John Logie Baird's test subject 'Stookie Bill'
- Made:
- c. 1926
- maker:
- Unknown
'Stookie / Stooky Bill' ventiloquist's dummy head. From The Plessey Museum.
'Stookie/Stooky Bill' ventiloquist's dummy head.
Known as 'Stookie Bill' or 'Stooky Bill', this ventriloquist’s dummy was used by John Logie Baird (1888-1946) in his experimental television work. The lights for the experiments were so hot Baird couldn't use a human for the tests. Baird began experimenting with imaging systems in the early 1920s. By 1924 he successfully transmitted outline images over wires and by 1925 he was able to transmit recognisable human faces.
Details
- Category:
- Television
- Object Number:
- 2001-5037/3
- Materials:
- hair, plaster-of-Paris, string and wood (unidentified)
- type:
- ventriloquist’s dummy
- credit:
- The National Media Museum, Bradford
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