Henry Charles Horstmann

Henry Charles Horstmann was a technical author who collaborated with Victor Hugo Tousley on practical manuals for electrical and theatrical work. Motion Picture Operation, Stage Electrics and Illusions a Practical Hand-Book and Guide for Theater, Electricians, Motion Picture Operators and Managers of Theaters and Productions was published by Frederick J. Drake and Company. Bibliographic records credit both Horstmann and Tousley and describe a handbook covering theater wiring, projection machinery, lighting, vision, scenery, switches, screens, and operating-room safety. Its breadth reflects an era when motion-picture exhibition depended on operators who understood both electrical systems and stagecraft. The book also belongs to a wider partnership between the two authors on electrical construction and equipment manuals. For readers studying early cinema technology, Horstmann's contribution is valuable because it treats projection as part of a working theater rather than as a single machine. The volume documents the practical knowledge expected of exhibitors, electricians, managers, and production staff during cinema's rapid institutional growth.