Mr. Watson, Come Here
A voice travels down a wire for the first time and is heard, clearly, in another room. Write the moment from the assistant's side — the man who heard the first words ever spoken by telephone.
Alexander Graham Bell was granted a patent for the telephone in 1876. An early successful transmission famously carried the words 'Mr. Watson, come here, I want to see you' to his assistant.
Field notes
Did you know
- The first famous phone call was, essentially, a call for help across a room.
- Bell's work grew partly out of teaching and studying the deaf.
- Rival inventors were racing toward the same idea at nearly the same time.
Key phrases
the receiver · a voice on the wire · the diaphragm · sound made electric · hello?
Chase this down
Look up: Bell's 1876 patent; the Bell–Gray priority dispute.
Craft tip
Firsts are best told by witnesses, not heroes. The bystander's astonishment sells the marvel.
Try this
Write the same instant as a skeptic in the next room who assumes it's a trick.