Sound film
The primary steps in the commercialization of sound cinema were taken in the mid- to late 1920s. At first, the sound films which included synchronized dialogue, known as "talking pictures", or "talkies", were exclusively shorts. The earliest feature-length movies with recorded sound included only music and effects. The first feature film originally presented as a talkie was "The Jazz Singer", released in October 1927. A major hit, it was made with Vitaphone, which was at the time the leading brand of sound-on-disc technology. Sound-on-film, however, would soon become the standard for talking pictures.
The Sound of Music (film)
In 1966, American Express created the first "Sound of Music" guided tour in Salzburg. Since 1972, Panorama Tours has been the leading "Sound of Music" bus tour company in the city, taking approximately 50,000 tourists a year to various film locations in Salzburg and the surrounding region. The first "Sing-along Sound of Music" revival screening was at the London Lesbian and Gay Film Festival in 1999, leading to a successful run at the Prince Charles Cinema which is ongoing as of 2018. During the screenings, audience members are often dressed as nuns and von Trapp children and are encouraged to sing along to lyrics superimposed on the screen. In July 2000, "Sing-along Sound of Music" shows opened in Boston and Austin, Texas. Some audience members dressed up as cast members and interacted with the action shown on the screen. The film began a successful run at the Ziegfeld Theatre in New York City in September 2000, with the opening attended by cast members Charmian Carr (Liesl), Daniel Truhitte (Rolfe), and Kym Karath (Gretl). "Sing-along Sound of Music" screenings have since become an international phenomenon.