Hollywood’s Roots in New York’s Finger Lakes

Before Hollywood found its voice, a gentleman inventor in an Auburn backyard was already working on it.

It sounds like the plot of a 1920s Hollywood film: a young inventor, a private laboratory tucked away in an Auburn backyard, cutting-edge experiments, fast cars, lavish parties, powerful friendships and a bitter battle over who would get credit for changing the movies forever.

But this isn’t Hollywood fiction. It’s the story of Theodore “Ted” Case, an Auburn inventor whose groundbreaking work helped usher sound into the motion picture industry.

Pronounced Cayuga (ky-YOO-guh), Cayuga County may be small in size, but its impact on American history is anything but. Home to trailblazers like Harriet Tubman, William H. Seward, Theodore Case, and Emily Howland our communities have helped shape movements for freedom, innovation, and social change. At the heart of it all is Auburn NY, proudly known as History’s Hometown.

In the 1920s, while Hollywood was still figuring out how to make movies talk, Case was experimenting with light, sound, and the science of recording audio. From his private laboratory, The Case Research Laboratory, he developed technology that would help make synchronized sound films and eventually the era of the “talkies”possible.

Theodore Case’s story is one of ambition, invention, friendship, betrayal, and Hollywood drama. And while his name may have faded from the spotlight, his legacy remains deeply rooted in Auburn. In 1922, scientists in a private laboratory in an Auburn backyard, The Case Research Laboratory, ushered in a technology revolution. The goal was to bring sound to the film industry to create talking pictures, also known as “sound cinema” or “talkies.” But while his name may have been forgotten by Hollywood, it certainly was not forgotten by Auburn residents.

While attending Yale University, Theodore (Ted) Case explored his love of science by transmitting light and sound reproduction, developing a method of photographing sound waves. His passion for inventing would lead him on a journey to creating early synchronized sound films.

Thomas Edison had already given up on his failed attempts to make sound films. The film industry had no interest in the available technology until Theodore Case recorded the word “hello” on a film strip with perfect clarity and synchronization. The device he created would become known as the Movietone system, and the movie and news industries would never be the same again.

Case partnered with William Fox of Fox Film, known today as 20th Century Fox, to create the Fox-Case Movitetone, and the story of partnership and working together is as important as the astounding history that has been here in Auburn.

Visitors can discover this story at the Cayuga Museum of History and Art, where you can explore the Case Research Laboratory itself. Immerse yourself in history and explore the film industry’s early days at the dawn of the Talkie Era. Go back in time and check out one of the first sound cameras ever made and see what the brilliant minds of the Finger Lakes were creating a century ago!

History lives on in Cayuga County

From Theodore Case to Harriet Tubman, William and Frances Seward, and Emily Howland, history lives on in Cayuga County. Today, partnerships between organizations, historic sites, and tourism partners band together to preserve the physical sites and accurately tell the stories of those historical figures and events.

While on-site at the Case Research Laboratory, visit the Cayuga Museum of History and Art. The museum is a vibrant cultural hub dedicated to preserving local heritage, fine art, and the history of motion picture technology

While many people know Harriet Tubman as a conductor of the Underground Railroad, few know the rest of her story. In Cayuga County, you can follow in the footsteps of Harriet Tubman and experience her history in a whole new way by visiting the Harriet Tubman National Historic Park.

Tubman’s friends and relatives described her as an “ordinary woman who did extraordinary things.” She loved nature, had a knack for business, and was deeply spiritual. Visit her home and learn more about this amazing woman in the place she called home for over 50 years at the Harriet Tubman Home.

Pay your respects to Harriet Tubman, Theodore Case, and his family at Fort Hill Cemetery right here in Auburn. There are many notable figures laid to rest here, such as William and Frances Seward and family, and Martha Coffin Wright. A must stop while in the area.

Follow the Finger Lakes Film Trail to truly round out the experience. Find sites in Rochester and Ithaca where prolific film writers wrote, directors filmed, and inventors invented!