicago five years prior. 13 00:00:59,320 --> 00:01:02,640 Speaker 1: Organizers had plans as big as the city itself, and 14 00:01:03,040 --> 00:01:06,080 Speaker 1: for the first time since its invention, the Ferris wheel 15 00:01:06,120 --> 00:01:09,679 Speaker 1: would make its debut at the fair. With the recent 16 00:01:09,720 --> 00:01:12,679 Speaker 1: invention of the electric light, the organizers came up with 17 00:01:12,720 --> 00:01:16,840 Speaker 1: an idea that would surely outshine pairs. Event literally that 18 00:01:17,080 --> 00:01:21,640 Speaker 1: light the entire six hundred and ninety acre city. Keeping 19 00:01:21,640 --> 00:01:24,800 Speaker 1: with the tradition of envisioning the future, Chicago saw the 20 00:01:24,840 --> 00:01:29,920 Speaker 1: potential for electricity to light buildings and homes everywhere, though 21 00:01:30,000 --> 00:01:34,240 Speaker 1: Chicago's prediction was more a foregone conclusion than dreamy speculation. 22 00:01:34,840 --> 00:01:37,880 Speaker 1: Most homes in the late eighteen hundreds still used kerosene 23 00:01:37,959 --> 00:01:41,520 Speaker 1: lamps or candles. Sure, there were the lucky few homes 24 00:01:41,520 --> 00:01:45,840 Speaker 1: and businesses that already used electricity. Companies supplying wire and 25 00:01:45,920 --> 00:01:48,560 Speaker 1: power were already rushing to control as much of the 26 00:01:48,600 --> 00:01:52,520 Speaker 1: market as possible, but lighting up the entire World's Fair 27 00:01:52,720 --> 00:01:56,240 Speaker 1: was no small undertaking. The company that could pull off 28 00:01:56,280 --> 00:01:59,120 Speaker 1: such an endeavor would certainly win the line's share of 29 00:01:59,160 --> 00:02:03,440 Speaker 1: the market. Needless to say, the bidding war between companies 30 00:02:03,520 --> 00:02:06,760 Speaker 1: vying for the honor to light the World's Fair was fierce. 31 00:02:07,960 --> 00:02:10,880 Speaker 1: General Electric made the first bid, offering to do the 32 00:02:10,960 --> 00:02:13,880 Speaker 1: job at a cool one point eight million that's over 33 00:02:13,919 --> 00:02:18,480 Speaker 1: fifty million dollars today. The organizers declined, though, looking for 34 00:02:18,560 --> 00:02:23,880 Speaker 1: a cheaper alternative. Westinghouse Electric and Manufacturing Company, with brilliant 35 00:02:23,919 --> 00:02:27,600 Speaker 1: inventor Nicola Tesla on board, bid a bit over five 36 00:02:27,680 --> 00:02:31,680 Speaker 1: hundred thousand dollars at nearly a third of General Electrics bid. 37 00:02:32,040 --> 00:02:37,560 Speaker 1: The organizers accepted. The deal, made news worldwide. Chicago's exposition 38 00:02:37,560 --> 00:02:42,560 Speaker 1: would be the first fair powered by electricity. Tesla originally 39 00:02:42,560 --> 00:02:46,720 Speaker 1: planned on using general electric light bulbs, but Thomas Edison, 40 00:02:46,760 --> 00:02:49,920 Speaker 1: who held the patent and owned GE, didn't feel the 41 00:02:49,960 --> 00:02:53,840 Speaker 1: need to lose Gracefully, knowing it would put Tesla and 42 00:02:53,919 --> 00:02:57,280 Speaker 1: Westinghouse in a bind, he refused to sell a single 43 00:02:57,360 --> 00:03:01,680 Speaker 1: bulb to them. Westinghouse sued, but the courts sided with Edison. 44 00:03:03,080 --> 00:03:05,600 Speaker 1: Tesla and Company had the means to power the fair, 45 00:03:05,840 --> 00:03:08,680 Speaker 1: but they didn't have a single light. With less than 46 00:03:08,720 --> 00:03:11,240 Speaker 1: a year ago before the fair opened, they needed to 47 00:03:11,240 --> 00:03:14,919 Speaker 1: get creative. The young inventor came up with a solution 48 00:03:15,080 --> 00:03:19,200 Speaker 1: that didn't infringe on Edison's patent. The double stopper lightbulb 49 00:03:19,360 --> 00:03:21,799 Speaker 1: had a shorter lifespan but was sufficient to use for 50 00:03:21,840 --> 00:03:27,560 Speaker 1: the fair, and until Edison's patent expired, Westinghouse amped up production, 51 00:03:27,720 --> 00:03:30,800 Speaker 1: producing a hundred and twenty thousand bulbs along with twelve 52 00:03:31,000 --> 00:03:35,360 Speaker 1: thousand horsepower polyphase generators capable of supplying enough power to 53 00:03:35,480 --> 00:03:38,800 Speaker 1: keep those lights glowing, plus enough electricity to provide a 54 00:03:38,840 --> 00:03:41,920 Speaker 1: method of travel to and from the fair. The city's 55 00:03:41,960 --> 00:03:45,200 Speaker 1: elevated railroad system would whisk up to fifty thou people 56 00:03:45,240 --> 00:03:48,680 Speaker 1: an hour to and from the fair grounds inside. Electric 57 00:03:48,720 --> 00:03:52,200 Speaker 1: rail cars, electric boats, and even a moving sidewalk would 58 00:03:52,200 --> 00:03:58,160 Speaker 1: be ready to move visitors around the exposition. On opening day, May, 59 00:03:58,240 --> 00:04:03,120 Speaker 1: one packed crowd gathered at the fairground entrance in anticipation. 60 00:04:04,160 --> 00:04:06,960 Speaker 1: President Grover Cleveland stepped up to the podium and gave 61 00:04:07,000 --> 00:04:10,720 Speaker 1: a short speech. When he finished and declared the fair open, 62 00:04:11,000 --> 00:04:13,600 Speaker 1: he thrust his fist down on a gold plated button 63 00:04:13,680 --> 00:04:16,560 Speaker 1: to start up the fairs machinery and turn on all 64 00:04:16,600 --> 00:04:20,320 Speaker 1: those lights. The crowd gasped in astonishment, and the light 65 00:04:20,760 --> 00:04:24,360 Speaker 1: people streamed through the gates. Aside from the expected cotton 66 00:04:24,400 --> 00:04:28,040 Speaker 1: candy and other snacks, an entire section devoted to culinary 67 00:04:28,040 --> 00:04:32,440 Speaker 1: innovation greeted them. There were livestock arenas, vendor tents, buildings 68 00:04:32,440 --> 00:04:36,280 Speaker 1: with shows and art exhibits, and that ferris wheel towering 69 00:04:36,400 --> 00:04:41,440 Speaker 1: over at all. Wishful homeowners admired fully electric kitchens, complete 70 00:04:41,440 --> 00:04:46,279 Speaker 1: with dishwashers, electric cop plates, ranges, broilers, and kettles. Inventors 71 00:04:46,279 --> 00:04:49,000 Speaker 1: showed off electric bed warmers for those cold winter nights, 72 00:04:49,160 --> 00:04:53,000 Speaker 1: and electric fans for those sweltering summer days. Business Men 73 00:04:53,080 --> 00:04:57,960 Speaker 1: balked at the neon lights and fax machines. Naturally, Westinghouse 74 00:04:58,000 --> 00:05:01,000 Speaker 1: had their own exhibit. They have bully demonstrated to the 75 00:05:01,000 --> 00:05:05,680 Speaker 1: crowd how the fair benefited from alternating current. Opposite from 76 00:05:05,720 --> 00:05:10,400 Speaker 1: them was general electric, with the Edison Tower showcasing direct current. 77 00:05:12,000 --> 00:05:15,240 Speaker 1: The day turned to dusk, and visitors still had so 78 00:05:15,320 --> 00:05:18,600 Speaker 1: much to see. They were thrilled that the brilliant lights 79 00:05:18,600 --> 00:05:22,320 Speaker 1: allowed them to stay longer. One newspaper reporter wrote that 80 00:05:22,360 --> 00:05:25,800 Speaker 1: the exposition was worthy of world attention. The city and 81 00:05:25,880 --> 00:05:28,160 Speaker 1: sky on the first evening were a light, as though 82 00:05:28,160 --> 00:05:31,480 Speaker 1: transformed by a magician. The dome at the heart of 83 00:05:31,480 --> 00:05:35,720 Speaker 1: the exposition glowed as though draped in stars. The lights 84 00:05:35,839 --> 00:05:39,640 Speaker 1: dazzled everyone and became the talk of the nation and yes, 85 00:05:39,760 --> 00:05:44,000 Speaker 1: the world. The way we use electricity had changed forever 86 00:05:45,120 --> 00:05:49,159 Speaker 1: in the public's mind. Westinghouse and Tesla's alternating current had 87 00:05:49,240 --> 00:05:53,039 Speaker 1: won the war and had stepped into center stage. And 88 00:05:53,360 --> 00:05:56,320 Speaker 1: when the fair finally came to a close, it seemed 89 00:05:56,440 --> 00:06:01,040 Speaker 1: everyone couldn't have been more pleased with how things turned out. Well, 90 00:06:01,400 --> 00:06:05,760 Speaker 1: almost everyone, because in the War of the currents, there 91 00:06:05,839 --> 00:06:10,000 Speaker 1: was one person in particular who didn't like to be outshined. 92 00:06:11,520 --> 00:06:23,000 Speaker 1: I'm Lauren Vogelbaum, Welcome to American Shadows. Like every good 93 00:06:23,000 --> 00:06:26,359 Speaker 1: war story, the most pivotal moments occurred long before the 94 00:06:26,400 --> 00:06:31,080 Speaker 1: first battle. Thomas Alva Edison was born on February eleventh 95 00:06:31,160 --> 00:06:34,400 Speaker 1: of eighteen forty seven. He was the seventh child born 96 00:06:34,440 --> 00:06:37,080 Speaker 1: to parents Samuel and Nancy, though only four of them 97 00:06:37,160 --> 00:06:41,320 Speaker 1: made it to adulthood. Perhaps surprisingly, his education was sparse. 98 00:06:41,720 --> 00:06:44,039 Speaker 1: He left school in eighteen fifty nine to work on 99 00:06:44,080 --> 00:06:48,440 Speaker 1: the train route between Detroit and Port Herein. Then, just 100 00:06:48,560 --> 00:06:51,440 Speaker 1: a few short years after the Civil War, an emerging 101 00:06:51,520 --> 00:06:56,760 Speaker 1: technology swept the nation, the telegraph. Edison became so captivated 102 00:06:56,800 --> 00:06:58,920 Speaker 1: with this new invention that he quit his route on 103 00:06:58,960 --> 00:07:02,680 Speaker 1: the railroad and found employment as a telegraph operator. The 104 00:07:02,800 --> 00:07:05,000 Speaker 1: job allowed him to work anywhere in the country, and 105 00:07:05,080 --> 00:07:09,440 Speaker 1: he traveled extensively. But Edison had some difficulty with his 106 00:07:09,520 --> 00:07:12,600 Speaker 1: chosen profession. He was deaf in one ear and had 107 00:07:12,680 --> 00:07:16,640 Speaker 1: limited hearing and other due to childhood illnesses. This made 108 00:07:16,720 --> 00:07:20,240 Speaker 1: understanding and translating the Morse Code to English much harder. 109 00:07:21,240 --> 00:07:24,440 Speaker 1: He refused to give up, though he improved the device, 110 00:07:24,640 --> 00:07:27,119 Speaker 1: making it easier for deaf and heart of hearing people 111 00:07:27,160 --> 00:07:31,000 Speaker 1: to use. Edison's interpretation of the telegraph used a metal 112 00:07:31,040 --> 00:07:35,480 Speaker 1: stylus and chemically treated paper. His version greatly improved upon 113 00:07:35,520 --> 00:07:38,480 Speaker 1: the old one, recording up to a thousand words a minute. 114 00:07:39,000 --> 00:07:41,560 Speaker 1: He found he enjoyed the process of creating new things, 115 00:07:41,680 --> 00:07:46,080 Speaker 1: and worked on another invention, the universal stock printer. In 116 00:07:46,120 --> 00:07:48,880 Speaker 1: the early days, his inventions earned him a tidy sum 117 00:07:48,920 --> 00:07:53,400 Speaker 1: of forty dollars roughly seven hundred thousand today, so Edison 118 00:07:53,520 --> 00:07:56,120 Speaker 1: quickly gave up working with telegraphs and moved to New 119 00:07:56,160 --> 00:07:58,880 Speaker 1: Jersey to set up a lab and invent full time. 120 00:07:59,720 --> 00:08:03,280 Speaker 1: When Alexander Graham Bell created the telephone, Edison set out 121 00:08:03,320 --> 00:08:06,640 Speaker 1: to improve it. He developed a microphone that used carbon 122 00:08:06,800 --> 00:08:10,120 Speaker 1: to create variable resistance in a current, which could transmit 123 00:08:10,240 --> 00:08:14,200 Speaker 1: over much longer distances. His basic method would be used 124 00:08:14,280 --> 00:08:18,880 Speaker 1: until digital telephones appeared in the nineteen eighties. His inventions, 125 00:08:19,200 --> 00:08:22,720 Speaker 1: or the improvement of other inventions, earned him a new nickname, 126 00:08:23,160 --> 00:08:27,040 Speaker 1: the Wizard of Menlo Park. The press reported on him frequently, 127 00:08:27,160 --> 00:08:29,560 Speaker 1: and the public anxiously awaited to see what he had 128 00:08:29,600 --> 00:08:34,199 Speaker 1: come up with next. In eighteen seventy eight, harnessing electricity 129 00:08:34,240 --> 00:08:38,560 Speaker 1: became his new obsession. Edison bought patent after patent along 130 00:08:38,600 --> 00:08:41,840 Speaker 1: with power plants, placing himself in the perfect position to 131 00:08:41,880 --> 00:08:45,840 Speaker 1: monopolize the market as he had with other inventions. He 132 00:08:45,920 --> 00:08:49,640 Speaker 1: quickly set out to improve on how electricity was being used. 133 00:08:50,200 --> 00:08:53,360 Speaker 1: Making it safer and cheaper would also mean more customers. 134 00:08:54,120 --> 00:08:57,520 Speaker 1: His first goal was to replace the gas light. The 135 00:08:57,640 --> 00:09:00,880 Speaker 1: idea wasn't exactly new, the light all had been invented 136 00:09:00,920 --> 00:09:04,200 Speaker 1: back in eighteen thirty five, but Edison felt he could 137 00:09:04,200 --> 00:09:07,760 Speaker 1: do it better and more affordably. As smart a businessman 138 00:09:07,800 --> 00:09:10,760 Speaker 1: as he was an inventor, he convinced financial heavyweights like 139 00:09:10,880 --> 00:09:13,840 Speaker 1: JP Morgan and the Vanderbilts to invest in his research. 140 00:09:14,600 --> 00:09:17,559 Speaker 1: The funds were enough to found the Edison Electric Company, 141 00:09:17,800 --> 00:09:22,439 Speaker 1: which later became General Electric. His first real breakthrough came 142 00:09:22,480 --> 00:09:25,559 Speaker 1: in eighteen seventy nine. Edison came up with a light 143 00:09:25,600 --> 00:09:29,320 Speaker 1: bulb that used a platinum filament. In eighteen eighty, he 144 00:09:29,400 --> 00:09:34,800 Speaker 1: carbonized bamboo, creating a long lasting and affordable light bulb. Overnight, 145 00:09:35,000 --> 00:09:39,720 Speaker 1: Edison became the biggest name in science. But lightbulbs don't 146 00:09:39,760 --> 00:09:44,760 Speaker 1: work without current, and he needed electrical infrastructure. He chose 147 00:09:44,840 --> 00:09:48,800 Speaker 1: what's called direct current or d C. With DC, the 148 00:09:48,840 --> 00:09:53,080 Speaker 1: current flows in one direction in September at eighteen eighty two, 149 00:09:53,280 --> 00:09:56,360 Speaker 1: the very first power station opened in New York City. 150 00:09:56,960 --> 00:10:01,200 Speaker 1: Fifty nine paying customers immediately signed up. Before long, more 151 00:10:01,240 --> 00:10:05,120 Speaker 1: plants were built. As you might imagine, the gas companies 152 00:10:05,160 --> 00:10:09,640 Speaker 1: weren't exactly thrilled. They argued that direct current was dangerous 153 00:10:09,640 --> 00:10:12,480 Speaker 1: for every day use by the general public, and there 154 00:10:12,480 --> 00:10:16,920 Speaker 1: were drawbacks. Namely, direct current couldn't transfer past a mile, 155 00:10:17,360 --> 00:10:20,280 Speaker 1: so customers needed to be rather close to a power plant, 156 00:10:20,760 --> 00:10:25,320 Speaker 1: and costs were high. Copper wiring was expensive. Direct current 157 00:10:25,440 --> 00:10:29,360 Speaker 1: wasn't the only game in town, though. There's also alternating current, 158 00:10:29,559 --> 00:10:33,240 Speaker 1: or a C, which periodically reverses direction, and it has 159 00:10:33,320 --> 00:10:37,920 Speaker 1: fewer limitations on distance. Farther distance fewer power plants, cheaper 160 00:10:37,920 --> 00:10:42,080 Speaker 1: to operate, and lower costs. Overall, a second transformer could 161 00:10:42,080 --> 00:10:47,000 Speaker 1: also lower the voltage. George Westinghouse was not only a 162 00:10:47,000 --> 00:10:50,359 Speaker 1: proponent of a C power he was an economic Powerhouse 163 00:10:50,920 --> 00:10:53,360 Speaker 1: had invented the air brake, which had set him up 164 00:10:53,400 --> 00:10:58,160 Speaker 1: financially with the railroads. But Westinghouse had a problem. No 165 00:10:58,280 --> 00:11:01,559 Speaker 1: amount of enthusiasm or money made a C work as 166 00:11:01,559 --> 00:11:05,720 Speaker 1: well as Edison's d C. That didn't mean he didn't 167 00:11:05,720 --> 00:11:09,880 Speaker 1: have a solution, though he hired a former Edison employee, 168 00:11:09,920 --> 00:11:15,160 Speaker 1: a man named Nicola Tesla, touted as an exceptionally brilliant engineer. 169 00:11:15,520 --> 00:11:18,400 Speaker 1: Tesla had immigrated from Serbia to New York City in 170 00:11:18,480 --> 00:11:22,640 Speaker 1: eighteen eighty four. Upon arriving, he applied with Edison. Coming 171 00:11:22,720 --> 00:11:26,360 Speaker 1: highly recommended and regarded, he handed Edison a letter of 172 00:11:26,400 --> 00:11:30,560 Speaker 1: recommendation that read, my dear Edison, I know two great men, 173 00:11:30,840 --> 00:11:33,360 Speaker 1: and you are one of them. The other is this 174 00:11:33,440 --> 00:11:37,679 Speaker 1: young man. Born on July tenth of eighteen fifty six, 175 00:11:37,960 --> 00:11:41,680 Speaker 1: Nicola Tesla was one of four siblings. Had become fascinated 176 00:11:41,679 --> 00:11:45,600 Speaker 1: with electricity after a demonstration from his physics professor. Able 177 00:11:45,640 --> 00:11:48,760 Speaker 1: to do complex calculations in his head and recall images 178 00:11:48,800 --> 00:11:52,120 Speaker 1: with amazing detail, he completed his schooling in three years 179 00:11:52,160 --> 00:11:55,560 Speaker 1: instead of four, though he left before acquiring his degree. 180 00:11:56,679 --> 00:11:59,400 Speaker 1: He arrived in New York with the aforementioned letter and 181 00:11:59,520 --> 00:12:02,600 Speaker 1: four set in his pocket. He knew of Edison and 182 00:12:02,640 --> 00:12:04,760 Speaker 1: wanted the chance to work with such a great inventor, 183 00:12:05,400 --> 00:12:08,560 Speaker 1: and Edison hired him, offering him a fifty thou dollar 184 00:12:08,640 --> 00:12:12,640 Speaker 1: bonus if he could improve the direct current generators. Tesla 185 00:12:12,760 --> 00:12:16,280 Speaker 1: loved a challenge, and in five, he provided his new 186 00:12:16,320 --> 00:12:22,120 Speaker 1: employer with a solution, an alternating current generator. Edison scoffed 187 00:12:22,120 --> 00:12:26,400 Speaker 1: at the idea, calling it splendid but impractical. It didn't 188 00:12:26,400 --> 00:12:29,960 Speaker 1: help that his nemesis, Westinghouse also believed alternating current was 189 00:12:30,040 --> 00:12:33,600 Speaker 1: the future of electricity. Though Tesla had met his end 190 00:12:33,640 --> 00:12:37,520 Speaker 1: of the bargain, Edison did not. He refused to pay 191 00:12:37,559 --> 00:12:40,320 Speaker 1: his new hire, telling him when you become a full 192 00:12:40,320 --> 00:12:45,000 Speaker 1: fledged American, you will appreciate an American joke. Tesla didn't 193 00:12:45,000 --> 00:12:48,960 Speaker 1: find the situation funny at all and promptly quit. As 194 00:12:48,960 --> 00:12:52,400 Speaker 1: a new immigrant, employment was hard to find. Still, he 195 00:12:52,440 --> 00:12:55,800 Speaker 1: found work digging ditches. It wasn't much, but he remained 196 00:12:55,880 --> 00:12:58,600 Speaker 1: determined to save enough to work on his own inventions. 197 00:12:59,520 --> 00:13:02,440 Speaker 1: The two would cross paths again, and not just during 198 00:13:02,440 --> 00:13:05,480 Speaker 1: the finale at the World's Fair in Chicago. In fact, 199 00:13:05,920 --> 00:13:16,040 Speaker 1: sparks were about to fly. Tesla didn't give up. Edison 200 00:13:16,160 --> 00:13:18,880 Speaker 1: might have scoffed at his suggestion, but the idea of 201 00:13:18,920 --> 00:13:22,920 Speaker 1: an alternating current generator was too tempting to walk away from. 202 00:13:23,040 --> 00:13:26,880 Speaker 1: While digging ditches made for long, tiresome days, he worked 203 00:13:26,880 --> 00:13:30,400 Speaker 1: out an invention in his head. Later he had jot 204 00:13:30,440 --> 00:13:33,880 Speaker 1: the diagrams and notes onto paper, and they worked as 205 00:13:33,960 --> 00:13:39,120 Speaker 1: jotted flawlessly, in fact, without ever changing a thing. Tesla 206 00:13:39,200 --> 00:13:42,280 Speaker 1: had what's called idetic memory, which is the ability to 207 00:13:42,440 --> 00:13:45,400 Speaker 1: vividly recall an image even if you've only seen it once. 208 00:13:45,880 --> 00:13:49,400 Speaker 1: It's occasionally found in very bright children, but rarely ever 209 00:13:49,480 --> 00:13:54,520 Speaker 1: in adults. Tesla patented his inventions, said to be the 210 00:13:54,559 --> 00:13:59,800 Speaker 1: most valuable since the creation of the telephone. George Westinghouse 211 00:13:59,800 --> 00:14:03,600 Speaker 1: took notice and not only licensed to the young inventor's patents, 212 00:14:03,640 --> 00:14:06,520 Speaker 1: but he also hired him for its sixty dollars plus 213 00:14:06,600 --> 00:14:11,199 Speaker 1: royalties and stock. If Westinghouse could corner the market on electricity, 214 00:14:11,400 --> 00:14:16,280 Speaker 1: Tesla would be one of the world's wealthiest men. The 215 00:14:16,360 --> 00:14:18,720 Speaker 1: company soon set up their new engineer in a lab 216 00:14:18,840 --> 00:14:21,960 Speaker 1: not far from Edison's office. It must have felt pretty 217 00:14:21,960 --> 00:14:26,600 Speaker 1: satisfying for Tesla. Shortly afterward, he invented a coil capable 218 00:14:26,600 --> 00:14:30,640 Speaker 1: of generating high voltages and frequencies. In turn, this helped 219 00:14:30,680 --> 00:14:33,880 Speaker 1: create new forms of light bulbs, such as fluorescent and neon. 220 00:14:35,040 --> 00:14:38,720 Speaker 1: It also had another use, sending radio signals, and that 221 00:14:39,000 --> 00:14:43,120 Speaker 1: gave Tesla another idea. He pitched JP Morgan's and ideas 222 00:14:43,160 --> 00:14:47,240 Speaker 1: for wireless transmission. The financial tycoon loved the ideas so 223 00:14:47,320 --> 00:14:49,760 Speaker 1: much he spent a hundred and fifty thou dollars to 224 00:14:49,800 --> 00:14:54,040 Speaker 1: build a huge transmission tower. There was a problem, though, 225 00:14:54,760 --> 00:14:58,640 Speaker 1: legal issues with one Guglielmo Marconi and the prior patent. 226 00:14:59,320 --> 00:15:02,600 Speaker 1: It would be years before the Supreme Court overturned Marconi's patent, 227 00:15:03,080 --> 00:15:07,080 Speaker 1: giving credit to Tesla for the first patent in radio technology. 228 00:15:07,720 --> 00:15:11,920 Speaker 1: Edison watched Tesla and Westinghouse carefully. Though he had treated 229 00:15:11,920 --> 00:15:15,280 Speaker 1: the young inventor poorly, he still realized Tesla was a 230 00:15:15,280 --> 00:15:18,560 Speaker 1: genius in his own right. It didn't take much to 231 00:15:18,600 --> 00:15:21,920 Speaker 1: see that alternating current was closing the gap on direct current. 232 00:15:23,160 --> 00:15:26,360 Speaker 1: Rural areas favored a C in many out of the 233 00:15:26,360 --> 00:15:30,960 Speaker 1: way places, d C just wasn't practical. All told, Westinghouse 234 00:15:31,000 --> 00:15:33,960 Speaker 1: had recently set up sixty eight power plants closing in 235 00:15:34,080 --> 00:15:38,720 Speaker 1: on Edison's one. Like a lot of business men, he 236 00:15:38,840 --> 00:15:41,120 Speaker 1: decided that if he couldn't make his product look better, 237 00:15:41,400 --> 00:15:46,200 Speaker 1: he'd make the other guys look worse. Legal battles ensued 238 00:15:46,240 --> 00:15:49,280 Speaker 1: as Edison tried to claim that alternating current infringed on 239 00:15:49,320 --> 00:15:52,960 Speaker 1: his patents. He also claimed that using alternating current was 240 00:15:53,200 --> 00:15:58,600 Speaker 1: inferior to his direct current system. Now any electrician will 241 00:15:58,640 --> 00:16:02,720 Speaker 1: tell you neither current is safe. If you're not careful, 242 00:16:02,880 --> 00:16:07,680 Speaker 1: electricity is unforgiving. All Edison needed to do was a 243 00:16:07,720 --> 00:16:12,080 Speaker 1: little fearmongering show the public the dangers of alternating current. 244 00:16:13,160 --> 00:16:16,480 Speaker 1: Edison already knew that most electric companies installed a C 245 00:16:16,640 --> 00:16:20,880 Speaker 1: wire on poles in a less than cautious manner. The 246 00:16:20,960 --> 00:16:24,120 Speaker 1: faster that any company provided electricity d C or a 247 00:16:24,240 --> 00:16:27,120 Speaker 1: C two businesses and homes, the more money they made, 248 00:16:27,480 --> 00:16:31,600 Speaker 1: which did not incentivize them to create robust safety measures 249 00:16:31,640 --> 00:16:36,400 Speaker 1: for the linesmen installing the wire. Though linesmen frequently climbed 250 00:16:36,400 --> 00:16:39,160 Speaker 1: poles upwards of a hundred and fifty feet tall, they 251 00:16:39,240 --> 00:16:43,600 Speaker 1: weren't offered helmets, harnesses, or other safety gear. Add to that, 252 00:16:43,800 --> 00:16:46,800 Speaker 1: the haphazard way the wires were attached and it was 253 00:16:46,840 --> 00:16:50,720 Speaker 1: an accident waiting to happen. That didn't stop Edison from 254 00:16:50,720 --> 00:16:53,320 Speaker 1: trying to push through legislation to limit the use of 255 00:16:53,360 --> 00:16:57,840 Speaker 1: alternating current. Specifically, when papers touted the benefits and the 256 00:16:57,840 --> 00:17:01,280 Speaker 1: growth of a C, Edison was it to saying, just 257 00:17:01,440 --> 00:17:05,120 Speaker 1: as certain as death, Westinghouse will kill a customer within 258 00:17:05,240 --> 00:17:09,040 Speaker 1: six months, and when a Western Union lineman died on 259 00:17:09,080 --> 00:17:12,159 Speaker 1: the job. Edison quickly pointed to it, and the press 260 00:17:12,200 --> 00:17:15,600 Speaker 1: wasted little time selling papers with the gruesome story of 261 00:17:15,680 --> 00:17:21,280 Speaker 1: linesman John Pikes. After snowstorm snapped wires and plunged the 262 00:17:21,280 --> 00:17:24,600 Speaker 1: city into darkness for days, New York determined that for 263 00:17:24,760 --> 00:17:29,000 Speaker 1: safety reasons, all wires should be buried instead of strong overhead. 264 00:17:29,960 --> 00:17:32,640 Speaker 1: The new mayor determined to make this a priority, set 265 00:17:32,640 --> 00:17:36,359 Speaker 1: a deadline. Companies had just ninety days to finish the 266 00:17:36,440 --> 00:17:39,879 Speaker 1: job or he'd have the poles cut down. It was 267 00:17:40,000 --> 00:17:44,480 Speaker 1: an impossible task, and by mid April nine, the city 268 00:17:44,520 --> 00:17:48,280 Speaker 1: workers began cutting down poles like they were lumberjacks. Then 269 00:17:48,320 --> 00:17:51,240 Speaker 1: they rolled up the remaining wire and carried it away. 270 00:17:51,640 --> 00:17:55,080 Speaker 1: It's not that the companies who owned the lines didn't try, 271 00:17:55,240 --> 00:17:58,320 Speaker 1: it's how Western Union lineman John Fikes found himself on 272 00:17:58,359 --> 00:18:01,720 Speaker 1: a pole in downtown New York at lunchtime on October eleven. 273 00:18:03,800 --> 00:18:06,280 Speaker 1: He lost his footing on what should have been a 274 00:18:06,280 --> 00:18:10,240 Speaker 1: low voltage pole, but it wasn't. He hit the first 275 00:18:10,240 --> 00:18:13,760 Speaker 1: set of wires, then tumbled towards the ground, becoming entangled 276 00:18:13,760 --> 00:18:17,800 Speaker 1: in more wiring. Lunch goers below were horrified as the 277 00:18:17,840 --> 00:18:22,640 Speaker 1: corpse caught fire. To further demonstrate how horrible a death 278 00:18:22,720 --> 00:18:26,480 Speaker 1: from a c was, Edison connected a dog named Dash 279 00:18:26,600 --> 00:18:30,680 Speaker 1: to three volts of alternating current, essentially frying the poor dog. 280 00:18:31,760 --> 00:18:35,520 Speaker 1: Then he performed his demonstration on more animals, using strays 281 00:18:35,640 --> 00:18:38,920 Speaker 1: or dogs and cats from a shelter. Other times, had 282 00:18:38,920 --> 00:18:42,320 Speaker 1: paid neighborhood kids a quarter to bring him pets. Most 283 00:18:42,359 --> 00:18:45,040 Speaker 1: were cats and dogs, but he electrocuted a few cows 284 00:18:45,040 --> 00:18:49,160 Speaker 1: and horses as well. None of the deaths were quick, 285 00:18:49,560 --> 00:18:54,600 Speaker 1: and that was Edison's point. Still, it wasn't enough. Tesla 286 00:18:54,680 --> 00:18:59,560 Speaker 1: and Westinghouse continued to gain market share. With more safety 287 00:18:59,560 --> 00:19:02,879 Speaker 1: measures now in place and most of the wires buried underground, 288 00:19:03,119 --> 00:19:07,560 Speaker 1: fewer deaths were occurring. Edison needed something that would ruin 289 00:19:07,760 --> 00:19:12,359 Speaker 1: Westinghouse and Tesla, and as it turned out, the state 290 00:19:12,400 --> 00:19:23,320 Speaker 1: of New York had already offered a solution. It's a 291 00:19:23,359 --> 00:19:28,080 Speaker 1: morbid origin story. Alfred P. Southwick, a Buffalo, New York dentist, 292 00:19:28,400 --> 00:19:31,360 Speaker 1: had been determined to find a way to execute criminals 293 00:19:31,400 --> 00:19:35,720 Speaker 1: sitting on death row. Had had this obsession since when 294 00:19:35,760 --> 00:19:38,600 Speaker 1: the story of a drunken doc worker piqued his interest. 295 00:19:39,640 --> 00:19:43,200 Speaker 1: The worker had grabbed a large electric dynamo and unable 296 00:19:43,240 --> 00:19:48,480 Speaker 1: to let go had died. Coupled with Edison's demonstrations electrocuting animals, 297 00:19:48,800 --> 00:19:51,720 Speaker 1: the dentist believed he had found an alternative to hanging 298 00:19:51,760 --> 00:19:56,080 Speaker 1: people on death Row. After writing a few successful articles 299 00:19:56,080 --> 00:20:00,000 Speaker 1: about using electricity to euthanize animals, Southwick caught the attack 300 00:20:00,000 --> 00:20:02,680 Speaker 1: should have a commission appointed by New York Governor David 301 00:20:02,720 --> 00:20:06,879 Speaker 1: Hill in eighty three. Within the year, the commission recommended 302 00:20:06,920 --> 00:20:12,400 Speaker 1: carrying out executions with the electric chair. They needed additional research, though, 303 00:20:12,480 --> 00:20:17,240 Speaker 1: so they contacted Edison. Naturally. The feigned inventor recommended the 304 00:20:17,320 --> 00:20:21,639 Speaker 1: use of alternating current, and not just any a C generator, 305 00:20:21,840 --> 00:20:27,159 Speaker 1: but specifically those made by Westinghouse. When a government employee 306 00:20:27,160 --> 00:20:30,480 Speaker 1: working on the committee questioned him about how electricity would 307 00:20:30,520 --> 00:20:33,760 Speaker 1: be used as a means of execution, Edison suggested that 308 00:20:33,880 --> 00:20:36,159 Speaker 1: death Row inmates should be forced to work as a 309 00:20:36,160 --> 00:20:39,760 Speaker 1: New York lineman that he assured the official would dispatch 310 00:20:39,800 --> 00:20:44,520 Speaker 1: them in short order. Harold Brown, an electrical engineer secretly 311 00:20:44,560 --> 00:20:47,159 Speaker 1: on Edison's payroll, sent a scathing letter to the New 312 00:20:47,240 --> 00:20:50,800 Speaker 1: York Post in June of eight trashing any power company 313 00:20:50,920 --> 00:20:55,080 Speaker 1: using alternating current. He claimed that companies didn't care about 314 00:20:55,160 --> 00:20:58,919 Speaker 1: deaths as long as they got rich, offering a cheap utility. 315 00:20:59,400 --> 00:21:01,879 Speaker 1: George Westinghouse wrote his own letter to the Post the 316 00:21:01,920 --> 00:21:05,040 Speaker 1: next day in an attempt to put the situation to 317 00:21:05,119 --> 00:21:08,240 Speaker 1: rest once and for all. He invited Edison to Pittsburgh 318 00:21:08,320 --> 00:21:10,760 Speaker 1: so that they could talk and get past their differences. 319 00:21:11,680 --> 00:21:14,800 Speaker 1: Edison refused, citing his work taking up too much of 320 00:21:14,880 --> 00:21:19,600 Speaker 1: his time. In July, Brown and Edison headed to Columbia 321 00:21:19,680 --> 00:21:23,119 Speaker 1: College to again demonstrate the danger of alternating current to 322 00:21:23,200 --> 00:21:28,440 Speaker 1: the general public. They electrocuted one dog after another. Sickened 323 00:21:28,440 --> 00:21:31,240 Speaker 1: by their casual cruelty, people yelled at them to stop, 324 00:21:31,320 --> 00:21:35,240 Speaker 1: while others fled in horror. But the collusion between the 325 00:21:35,280 --> 00:21:38,920 Speaker 1: two men didn't end there. Brown was selected to design 326 00:21:39,080 --> 00:21:42,880 Speaker 1: the electric chair. Edison and company quickly coined the term 327 00:21:43,040 --> 00:21:48,480 Speaker 1: Westinghouse for those condemned to death. Westinghouse was mortified. It 328 00:21:48,680 --> 00:21:51,160 Speaker 1: never intended for the A C generator to be used 329 00:21:51,160 --> 00:21:53,240 Speaker 1: for such a thing, and he refused to sell them 330 00:21:53,240 --> 00:21:57,280 Speaker 1: for that purpose, but the courts forced the issue. The 331 00:21:57,320 --> 00:22:00,199 Speaker 1: first person slated for execution with the new device was 332 00:22:00,240 --> 00:22:05,199 Speaker 1: convicted murderer William Kemler, an alcoholic he had, during one 333 00:22:05,240 --> 00:22:08,480 Speaker 1: of his drunken stupors, grabbed a hatchet and repeatedly struck 334 00:22:08,480 --> 00:22:13,199 Speaker 1: his girlfriend on March twenty nine, Then, calmly, he had 335 00:22:13,200 --> 00:22:16,040 Speaker 1: walked next door and confessed the crime to his neighbors. 336 00:22:17,000 --> 00:22:20,280 Speaker 1: Though the case was open and shut, his attorneys argued 337 00:22:20,400 --> 00:22:25,320 Speaker 1: death by electrocution was cruel and unusual punishment. The impending 338 00:22:25,359 --> 00:22:29,600 Speaker 1: execution appalled Westinghouse so much he contributed a hundred thousand 339 00:22:29,600 --> 00:22:33,639 Speaker 1: dollars to Kemmler's defense. The Supreme Court deemed the method 340 00:22:33,720 --> 00:22:37,159 Speaker 1: humane and ruled in favor of the use of electricity 341 00:22:37,280 --> 00:22:42,600 Speaker 1: and Westinghouses generators. On August six of eighteen ninety, at 342 00:22:42,640 --> 00:22:45,800 Speaker 1: five o'clock in the morning, Kemmler sat down to breakfast, 343 00:22:45,840 --> 00:22:49,760 Speaker 1: wearing a suit, a white shirt, and a necktie. Afterward, 344 00:22:49,920 --> 00:22:52,520 Speaker 1: he prayed as a guard shaved the top of his head. 345 00:22:53,280 --> 00:22:57,160 Speaker 1: At six thirty eight a m seventeen witnesses watched Kemler 346 00:22:57,280 --> 00:23:00,960 Speaker 1: enter the execution room. They remarked how cool and composed 347 00:23:01,000 --> 00:23:04,800 Speaker 1: he seemed. After strapping him into the chair and covering 348 00:23:04,880 --> 00:23:08,320 Speaker 1: his face with a hood, the executioner charged up the generator. 349 00:23:09,040 --> 00:23:12,679 Speaker 1: They believed the shock would send him into immediate cardiac arrest. 350 00:23:14,080 --> 00:23:17,080 Speaker 1: Once the switch was flipped, a thousand bolts surged through 351 00:23:17,119 --> 00:23:21,200 Speaker 1: his body for a full seventeen seconds. When it was done, 352 00:23:21,520 --> 00:23:25,199 Speaker 1: Southwick turned to the crowd. Pleased with the results, he 353 00:23:25,280 --> 00:23:28,080 Speaker 1: announced that the execution had been the result of hard 354 00:23:28,080 --> 00:23:31,800 Speaker 1: work and study, then added, we live in a higher 355 00:23:31,840 --> 00:23:37,800 Speaker 1: civilization today. That's when the screams erupted behind him, and 356 00:23:37,920 --> 00:23:42,520 Speaker 1: the witnesses, all looking over Southwick's shoulder, screamed too. Some 357 00:23:42,720 --> 00:23:48,080 Speaker 1: ran from their seats, vomiting. Kemmler was still alive. From 358 00:23:48,200 --> 00:23:51,679 Speaker 1: under the hood. Covering his face, he let out agonized shriek. 359 00:23:51,800 --> 00:23:56,399 Speaker 1: After shriek, the executioner threw the switch again, but the 360 00:23:56,480 --> 00:24:00,000 Speaker 1: dynamo needed time to rebuild a charge. As the current 361 00:24:00,119 --> 00:24:03,760 Speaker 1: began to slowly build, Kemler wheezed and gasped for breath. 362 00:24:04,840 --> 00:24:08,560 Speaker 1: Then two thousand volts shocked him, causing blood vessels under 363 00:24:08,600 --> 00:24:11,040 Speaker 1: his skin to rupture and his body to catch fire. 364 00:24:11,840 --> 00:24:18,120 Speaker 1: Witnesses fainted for several minutes more the execution went on. Finally, 365 00:24:18,359 --> 00:24:21,959 Speaker 1: Kembler's body went rigid. The switch was turned off, and 366 00:24:22,000 --> 00:24:25,480 Speaker 1: the physician cautiously stepped forward to check for signs of life. 367 00:24:26,359 --> 00:24:30,960 Speaker 1: Finding none, he pronounced the prisoner dead. The news of 368 00:24:30,960 --> 00:24:34,320 Speaker 1: the botched execution reached to the press. Of course, neither 369 00:24:34,480 --> 00:24:38,080 Speaker 1: Edison nor Westinghouse had predicted how it would turn out. However, 370 00:24:38,520 --> 00:24:43,280 Speaker 1: Tesla had. Edison said that the execution had been sloppy, 371 00:24:43,440 --> 00:24:46,399 Speaker 1: but nothing more than a temporary setback, when the future 372 00:24:46,400 --> 00:24:49,679 Speaker 1: executions using a C would go a lot smoother. The 373 00:24:49,720 --> 00:24:53,480 Speaker 1: public disagreed. They seemed to decide with Westinghouse, who said 374 00:24:53,480 --> 00:24:55,760 Speaker 1: the execution had been so brutal that it would have 375 00:24:55,800 --> 00:24:58,320 Speaker 1: been more humane if they bludgeoned Kembler with an axe. 376 00:24:59,800 --> 00:25:02,359 Speaker 1: The battle between A C and d C began to 377 00:25:02,400 --> 00:25:06,399 Speaker 1: wind down. After that, Edison Electric merged with another company, 378 00:25:06,480 --> 00:25:11,920 Speaker 1: becoming General Electric in and once Westinghouse in, Tesla won 379 00:25:11,960 --> 00:25:14,800 Speaker 1: the bid for the World Fair and the Niagara Falls 380 00:25:14,840 --> 00:25:19,120 Speaker 1: hydro electric project in the War of the Currents was over. 381 00:25:21,280 --> 00:25:26,200 Speaker 1: By November six eight, Buffalo, New York was lit up 382 00:25:26,240 --> 00:25:30,080 Speaker 1: like a Christmas tree. Tesla stated that his patent, coupled 383 00:25:30,080 --> 00:25:32,240 Speaker 1: with the falls, would be enough to light up not 384 00:25:32,359 --> 00:25:36,920 Speaker 1: just Buffalo, but the entire Eastern United States. In the end, 385 00:25:37,119 --> 00:25:41,800 Speaker 1: historians agree it maybe Edison's light bulb that lights the room, 386 00:25:41,800 --> 00:25:57,080 Speaker 1: but Tesla's alternating current powers the world. Although it helped 387 00:25:57,080 --> 00:26:01,600 Speaker 1: bring alternating current to the forefront, Tesla faded from history 388 00:26:01,920 --> 00:26:03,960 Speaker 1: in the last decades of his life. He lived in 389 00:26:03,960 --> 00:26:07,560 Speaker 1: a New York hotel room. His mental health began to suffer, 390 00:26:07,800 --> 00:26:11,320 Speaker 1: and it's reported that he may have had dementia. He 391 00:26:11,400 --> 00:26:14,280 Speaker 1: never married and had no children. He only had a 392 00:26:14,280 --> 00:26:18,200 Speaker 1: few close friends, namely the writers Mark Twain and Rudyard Kipling. 393 00:26:19,400 --> 00:26:22,560 Speaker 1: Although as his mental health deteriorated, he much preferred the 394 00:26:22,600 --> 00:26:25,679 Speaker 1: company of pigeons over people, and spent most of his 395 00:26:25,760 --> 00:26:29,800 Speaker 1: days feeding and talking to the birds. He also developed 396 00:26:29,800 --> 00:26:32,880 Speaker 1: an obsession with the number three and exhibited a phobia 397 00:26:32,960 --> 00:26:38,439 Speaker 1: of women's earrings. Nonetheless, after Tesla's death in nineteen forty three, 398 00:26:38,840 --> 00:26:44,560 Speaker 1: US government officials seized his possessions, including his notes and inventions. Eventually, 399 00:26:44,640 --> 00:26:46,640 Speaker 1: many of them were released to his nephew, who sent 400 00:26:46,720 --> 00:26:49,800 Speaker 1: them to Belgrad in nineteen fifty two for inclusion in 401 00:26:49,800 --> 00:26:53,000 Speaker 1: a museum dedicated to Tesla that wound up being tightly 402 00:26:53,080 --> 00:26:56,719 Speaker 1: controlled by the government. There. There are rumors that some 403 00:26:56,800 --> 00:26:59,640 Speaker 1: are lost or of still being withheld, and it's only 404 00:26:59,680 --> 00:27:02,080 Speaker 1: been for the past few decades that some of his 405 00:27:02,119 --> 00:27:05,560 Speaker 1: inventions diagrams and notes have come back into the public eye. 406 00:27:06,640 --> 00:27:10,560 Speaker 1: In one journal entry from Tesla wrote that people would 407 00:27:10,560 --> 00:27:13,240 Speaker 1: one day be able to communicate with each other instantly, 408 00:27:13,480 --> 00:27:18,520 Speaker 1: irrespective of distance. He believed that through such technology would 409 00:27:18,560 --> 00:27:22,280 Speaker 1: be able to communicate on small handheld devices, not just 410 00:27:22,359 --> 00:27:25,879 Speaker 1: transmitting our voices, but our images as well, all with 411 00:27:25,920 --> 00:27:29,000 Speaker 1: a device small enough to fit in a pocket. His 412 00:27:29,119 --> 00:27:32,359 Speaker 1: other predictions ranged from WiFi to m ri I, to 413 00:27:32,480 --> 00:27:36,040 Speaker 1: renewable energy to the idea that someday there would be 414 00:27:36,080 --> 00:27:40,840 Speaker 1: women in power. Nicola Tesla held over seven hundred patents, 415 00:27:41,040 --> 00:27:44,919 Speaker 1: including ones for the Tesla coil, the first hydroelectric power plant, 416 00:27:45,160 --> 00:27:49,360 Speaker 1: the fluorescent bulb neon lights, the remote control the Tesla turbine, 417 00:27:49,720 --> 00:27:53,919 Speaker 1: and a radio controlled boat. He also held the patent 418 00:27:54,119 --> 00:27:57,320 Speaker 1: for a death ray. Little is known about his notes 419 00:27:57,320 --> 00:27:59,960 Speaker 1: and diagrams for it, but the idea that it could 420 00:28:00,080 --> 00:28:05,160 Speaker 1: work hasn't been fully dismissed. Oh and one more thing. 421 00:28:06,000 --> 00:28:09,600 Speaker 1: The battle over electric current wasn't the last time. Tesla 422 00:28:09,640 --> 00:28:13,000 Speaker 1: and Edison went head to head. One night at the 423 00:28:13,040 --> 00:28:16,080 Speaker 1: turn of the century, while alone in his lab, Tesla 424 00:28:16,200 --> 00:28:19,840 Speaker 1: picked up on sounds from a crystal radio. At first, 425 00:28:20,080 --> 00:28:24,040 Speaker 1: he thought the sounds, which resembled voices might be from ghosts. 426 00:28:25,119 --> 00:28:27,720 Speaker 1: Later in nineteen eighteen, when he heard the sounds again, 427 00:28:27,920 --> 00:28:31,800 Speaker 1: he attributed them to electrical storms rather than anything paranormal. 428 00:28:33,080 --> 00:28:35,800 Speaker 1: But Edison, upon hearing that Tesla might be able to 429 00:28:35,840 --> 00:28:39,120 Speaker 1: speak with the dead, wanted to best his former rival. 430 00:28:39,920 --> 00:28:43,280 Speaker 1: Although he was agnostic, Edison polled magazine reporters that he 431 00:28:43,360 --> 00:28:46,680 Speaker 1: was working on a spirit phone, a device that would 432 00:28:46,720 --> 00:28:51,280 Speaker 1: allow contact with the world beyond our own. Drawing from 433 00:28:51,320 --> 00:28:55,640 Speaker 1: Albert Einstein's work on the theories of quantum entanglement and relativity, 434 00:28:55,920 --> 00:28:59,520 Speaker 1: Edison invited scientists and mediums alike to test the device. 435 00:28:59,600 --> 00:29:03,400 Speaker 1: In nine, the spirit phone emitted a small beam of 436 00:29:03,480 --> 00:29:08,520 Speaker 1: light that Edison claimed originated from the dead, seeing nothing 437 00:29:08,600 --> 00:29:12,320 Speaker 1: supernatural about the device, though his guests declared the invention 438 00:29:12,400 --> 00:29:17,280 Speaker 1: of disappointment. Despite the failure of that embarrassing one sided 439 00:29:17,320 --> 00:29:22,240 Speaker 1: competition with Tesla over ghosts, Edison made a bet he 440 00:29:22,440 --> 00:29:26,680 Speaker 1: an engineer Walter Dinwittle agreed that whoever died first would 441 00:29:26,760 --> 00:29:30,920 Speaker 1: contact the other using the spirit phone, But when Dinwittle 442 00:29:31,000 --> 00:29:35,800 Speaker 1: passed late in nine, Edison never recorded any kind of contact. 443 00:29:36,920 --> 00:29:40,720 Speaker 1: Despite his many other inventions, Edison's spirit phone would go 444 00:29:40,800 --> 00:29:44,640 Speaker 1: on to become his most disastrous, but thankfully it was 445 00:29:44,680 --> 00:29:47,760 Speaker 1: a whole lot less deadly than the War of the Currents. 446 00:29:54,640 --> 00:29:57,280 Speaker 1: There's more to this story. Stick around after this brief 447 00:29:57,280 --> 00:30:04,960 Speaker 1: sponsor break to hear all about it. Louis Prince knew 448 00:30:05,000 --> 00:30:08,280 Speaker 1: he wouldn't follow in his father's military footsteps. He was 449 00:30:08,320 --> 00:30:10,760 Speaker 1: spending too much time at the photography studio of a 450 00:30:10,800 --> 00:30:14,719 Speaker 1: family friend, and it had enchanted him. He took lessons 451 00:30:14,800 --> 00:30:17,080 Speaker 1: from Louis de Guerre, who was a chemist and painter, 452 00:30:17,320 --> 00:30:21,240 Speaker 1: but also a pioneer in photography. The younger Louis became 453 00:30:21,360 --> 00:30:24,080 Speaker 1: enthrawled with the process, so when it came time to 454 00:30:24,080 --> 00:30:27,160 Speaker 1: go to university, he aimed for a degree in chemistry, 455 00:30:27,400 --> 00:30:30,680 Speaker 1: an essential field of study for anyone wishing to explore 456 00:30:30,760 --> 00:30:35,240 Speaker 1: the brand new world of photography. In eighteen sixty six, 457 00:30:35,320 --> 00:30:38,720 Speaker 1: a college friend named John Whitley extended Louis an invitation 458 00:30:38,840 --> 00:30:42,280 Speaker 1: to come live in Leeds, a city in West Yorkshire, England. 459 00:30:43,120 --> 00:30:46,560 Speaker 1: Once there, he discovered that John's sister, Elizabeth, also shared 460 00:30:46,600 --> 00:30:48,800 Speaker 1: his love of art and was an accomplished artist in 461 00:30:48,880 --> 00:30:52,120 Speaker 1: her own right. The two began dating and wed in 462 00:30:52,200 --> 00:30:56,280 Speaker 1: eighteen sixty nine. Two years later, the couple started the 463 00:30:56,360 --> 00:31:00,560 Speaker 1: Leeds Technical School of Art. Their method of put colored 464 00:31:00,560 --> 00:31:04,960 Speaker 1: photography onto pottery quickly brought them fame. The wealthy hired 465 00:31:05,000 --> 00:31:09,240 Speaker 1: them for portraits including Queen Victoria and Prime Minister William Gladstone. 466 00:31:10,520 --> 00:31:13,240 Speaker 1: The le Prince's work was included in a time capsule 467 00:31:13,360 --> 00:31:16,280 Speaker 1: and placed into the foundations of Cleopatra's Needle on the 468 00:31:16,280 --> 00:31:21,360 Speaker 1: bank of the Thames River. Ten years later, they moved 469 00:31:21,400 --> 00:31:24,040 Speaker 1: to the United States to work with Whitley Partners, the 470 00:31:24,200 --> 00:31:28,000 Speaker 1: company who had made the time capsule. After their contract ended, 471 00:31:28,040 --> 00:31:30,600 Speaker 1: the couple chose to stay and manage a small group 472 00:31:30,640 --> 00:31:35,200 Speaker 1: of French artists creating large scale battle scene panoramas. The 473 00:31:35,240 --> 00:31:38,720 Speaker 1: panoramas became quite popular and found their way to exhibits 474 00:31:38,720 --> 00:31:42,920 Speaker 1: in New York, Washington, d c. And Chicago. To better 475 00:31:42,960 --> 00:31:46,640 Speaker 1: capture subjects, Louis began building a new camera, one with 476 00:31:46,720 --> 00:31:51,800 Speaker 1: sixteen lenses. He also experimented with different film stock. The 477 00:31:51,840 --> 00:31:54,640 Speaker 1: new camera allowed him to take a series of pictures 478 00:31:54,880 --> 00:31:57,760 Speaker 1: that appeared to be in motion when projected in sequence. 479 00:31:58,400 --> 00:32:01,400 Speaker 1: He patented the camera, though it needed improvements to keep 480 00:32:01,440 --> 00:32:04,560 Speaker 1: the subject from appearing to jump around On the finished product. 481 00:32:06,000 --> 00:32:08,800 Speaker 1: He and Elizabeth returned to Leeds in May of eighteen 482 00:32:08,800 --> 00:32:12,160 Speaker 1: eighty seven, where Louis continued to work with moving images 483 00:32:12,240 --> 00:32:16,360 Speaker 1: and various styles of new cameras. In early eighteen eighty eight, 484 00:32:16,440 --> 00:32:19,120 Speaker 1: he built a single lens camera, one that allowed him 485 00:32:19,160 --> 00:32:23,440 Speaker 1: to shoot stop motion picture films. The very first motion 486 00:32:23,480 --> 00:32:27,200 Speaker 1: picture in history was filmed on October fourteenth of eight 487 00:32:28,840 --> 00:32:33,120 Speaker 1: In the short silent footage, Louie's son Adolf, his wife's parents, 488 00:32:33,240 --> 00:32:35,760 Speaker 1: and the close friend of the family are seen walking 489 00:32:35,760 --> 00:32:39,320 Speaker 1: around their garden. Louis went on to record the traffic 490 00:32:39,360 --> 00:32:42,080 Speaker 1: on the Leeds Bridge and another short film of Adolph 491 00:32:42,160 --> 00:32:45,720 Speaker 1: playing the accordion. In eighteen eighty nine and eighteen ninety 492 00:32:45,880 --> 00:32:48,360 Speaker 1: he worked with a mechanic to create a better projector, 493 00:32:48,840 --> 00:32:51,680 Speaker 1: and when it was complete, he debuted his creation to 494 00:32:51,760 --> 00:32:55,240 Speaker 1: family and friends. The private showing went well, so Louie 495 00:32:55,280 --> 00:32:58,560 Speaker 1: decided to take his invention to the general public back 496 00:32:58,640 --> 00:33:02,320 Speaker 1: in the United States. Just before his trip, though, he 497 00:33:02,440 --> 00:33:06,720 Speaker 1: took some time off to see his brother in d Jon, France. Then, 498 00:33:06,800 --> 00:33:10,240 Speaker 1: on September sixteenth of eighteen ninety, Louis boarded a train 499 00:33:10,400 --> 00:33:14,120 Speaker 1: back to Leeds, but when friends arrived in Leeds to 500 00:33:14,120 --> 00:33:17,920 Speaker 1: meet his train. Louis wasn't on board, and neither was 501 00:33:17,960 --> 00:33:22,280 Speaker 1: his luggage. The French police and Scotland yard were both 502 00:33:22,280 --> 00:33:25,520 Speaker 1: called in, and friends and family orchestrated their own search, 503 00:33:26,200 --> 00:33:29,720 Speaker 1: but sadly, no one ever saw Louis Le Prince again. 504 00:33:30,800 --> 00:33:35,360 Speaker 1: Somehow he had vanished, as if into thin air, without 505 00:33:35,360 --> 00:33:37,800 Speaker 1: a body or any evidence as to what had happened. 506 00:33:38,080 --> 00:33:42,000 Speaker 1: All they had were theories. His grand nephew suggested Louis 507 00:33:42,080 --> 00:33:45,280 Speaker 1: had died by suicide because of his debts, but that 508 00:33:45,400 --> 00:33:49,000 Speaker 1: ignored the fact that Louis also had many successful inventions 509 00:33:49,000 --> 00:33:53,560 Speaker 1: and patents. Elizabeth believed something more nefarious had happened to 510 00:33:53,560 --> 00:33:56,760 Speaker 1: her husband. She believed he had been killed to prevent 511 00:33:56,840 --> 00:34:00,360 Speaker 1: him from show pacing his newest motion picture camera. He 512 00:34:00,400 --> 00:34:02,640 Speaker 1: had been happy with it and was looking forward to 513 00:34:02,680 --> 00:34:06,160 Speaker 1: the trip to the United States. It's also been suggested 514 00:34:06,200 --> 00:34:10,000 Speaker 1: that perhaps Louis simply abandoned his family, but there's no 515 00:34:10,080 --> 00:34:13,160 Speaker 1: evidence to back up that claim either. There was no 516 00:34:13,200 --> 00:34:16,000 Speaker 1: indication that his family life was anything other than stable. 517 00:34:17,360 --> 00:34:20,279 Speaker 1: A few historians think his brother killed him, possibly for 518 00:34:20,400 --> 00:34:23,360 Speaker 1: financial gain, and that Louis never left Dijon on that 519 00:34:23,440 --> 00:34:27,439 Speaker 1: train out of France, but again there's no evidence there. 520 00:34:28,560 --> 00:34:31,919 Speaker 1: What is interesting, though, is that the very same year 521 00:34:32,040 --> 00:34:36,520 Speaker 1: Louis disappeared, another man began his work in motion picture cameras, 522 00:34:37,160 --> 00:34:41,200 Speaker 1: Thomas Edison. The first time he showed off his newest 523 00:34:41,200 --> 00:34:45,000 Speaker 1: invention was a year later, in eighteen ninety one. And 524 00:34:45,160 --> 00:34:47,759 Speaker 1: we know that Edison was aware of Louise's work because 525 00:34:47,760 --> 00:34:50,160 Speaker 1: he took Louise estate to court in eighteen ninety eight, 526 00:34:50,320 --> 00:34:55,160 Speaker 1: declaring that he alone was the sole inventor of cinematography. Amazingly, 527 00:34:55,200 --> 00:34:58,239 Speaker 1: the court ruled in Edison's favor, even though proof of 528 00:34:58,320 --> 00:35:02,080 Speaker 1: louise pattents were presented. A year later, the court overturned 529 00:35:02,120 --> 00:35:06,959 Speaker 1: the verdict, so in nineteen hundred Edison reissued his patents 530 00:35:07,000 --> 00:35:09,759 Speaker 1: and went on to dominate the film industry for decades. 531 00:35:11,200 --> 00:35:14,640 Speaker 1: But that old footage recorded with Louie's family and friends 532 00:35:14,800 --> 00:35:18,920 Speaker 1: has helped establish that the first film was shot in Leeds, England. 533 00:35:19,880 --> 00:35:22,799 Speaker 1: Together with the death certificate of the family friend who 534 00:35:22,800 --> 00:35:25,080 Speaker 1: had passed away a couple of months after appearing in 535 00:35:25,120 --> 00:35:29,120 Speaker 1: the film, the footage is easily dated to eight making 536 00:35:29,120 --> 00:35:33,640 Speaker 1: it much earlier than Edison's work. Despite all of that, 537 00:35:34,200 --> 00:35:36,920 Speaker 1: Edison is still the first person most people think of 538 00:35:36,960 --> 00:35:39,320 Speaker 1: when they're asked about the invention of the motion picture. 539 00:35:40,520 --> 00:35:43,640 Speaker 1: He may have lost the war of currents, but his 540 00:35:43,800 --> 00:35:47,400 Speaker 1: devious victory over Louis Le Prince makes one thing clear. 541 00:35:48,400 --> 00:35:52,240 Speaker 1: His reputation might be his most powerful invention of all 542 00:36:00,000 --> 00:36:04,080 Speaker 1: American Shadows is hosted by Lauren Vogelbaum. This episode was 543 00:36:04,120 --> 00:36:08,240 Speaker 1: written by Michelle Muto, researched by Ali Steed, and produced 544 00:36:08,239 --> 00:36:12,520 Speaker 1: by Miranda Hawkins and Trevor Young, with executive producers Aaron Mankey, 545 00:36:12,880 --> 00:36:16,800 Speaker 1: Alex Williams, and Matt Frederick. To learn more about the show, 546 00:36:16,920 --> 00:36:19,920 Speaker 1: visit grim and mil dot com. For more podcasts from 547 00:36:19,920 --> 00:36:24,000 Speaker 1: iHeart Radio, visit the iHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or 548 00:36:24,000 --> 00:36:25,680 Speaker 1: wherever you get your podcasts.