Van Altena, Edward, b. 1873

Song slides, a popular form of entertainment in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, were photographic or illustrated images on glass plates that were projected onto a screen to accompany the playing of a song, often during the intermissions of motion pictures. One of the most successful song slide production companies was established in 1904 by John D. Scott and Edward Van Altena in Brooklyn and New York City. John D. Scott (b. 1876) was born in Brooklyn. After losing a portion of his hearing when he was 4 years old, he was sent to a school for the deaf, where, with the help of one of his teachers, he learned the art of photography and coloring lantern slides. Edward Van Altena (b. 1873) was born in Milwaukee, WI and moved to Brooklyn with his family when he was 5 years old. His mother gave him his appreciation for art and he became a photographer. In 1888, he went to work for a studio on Fulton Street in Brooklyn.