12.5

PEEPSHOWS Not too much in print about peepshows, but the following are worth having: 'Peep Shows', written, printed and published by Paul Braithwaite. The author uses his own pen-and-ink sketches of peepshow engravings, photos,and paintings to guide us through the enormous range of peepshow types, from 17th to 20th centuries; 'back' peep shows, 'caravan' types, etc. Includes notes on panoramas, dioramas, and mutoscopes. A good introduction to the subject. 40page A4 pbk, available from the author, 65 Sandown Road, Brislington, Bristol BS43PL.(L36.50p, plus something towards mailing). 'Der Guckkasten = Einblick-Durchblick-Ausblick'. Five German specialists in pre-cinema contributed to this well-researched and beautifully colour-illustrated hardback (in German). Megalethoscopes, Polyorama lorgnette, Engelbrecht cut-out views, etc. Excellent.publisher: Fusslin Verlag, Stuttgart, 1995 ISBN 3-9803451-2-2 Fax 0711 339903. 'Die Welt im Kasten' by Thomas Ganz. Ganz is third generation from a Swiss family that started in the audio-visual field making magic lanterns, well over a century ago. This book is based on his premise that for centuries we have been looking at the world through (and by means of) a series of boxes = the camera obscura, the magic lantern, the perspective box, the Peepshow, the photographic camera, the Cinematographe, etc. Conceptually important and jam-packed with illustrations of dozens of types of dead media; Physionotrace portraits, panoramic cameras, Zograscopes. Includes early magic lantern chronology. Pub: Verlag Neue Zurcher Zeitung, 1994. ISBN 385823 507 5. An English-language (text-only) booklet is being produced by The Projection Box (small publishers in London, in which I am a partner)to accompany this book, should be available next year. Stephen Herbert (s-herbert@easynet.co.uk)
 * Dead medium: Peepshows**
 * From: s-herbert@easynet.co.uk (Stephen Herbert)**