Survalenince Camera?
If I spelled that right. Is that what I saw in the deli on the wall? Did they have those in the 1930s?
shareIt looks like that Automat (deli? ha!) had one.
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MovieChat Forums > Easy Living (1937) Discussion > Survalenince Camera?
I was wondering the same thing, so I did some quick Google research.
"First generation" surveillance cameras were developed in the late 1930s by both the American and German governments. Unlike live television cameras, which use an open circuit to broadcast the images they capture, first generation cameras are "closed-circuit" devices, which means only those who have physical access to the circuit can see what is being broadcast on it. (Open circuit broadcasting means that anyone with certain information -- the frequency and time of the broadcast -- can "tune in" to it, even if they don't have physical access to the system.)
Source: http://www.notbored.org/scowt's-honor.html
Sounds like pretty sophisticated equipment for an automat of the time. I assumed it was merely a small telescope (that would be an awfully long lens for any type of camera).
Working in big-box retail 45 years ago, we were all aware of the series of one-way windows around the perimeter of the sales floor, located up near the ceiling as in the film, behind which sat security personnel with binoculars to keep an eye on both customers and employees.
Poe! You are...avenged!