American Cinematographer - December 1998 - 126

Side coffeeshop, the set will
be at the American Museum
of the

Moving Image only

until late 1999.
The Seinfeld exhibit
focuses

on

series co-creator

Larry David's contributions,
noting that David's acerbic,
neurotic worldview (embodied
onscreen by the character
George Costanza) gave the
hold up to 12
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show its distinctive voice.

as

well

as

Online:

his handwritten drafts of

scripts for the well-known episodes
"Parking Garage" and "The Kiss Hello,"
are on view. Also displayed are Jerry's
famous Puffy Shirt, Kramer's '50s-era
clothing, an example of Elaine's early
thrift-store-chic wardrobe, George's
Michelin Man-style down jacket, and
Newman's U.S. Postal Service uniform.
The attractions listed above,

however,

*

RCA Color TV Camera

Spiral notebooks containing David's
ruminations on possible show themes,

only a smattering of the
sights and sounds on display at the
American Museum of the Moving Image
the only museum of its type in the
United States, according to director

www.cinematographer.com

are

-

David

Schwartz.

"The

Smithsonian

Institution in Washington

Steady Tester allows you to
LO
perform film registration tests
LU accurately & conveniently.
Unlike the normal registration test
I- procedure of shooting a wall chart,
Steady Tester is a self-contained unit
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with

Century's Interchangeable Mount
system like a lens. This eliminates

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mechanical art form,

Advantages

which,

Compact & portable

Fits most film cameras
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Built-in light exposure adjustment
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Robert Orlando:

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124

are a

especially because that is starting to
change. We also treat all of the
equipment like artwork - sculpture

*

/\

how movies

movement & vibration
relative to the test target.

camera

LO

has a lot of film
and television equipment, but most of it is
in storage," says Schwartz. "Our
production gear is on permanent display."
Does anyone who isn't involved
the film or television industry really want
to look at vintage production gear? "I'm
always surprised at how interested
people are in seeing the equipment,"
Schwartz explains. "Some just look at it
as sculpture; others stand there and
have a great time figuring out how it
works. I enjoy helping people understand

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when

combined

with

the

interactive exhibits, tells a story."
The facility also serves as the site
of instructive seminars and screenings,
and such ASC members

as

Gordon

Willis, Sven Nykvist, Vilmos Zsigmond,
Vittorio Storaro and Haskell Wexler have

lectured and shown their work in the

museum's Master

(1954).

Cinematographers

series. Plus, every weekend, four classic
films are projected for the public in the

museum's 200-seat theater. "We

always

try to show films in their original
format," Schwartz explained to this
reporter as The Misfits unspooled in the
theater

nearby.

"We're

screening

Fieflections in a Golden Aye this weekend,
and it is

original Technicolor print."
is surrounded by the
sprawling Kaufman Astoria Studios
complex, a busy six-stage production
facility that dates back to the silent era.
Rudolph Valentino, W.C. Fields and the
an

The

museum

Gish sisters all made films at the Astoria

stages, beginning in the 1920s, as did
the Marx Brothers

during the early talkie
Films shot at Kaufman Astoria
since its early-'80s reopening include
The Age of Innocence, Flansom, The First

years.

Wives Club, Scent of a Woman and
several of

Woody Allen's films.

In fact, the American Museum of
the

Moving Image itself was actually a
editing facility during the Astoria
complex's days as a Paramount studio.
This history hints at the reason why such
a unique museum is located in Queens,
a short subway ride from the bustling
media epicenter of Manhattan. "I think it
is important that we are out here
surrounded by an active film and
television studio complex," Schwartz
says. "It gives the feeling of being on a
studio lot, which adds to the experience
of visiting a museum devoted to the
lab and

movie business."

■
American Cinematographer - December 1998

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of American Cinematographer - December 1998
