Author: QIP1
Added: Mon, 17 Nov 2008 20:33:21 -0800
Duration: 70

Television Tomorrow is a grand historical video that illuminates television broadcasting history and early television history. The film was made to inform the public about the growing television industry and possibility for returning World War 2 veterans finding television jobs as well. While examining the future of the television industry, the video talks about early television development and design, showing all the old equipment used in the NBC studios, including pictures of early televisions, and more. The glimpse of the history of NBC is particularly rare and interesting. The film also makes some prescient observations about the future of television. Television Tomorrow was made to describe the future of TV in America, but now it's an amazing relic that reveals the history of broadcasting in an accurate and fun way.

Author: QIP1
Added: Mon, 17 Nov 2008 20:33:21 -0800
Duration: 74

Making of a Shooter is a great film that demonstrates how much attitudes about gun safety and culture have changed since the 1940s. Young Jimmy wants a gun, but has to learn the basics of how to hunt, shoot, and safely carry a gun before he can go out hunting. This film discusses basic safety tips like remembering to unload your gun when you break for lunch. Jimmy eventually kills a duck with his 22 rifle and is so thrilled he wants a bigger gun so that he can hunt big game. Several famous riflemen also appear briefly in the film, including Thurman Randle, Dick Shaughnessy, Ned Lilly and Fred Armstrong. The emphasis on safety in this film is offset by the freewheeling lack of parental supervision - making this an interesting piece of firearms history.

Author: QIP1
Added: Mon, 17 Nov 2008 20:33:21 -0800
Duration: 75

Listen closely to the narrator in this 1941 film, and you will learn a load of information about the invention of the television. A great informational video, Magic in the Air will teach you the basics of this cinematic novelty, from its basic functions to different techniques directors use to get the best shot. With the emergence of such a discovery, people all over the country were able to enjoy a football game from the comfort of their favorite armchair! Magic in the Air tells of the birth of television in a way everyone can understand.

Author: QIP1
Added: Mon, 17 Nov 2008 20:33:21 -0800
Duration: 73

This RCA-produced film tells the short history of television from the perspective held in 1956, which was itself an early point in the TV’s history. After a detailed explanation of how TVs work and what the components look like, the film goes on to talk about how TV design is now moving toward reducing the size and cost of components and improving picture quality. We get to see many “TV firsts,” including footage of the first president on TV, President Roosevelt opening the NY World’s Fair, the King and Queen of England’s visit, and the 1940 Republican Convention in Philadelphia. David Sarnoff narrates the film and appears as an interviewer, asking Vladimir Zworykin about TV technology at RCA. The last third of the film is in color, and it talks about how color television works, then goes to a listing of NBC broadcast shows, including “Ding Dong School.” Given that this is such a collection of precious early television, this film is tough ...

Author: QIP1
Added: Mon, 17 Nov 2008 20:33:21 -0800
Duration: 70

This 1960s film introduces a new and improved remote control for any kind of viewing pleasure. It can fine tune, enhance brightness and color, even change channels! This exciting new innovation was welcomed into every home lucky enough to have a television, and people were more than happy to use it. Television Remote Control Tuner describes all the functions and options and they're right at your fingertips. This invention made watching television even more fun than before. A great informational video, it also takes a glimpse at what 1960s American culture valued.

Author: QIP1
Added: Mon, 17 Nov 2008 20:33:21 -0800
Duration: 80

This is one of the more well-made industry films that touts big business as the key to American prosperity, freedom, and social development. In the most high-flown rhetoric possible, the narrator explains how the southern textile industry was creating enlightened industrial progress, "The race to compete has led -- as it inevitably must -- to better mills, better methods, better men, and eventually to a better way of life!" There is a montage of factory shots showing how various types of cloth are made, but the interesting part of this movie is afterwards when we see the mill town itself, replete with happy white workers and their families. We see the town surrounding the mill, "The production of this mill does not stop with cloth. Perhaps its most important product is this (we're shown a suburban street with houses), the comfortable American home. A place and an atmosphere a man can earn for his family and for his future." The picnic, the company tennis courts, and the ...

Author: QIP1
Added: Mon, 17 Nov 2008 20:33:21 -0800
Duration: 75

Southern Highlanders documents the traditions, folk song, work, and environment of the Appalachian mountain people living in the foothills of the Smoky Mountains in Tennessee and North Carolina. An educational video that illuminates all aspects of early Appalachian life, this film also contains great shots of the Smoky Mountains. The history of this poor but hard working people is shown here, with footage of women doing laundry and men farming the land. Some of the best moments come when mountain people are participating in traditional folk music, singing and dancing. Appalachian people created some of the best American folk music. Scenes of housework and farming are made even more interesting by the fact that every backdrop is the beautiful tableau of the Smoky Mountains, rich in color, but it's tinged by the sadness of poverty. Chock full of Appalachian mountain facts, Southern Highlanders is a part of Tennessee and North Carolina history.

Author: QIP1
Added: Tue, 04 Nov 2008 12:48:28 -0800
Duration: 71

Today, suburbs are a ubiquitous part of the American landscape - but back in 1954 the idea of a middle class suburb was new and startling. This film advertises the merits of a suburban lifestyle by exploring and describing Doylestown, a suburb of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. There are many interesting scenes of landmarks, people going about their daily lives, businesses, and more. The overall themes of urban decay and the birth of suburbia are well represented and fleshed out.

Author: QIP1
Added: Tue, 04 Nov 2008 12:48:28 -0800
Duration: 77

In Our Hands is an anti-communist four-part series that discusses the birth of the American way of life, how we could lose it, and how we must make sure we don’t lose it. In part one, a couple and their baby are magically dropped down into a wilderness with no tools, in order to show how lost Americans would be without the privately owned means (tools) of production. The Lincoln Memorial, our founding fathers, and God, are invoked in this patriotic paean to capitalism. In part two, the films shows how even the simplest things in the American household, like Mom’s frying pan, are made by industries. It explains the freedoms Americans have thanks to capitalism. Scenes of iron industry, pan-manufacturing, farming, and more are shown. In part three, the film introduces a complex dramatization of how Americans could “lose what we have.” Two middle class couples are shown watching a political debate on TV featuring a fat, slimy communist-type candidate and a ...

Author: QIP1
Added: Tue, 04 Nov 2008 12:48:28 -0800
Duration: 78

The Challenge of Ideas is an amazing vintage film that features John Wayne, Edward R. Murrow, Helen Hayes, Frank McGee, and Lowell Thomas all making separate speeches defending the American way of life and capitalism or denouncing the Soviet Union. The journalist hero Murrow sits behind his desk, smoking, while images of the military roll by. John Wayne sits in a director’s chair, smoking and talking about how Americans appreciate “beauty” while images of female wrestlers, beauty queens, and women on the beach are shown. All of the narration is aimed at promoting the idea that God was on America's side and the Commies are a bunch of thugs who want to rule the country someday. The film captures various patriotic images throughout each speech, including footage of the Liberty Bell, folks square dancing, factory assembly lines, schools, and the Statue of Liberty. There are also many scenes from the Soviet Union, including Moscow, Joseph Stalin, Khrushchev, and tanks ...

Author: QIP1
Added: Thu, 30 Oct 2008 13:55:30 -0800
Duration: 77

Powerful, bombastic, and often graphic, The Crime of Korea is a bracing brief documentary of the Korean War. Most unusually, the Koreans are painted as tragic victims while accepted racism of the time is casually used (such as the term “jap”). This humanizing of the Koreans served one purpose: to make the communists look like monsters. The film is icily narrated by a hardened war correspondent who is outraged at the injustice to the Koreans, their beautiful cities, and their culture. Gorgeous shots of Korea, specifically Seoul, are peppered with images of brutality. A wonderfully produced film, The Crime of Korea is an enriching historical experience.

Author: QIP1
Added: Thu, 30 Oct 2008 13:55:30 -0800
Duration: 68

This X-Ray history and education film is informative and engaging for lovers of science. The film begins by touching upon the invention of X-Rays. The discovery of the X-Ray by Wilhelm Conrad Roentgen in 1895 was a unique one that was not fully understood or capitalized on until years later. X-Rays are unique in that the rays can’t be seen but its effects can be made visible. The recording of these X-rays onto film is known as radiography. Spectacular footage of bones moving behind X-rays (without any radiation protection!) are shown in all their glory. This great discovery has led to man advancements in both medicine and industry improving not only the lives of patients and doctors but of businessmen as well, and this film documents it all beautifully.

Author: QIP1
Added: Thu, 30 Oct 2008 13:55:30 -0800
Duration: 75

This intensely racist World War II propaganda film aims at showing the public how different and inhuman the Japanese are from Americans. Setting Japanese people up as the hated “other” was easy for Joseph C. Grew, former ambassador to Japan, who narrates the film. “I can testify that they are as different from ourselves as any people on this planet. The real difference is in their minds. You cannot measure Japanese sense of logic by any Western yardstick. Their weapons are modern; their thinking 2000 years out of date." He describes them as a people who are brought up from infancy in a warlike culture that trains them to believe that it is their God-given right to rule the world, and they will fanatically fight to the death in order to achieve it. As he gives this running racist commentary, inflammatory and often misleading scenes of Japanese life roll by. Children are shown doing calisthenics, soldiers are shown marching, Emperor Hirohito sits his horse, people ...

Author: QIP1
Added: Thu, 30 Oct 2008 13:55:30 -0800
Duration: 48

This film takes an extensive and absorbing look at the history, growth, production, and distribution of California prunes. Starting with the immigration of Frenchman Louis Pellier, who brought the first cuttings of French prune trees to California, the film tells about how the prune industry was launched, using actors with narration instead of dialogue. Included in the film is an overview of growing and harvesting, processing, and packaging, with shots of Sunsweet workers wearing vintage uniforms while working in the plant. The prune growers then demonstrate how to turn the humble prune into many different dishes. Most interestingly prune cake and prune pie! A fun film that captures the history of prunes and California.

Author: QIP1
Added: Thu, 30 Oct 2008 12:36:10 -0800
Duration: 70

This is a promotional film from RCA that introduces their significant product innovation: new stereophonic sound and recording technology! For 1957, this was exciting new technology for sound enthusiasts and home stereo equipment junkies. In fact, the film focuses on several such audiophiles who are willing to let their social relationships erode completely in favor of better sound! The film also has a nifty gimmick: you're supposed to play music on your new RCA stereo system at certain points in the film to appreciate the fine sound quality! Groovy record players and high fidelity home speakers are on display. Vintage home stereo speakers fill every home. Hi-fi is no longer new, to understate things, but this funky old video reveals how sound technology has evolved over the years.

Author: QIP1
Added: Wed, 29 Oct 2008 19:55:27 -0800
Duration: 74

As desegregation was reaching a fever pitch in the 1950's, the progressive New York City board of Education implemented a progressive and (most importantly) aggressive integration policy. The heroic efforts of the administrators, parents, and teachers are captured in this significant historical documentary, Let Us Break Bread Together. A fascinating look at the history of racism in America, prejudice in schools and the value of school integration takes center stage. With racial prejudice and hatred threatening to explode at any moment, the NYC Board of Education was one of the few in the nation to step up to the challenge of safely and justly ending discrimination by integration in the New York City public Schools. Let Us Break Bread Together is a top notch historical document in the history of discrimination in American and the difficulty and triumph of school integration.

Author: QIP1
Added: Wed, 29 Oct 2008 15:55:19 -0800
Duration: 77

A cute kid’s science video! The elusive and fascinating Nature of Sound is quaintly and cleverly illuminated in this vintage film. When adorable little Jimmy becomes curious about the vibrations caused by a moving train, he goes and gets the scoop on sound from his cousin Phil Hanson. Together they explore science with a folksy charm and good nature that is largely missing from educational movies today. The Nature of Sound is an excellent physics primer on a subject that is understandable and engaging for any child.

Author: QIP1
Added: Wed, 29 Oct 2008 15:55:19 -0800
Duration: 77

The new pin-setting equipment that emerged in the 1950’s meant that bowling could finally change its image from that of a beer-soaked game for factory workers to a wholesome pastime for the whole family. The Golden Years features the clean and freshly-waxed Brunswick Bowling Centers, where the chrome-covered future of bowling was breaking ground. This is an extremely colorful and well-photographed film that shows the bowling industry in the transitional period that led up to the modern bowling alleys of today.

Author: QIP1
Added: Wed, 29 Oct 2008 15:55:19 -0800
Duration: 68

Measure of a Man is a cautionary tale that follows three teenage greasers who find themselves in a tempting situation involving alcohol and fast women. The film focuses on a young athlete who lives with his mother, exploring his background and how he has become shaped as a person with certain moral concerns. He and his two friends get a couple of sodas at the Big Boy, then go out cruising for girls (some great 1960's culture on display, complete with greaser clothing and lingo). After rounding up some young ladies and adult beverages (some funny discussion on the types of alcohol), the young man realizes that living the fast life just isn't for him and gets confronted by his friends. Measure of a Man looks at peer pressure and teenage psychology as it was perceived by conservatives in 1962, as well as facts about alcohol.

Author: QIP1
Added: Wed, 29 Oct 2008 15:55:19 -0800
Duration: 75

"This is not a Hollywood production as can be readily seen." Thus begins one of the most infamous and shocking safety films ever made. Featuring graphic footage of real fatal car accidents, Signal 30 is the notoriously horrific gore-fest that was shown to unsuspecting high schoolers and driver's ed students for decades to "inform" them about teen car accidents. Presented by the Ohio State Highway Patrol, the film promotes automobile safety and safe driving by documenting the carnage of car road traffic accidents. Using sick graphic video clips as scare tactics, the extremely upsetting nature of this film urges drivers to be responsible, as explained by a deadpan and creepy narrator. Most often the victims who are shown are dead or horribly injured, and almost any viewer is scared straight. Signal 30 is a historically significant video that has often been imitated in popular culture. Of all the driver's ed videos, this film is the real thing; and it lives up to its reputation ...

Author: QIP1
Added: Wed, 29 Oct 2008 15:55:19 -0800
Duration: 74

Let's Go Bowling initiates those who might be new to the sport into the history, rules, and modern culture of the game. The narrator comments as a novice bowler is taught by her friends, eventually calling in two professionals to help her. They teach her the proper throwing form and bowling etiquette. Bowling is offered as a wholesome game that’s fun for the whole family, not to mention a source of exercise and social interaction.

Author: QIP1
Added: Wed, 29 Oct 2008 15:55:19 -0800
Duration: 62

In light of today’s volatile energy climate, Desert Venture becomes a highly ironic and intensely interesting classic video about American oil production in the Middle East. A propaganda film through and through, Desert Venture seeks to lionize the American investors who came to Saudia Arabia and invested in energy at great risk. The rosy face that the narrator puts on the relationships built between Americans and “suspicious, strange people” is powerful. This film is also one of the greatest collections of footage of 1950’s oil factories and plants in the Middle East. Stirring scenes of Saudi and American workers toiling in the heat for energy is captivating. For it’s outrageously positive tone and jingoistic viewpoint, as well as precious footage, Desert Venture is of crucial viewing importance today more than ever.

Author: QIP1
Added: Wed, 29 Oct 2008 15:55:19 -0800
Duration: 69

Hollywood star Dick York is a high school track athlete who finds lately that he just doesn’t have enough time to study, run track, and get enough sleep at night. His running times start worsening and Dick feels like he’s listless and tired all the time. He even falls asleep at a party, making his sweetheart angry. His family doctor diagnoses the problem as lack of sleep and advises Dick to make time for rest. The film goes on to recommend limiting study time, taking a warm bath before bed, and sleeping in a cool, well-ventilated bedroom. With this advice, Dick is soon running at the top of his game again.

Author: QIP1
Added: Wed, 29 Oct 2008 15:55:19 -0800
Duration: 67

Hold onto your seats while watching this rare 1918 stunt compilation. Even though this vintage film remains silent, the content is exciting and unbelievably daring! Daredevils skate on the edge of skyscrapers, jump off cars onto planes, leap from moving motorcycles onto cars moving 91 miles per hour, and more! The courageous and oftentimes humorous feats such as these give viewers an understanding of how people got their thrills in the early 1900s.

Author: QIP1
Added: Wed, 29 Oct 2008 15:55:19 -0800
Duration: 79

A wonderful vintage movie! Aqua Frolics shows some early underwater footage from the 1940’s, when this technology was brand new. Shots include both humans and sea creatures swimming and playing underwater. Some oddball footage spices things up further: a family enjoys a Thanksgiving meal at the bottom of a pool, playing basketball underwater. But there are also more conventional activities that are still tons of fun: playing water polo, water skiing, and speedboat racing. We also get to watch people cavorting with seals and dolphins. All in all, Aqua Frolics is an ocean’s worth of aquatic recreation.

Author: QIP1
Added: Wed, 29 Oct 2008 15:55:19 -0800
Duration: 84

This vintage 1940s silent film documents the training of champion sled dog Chinook’s litter of puppies. Chinook was the lead sled dog for Admiral Richard Byrd; and the viewer watches as the adorable puppies are trained, without cruelty, to pull in dog sled races. There is footage of the dogs’ training in New Hampshire, actual races, trophy presentations, and more. Chinook's Children is a marvelous historical film for anyone interested in Chinook dogs and dog sled racing.

Author: QIP1
Added: Wed, 29 Oct 2008 15:55:19 -0800
Duration: 76

A trip into the inner workings of early television technology! This film is a promotional relic from RCA about how they produce televisions. The footage shows all the steps in the making of a high quality TV, including design, engineering, manufacture, testing, and quality control. There is fascinating footage of older models, TV’s with flickering test patterns, and even labs with bow-tied scientists doing research and design. Electronics and television enthusiasts will love this fantastic historical video.

Author: QIP1
Added: Wed, 29 Oct 2008 15:55:19 -0800
Duration: 74

You are the Switchman educates people on the warning signs of cancer and urges them to consult a medical professional at any sign of danger. Two parallel stories unfold, all about a man who finds a sore on his lip that won’t seem to heal. In one story, he refuses to go to the doctor until it is too late. In the other, the victim consults a physician early on, which allows him to happily smoke a pipe with his wife and son, cured of his cancer. Various treatments for cancer are discussed, including x-rays, radium, and surgery, but the film makes the point that early detection is the best way to survive cancer. The film gives the survival rates for certain types of cancer, including breast, skin, and uterine cancer. The title of the film reveals its overall message: like a railroad worker who switches train tracks, individuals must decide whether they’re going to take the track towards early prevention and health, or inaction and death. A wonderful vintage film on the ...

Author: QIP1
Added: Wed, 29 Oct 2008 15:55:19 -0800
Duration: 63

The Sixth Sense details cigarette manufacturing and quality control before the link between cancer and cigarettes was confirmed. There are some good shots of tobacco farms and workers plowing and harvesting. Then the film shows the inner workings of the cigarette industry, with nice footage of cigarette manufacture, mostly Lucky Strikes. The most interesting part of the film, however, is the footage of the American Tobacco Company’s research lab, which is the “sixth sense” of the title that lets them develop the finest product on the market. The narrator comments that the researchers are always developing new ways to improve cigarettes and it is even revealed that they were working with the University of Virginia’s medical school. Fantastically relevant given today's hostile climate towards tobacco companies, The Sixth Sense is a pertinent and important film.

Author: QIP1
Added: Wed, 29 Oct 2008 15:55:19 -0800
Duration: 71

Poultry on the Farm provides an excellent overview of the development and care of chickens, ducks, geese, and turkeys. Each type of bird has its own section in the film and different stages of growth are shown for each type. The film documents chicken eggs in incubation machinery, including several views of the different stages of embryonic development. Then, the newly hatched chicks go to live in the brooder house. Mother ducks and geese are shown with their chicks as well. There is some discussion about the bird’s different beak shapes and how they’ve evolved to fit various environments. This film is an enriching historical look at livestock farming techniques as well as all the processing and industry that comes with it.

Author: QIP1
Added: Wed, 29 Oct 2008 14:34:26 -0800
Duration: 73

Dangerous Stranger, a Sid Davis film, warns children to stay away from unknown persons, specifically strangers in cars. It touches on hitchhiking, refusing gifts from strangers, and staying away from risky places where unsavory people hang out. Though the children are rightly characterized as helpless victims, the film makes several safety tips that ring true to this day. There are many examples of commonsense wisdom that was wrongly foisted upon children in the 1950s, but this film is not one of them. An engaging social guidance relic, Dangerous Stranger is a good little movie.

Author: QIP1
Added: Wed, 29 Oct 2008 14:34:26 -0800
Duration: 78

A captivating snapshot of the changing history of food production and availability, Let's Talk Turkey is a top notch vintage food industry film. While once considered just a meal for holidays or special occasions (prior to 1960), with the advent of modern farming and production methods, turkey can now be an every day food. Gone are the hours of tedious labor incurred by going to the butcher and dressing the turkey yourself, so the film promises. Now, a fresh frozen turkey can be bought in your grocer’s frozen food section, ready for preparation. This incredible advance in food preparation made life easier for homemakers, and it's easy to forget that the universally and consistently available food supply has not always been a part of American life.

Author: QIP1
Added: Tue, 28 Oct 2008 18:52:18 -0800
Duration: 80

Who’s Boss is an accurate and useful social guidance film for making marriages work. Slightly ahead of its time, the film focuses on Jennie and Mike who are married and both have high powered careers. Mike complains that Jennie isn’t taking care of the house, and Jenny wants to know why Mike thinks she should do all the housework. Their marriage is in trouble and close to cracking all the time. They constantly argue over money, friends, and work. Fortunately for them, however, they decide to compromise and learn to live with each other’s priorities. They develop a budget, Mike helps out with the housework, and in seven years, they’ve saved up enough to buy a house and they have two kids. Who's Boss portrays a realistic couple grappling with the changing attitudes about gender and work that were felt by educated couples at the time. This film does not resolve every question that 1950’s conformism and gender roles brought up, but it does make an ...

Author: QIP1
Added: Tue, 28 Oct 2008 18:52:18 -0800
Duration: 79

Freedom Comes High, produced by the United States Navy, wonderfully depicts a married couple during World War II. Steve is in the Navy and writes home to Ellen about how if he is called to make the ultimate sacrifice, she should realize that it is only the high cost of freedom, which he is trying to preserve for her and their baby. This letter makes the next telegram she gets, the one announcing his death in battle, easier to bear. Displaying some spectacular acting, she bravely holds back her tears and assures the viewer that she and the baby will make it on their own. Then, Vice Admiral John Towers, Commander Air Force Pacific Islands comes on and urges the viewer to “do your share” and buy war bonds so that the Japanese can “be utterly doomed.” This excellently made dramatic film shows how the U.S. Government tried to justify the unpalatable fact that thousands of American families were losing loved ones in the war.

Author: QIP1
Added: Tue, 28 Oct 2008 18:52:18 -0800
Duration: 74

Say No to Strangers was developed for 1st and 2nd grade children so it is simple and not frightening like many other films of the same genre. In the film, children learn safety rules at school and must apply them to situations as they arise in the real world. A group of kids talk to a man who is trying to interest them in his dog, but the kids walk away. Later, they don’t comply when a woman tries to get them to get into her car, and they avoid a dark alleyway. The film also makes the frequent point that policemen are there to help kids, "Remember, the policeman always is your friend." After their adventures, the kids make posters of the rules they learned.

Author: QIP1
Added: Tue, 28 Oct 2008 18:52:18 -0800
Duration: 76

Don't Talk to Strangers warns children of the dangers of predatory grown ups. Arlene, a young schoolgirl, is approached by a man in a car outside her school. He tries to get her into his car, but she runs away. She still manages to write down his license number, though. When she takes this vital information to her mother, she doesn’t believe her. The next day, another little girl is abducted from the schoolyard. Fortunately, the police are able to find her in the man’s car, before he had time to do anything. The narrator talks about how Arlene’s mother feels guilty for having ignored her child’s information, and then gives tips for prevention of tragedies like what happened to Arlene’s classmate. This film also uses title cards and ominous music.

Author: QIP1
Added: Tue, 28 Oct 2008 18:52:18 -0800
Duration: 72

Walking to school requires care and cautiousness, as this video, Walking to School, shows. It depicts the perfect behavior of 1950s schoolchildren. Complete with clear regulations from the narrator and well-trained kids demonstrating how to be a responsible pedestrian, every youngster can learn the right way to travel to and from their learning establishment without their parent's supervision. Remembering this regimen is important for a child's safety and this educational film does a wonderful job of showing all the right ways to go about being careful.

Author: QIP1
Added: Tue, 28 Oct 2008 16:36:15 -0800
Duration: 70

The ABC of Walking Wisely is a brilliant 1950s educational film created just for boys and girls. This video teaches young children how to be safe when walking among streets filled with traffic. It is done in a simple manner, using the letters of the alphabet to describe what to do and what not to do acting as pedestrians, making the lessons easy to understand. There is the misbehaving 'J' walker, the gawking 'G' walker, the clownish 'K' walker, and many more throughout the film. What is timeless about this learning piece is it can be used even today for all our youth out there!

Author: QIP1
Added: Tue, 28 Oct 2008 16:36:15 -0800
Duration: 60

The Strange Ones is a creepy movie that follows the children of Culver City as they play in empty lots and lonely junkyards, surrounded by pedophiles hiding in the shadows. When a little girl, Karen, accepts candy from a stranger and then gets into his car, the police must rescue her and explain about the dangers of “the strange ones.” A policewoman informs Karen that some people are “sick in the mind,” and want to hurt little children like her. She gives advice about how to avoid these people, and how to protect yourself if you are in a bad situation. This film confronts an extremely serious subject, but audiences of today will find the stereotyped characters, hapless victims, and melodramatic scary music over-the-top and at times even humorous.

Author: QIP1
Added: Tue, 28 Oct 2008 16:36:15 -0800
Duration: 75

Marriage is a Partnership explores the trials and tribulations of a couple’s first year of matrimony. Dottie, the wife, narrates the major occurrences, arguments, and decisions that she and husband Pete experience in their first year together. They live in a two family home with Pete’s mother and Pete works with Dottie’s dad at a factory. After Pete convinces Dottie to quit her job, she is bored at home all day with nothing to do. She admits to feeling like her new life is “unimportant and dull.” She gets increasingly annoyed with Pete’s mom, who is always around. Pete’s got troubles of his own, though, since Dottie’s dad isn’t letting him develop his own identity down at the plant. They’re about to have a real crisis when Pete gets a job offer from another plant in Central City. The couple decide that moving away from their parents will be the best thing for everyone. The movie does not discuss the fact that while this ...

Author: QIP1
Added: Tue, 28 Oct 2008 15:34:19 -0800
Duration: 82

Is This Love? smartly and honestly compares two couples, one who rushes into a marriage, and one who slowly and thoughtfully takes their time. Joe and Peggy are handsome, exciting, and in a really big hurry! They plan on eloping in order to avoid all the family hassles of a wedding. But they’ve only been seeing each other for a short time. Liz and Andy on the other hand, have been dating for over a year and a half and are waiting to marry until after they’ve graduated. This movie explores the difference between these two approaches to the big commitment, but the bias seems to be toward Liz and Andy, the slow and steady couple. Is This Love? contains some funny old fashioned moments and reveals notions of marriage in 1950’s America beautifully.

Author: QIP1
Added: Tue, 28 Oct 2008 15:34:19 -0800
Duration: 74

Jealousy explores the irrational feelings of a married woman in a very dramatic, film noir style. Sally is a fifties housewife who decides that her husband Don is cheating on her when he comes home late for dinner one night. She throws his dinner in the trash, doesn’t listen to his explanations, then kicks him out of the house. After he leaves, Sally is wracked with doubts about his guilt and wonders about her own role in the whole mess. When Don’s coworker calls and corroborates Don’s story about working late on a new cosmetics line, Sally has an epiphany. She realizes that her own emotions, desires, and frustrations led her to her accusation of Don, "I know now the real trouble is me. If I believe in us, he'll believe in us." This film paints a disturbing picture of rigid 1950’s gender roles and the problems they produced.

Author: QIP1
Added: Tue, 28 Oct 2008 15:34:19 -0800
Duration: 62

Who's Right? is a sexist relic from 1950’s America that discusses marriage using extremely stereotypical gender roles. The film follows the marital problems of Frank and Honey Carson, a young couple with an eleven-month old marriage. Narrated by Frank’s wedding ring, the film shows each person miserably trying to fit into the rigid gender roles prescribed to them by 1950’s society. Frank can’t understand why Honey isn’t happy since all she has to do all day is shop, gossip, and go to the hairdresser. Honey hates it when Frank comes home from work late, and won’t pay for all the clothes she wants. Some quaint advice for couples is distributed in this largely sexist old movie.

Author: QIP1
Added: Mon, 20 Oct 2008 16:33:39 -0800
Duration: 56

The Fun of Making Friends is a elegantly simple video made for children to watch if they're having trouble meeting new people to play with. At first, Joey plays alone in his home, watching all the while at kids outside having a good time with each other. He asks his mother for help and, through four orderly steps, she tells him how easy it is to gain all the friends a youngster like Joey could ever want! After trying the rules out and succeeding, he finds it is fun to have companions to spend time with. An all-too rigid cultural dynamic of the 1950s is obvious through this vintage film, and it remains extremely interesting to see just how formal the social structures were then.

Author: QIP1
Added: Mon, 20 Oct 2008 15:54:30 -0800
Duration: 64

Act Your Age is a fantastic vintage social guidance film full of campy moments, ludicrous characters, and unintentional comedy. Jim, a disruptive adolescent, gets a lecture from the principal about the “infantile reactions” of teens who are struggling to mature. While Jim is serving his punishment, he flashes back to times when he witnessed his friends succumbing to tantrums or “acting like babies.” The behavior of these kids and the ways in which it was considered objectionable are sidesplitting. With the help of family, and school officials, Jim devises a bizarre “How Old Am I?” chart which allows him to assess his own maturity, personality, and ability to work out his own problems. Act Your Age soars with kookiness and a bit of timeless advice for adolescents.

Author: QIP1
Added: Mon, 20 Oct 2008 15:54:30 -0800
Duration: 54

Dick York, who later played Darrin on television’s Bewitched, stars in Shy Guy, a classic Coronet instructional film about how to fit in with the in-crowd. Phil and his father have just moved to a new town and Phil is finding it difficult to make friends and instead sits in his basement fiddling with electronics. Dad notices something is wrong and comes down into the basement for a little heart to heart with his son. Phil is shy, and finds that the kids here talk, act, and even dress differently than they did in his hometown. Dad’s advice is to observe the popular kids to see what makes them tick, and then to emulate them in order to become popular. Phil starts stalking and eavesdropping on the popular kids, and finds out that the secret to their success is that they act interested in others, offer to help others, and tell others about their own experiences. Phil tries this out, offering his state-of-the-art radio system for the school dance, and he is soon a member of ...

Author: QIP1
Added: Mon, 20 Oct 2008 15:54:30 -0800
Duration: 64

Ulcer at Work is an artistically made educational video with superb Film Noir style moviemaking. Steve Hall, an ambitious executive, notices a pain in his side, but doesn’t let it deter him from showing up his coworkers and stressing out over problems at home. In the end, an animated scene reveals that Steve has developed a duodenal ulcer. After Steve passes out from the pain, his is forced to see the doctor, who diagnoses the ulcer. He warns Steve that ulcers come from “the wrong kind of feelings.” When Steve is with his family, it is easy to see where some of these feelings come from. Steve’s family “doesn’t exactly hate him,” but they are only interested in the fact that he brings home a paycheck and presents. His kids are greedy little brats and his wife is a nagging compulsive shopper. After Steve has another “episode” at home, the doctor pays a house call. He blames Steve’s wife for her role in his ulcer and warns ...

Author: QIP1
Added: Fri, 17 Oct 2008 21:54:08 -0800
Duration: 69

Being a teenager means having a ton of hard-to-manage emotions. However, this 1950s short film, Toward Emotional Maturity, sought to make handling those extreme feelings easy, and less radical. The video shows a young girl trying to gain control over her fear, jealousy, anger, and many more emotions present within her story. Along the way, 1950's culture is highlighted as the young lady is forced to deal with decisions about "necking" and other activities so closely associated with that period in American history. Toward Emotional Maturity serves as a wonderful psychological video that is entertaining, historical, and enjoyable!

Author: QIP1
Added: Fri, 17 Oct 2008 21:54:08 -0800
Duration: 63

Friendship Begins at Home shows how strong family relationships are like friendships, and offer the same benefits. Barry, a teen sulking amid his angelic family, decides not to go with his them on their annual 2-week vacation. This disappoints his parents, and his mother warns Barry, "I do wish you'd show as much consideration for the members of your own family as you do for your outside friends!" "Maybe I would," he replies, "if my family'd show me as much consideration as my friends do!" Unfortunately, Barry’s friends don’t come through. Barry is left alone and desolate at home, haunted by the voice of his conscience in his head, and the double-exposure images of his family as they go about their normal activities. The importance of family to postwar American society is brightly illuminated in this wonderful vintage film.

Author: QIP1
Added: Fri, 17 Oct 2008 07:54:08 -0800
Duration: 66

This film from Coronet shows how feelings of self-consciousness can interfere with a successful and fulfilled life. Marty lives with the feeling that there is a ??spotlight?? on him all the time, a fear that is affecting many areas of his life, including his school work and his ability to make friends. He wants a part in the school play, but his lack of self-confidence means that he is only fit to work behind the scenes as a stage hand. Every time he starts to feel self-conscious, an actual spotlight shines on him, illustrating his feelings of vulnerability in certain situations. As the film was made in the 1950s, Marty will eventually learn to find his confidence, echoing the optimism of the time.

Author: QIP1
Added: Thu, 09 Oct 2008 15:53:25 -0800
Duration: 74

Witness the wave of the future through Plexiglas! This short film, Looking Ahead Through Plexiglas, displays the wonder and creativity that became available with the advent of this synthetic material during the 1940s. Its versatile properties are enumerated in this historical movie, amazing for viewers even to this day! While magazines, fancy dcor, and useful home appliances benefited from the transparent plastic, it was also used during wartime as airplane windshields, canopies, and gun turrets. This video expresses the historical benefits and practicalities Plexiglas was able to accomplish and serves as a nifty snapshot of a time past in technological development.

Author: QIP1
Added: Thu, 09 Oct 2008 15:53:25 -0800
Duration: 74

Hooray for the development of plastic! This film shows the emergence of factories all over the country able to mass-produce essential materials like plates that won't break, WWII model airplanes, saran, and much more. With each snapshot of diligent workers, viewers are able to comprehend the speedy development of industry in the United States during the Second World War, and how that changed the rate of production. This industrial video takes a perfect look at the impact wartime manufacturing and production had on the world.

Author: QIP1
Added: Thu, 09 Oct 2008 15:53:25 -0800
Duration: 65

This extremely rare amateur footage of 1941s Mardi Gras shows a very different celebration than that of modern day. The footage includes the Krewe of Nor, a childrens krewe, and the Krewe of Venus, which are parade troupes that no longer exist (though the Krewe of Little Rascals currently performs). The elegantly decorated floats are hand-drawn, and usually have only a few people on board. There is no wanton flinging of cheap beads, as beads back then were made of glass and were given out more sparingly. Tantalizing footage of costumed revelers dressed as cowboys, pirates, and clowns dazzle on screen. All in all, this film provides a wonderful nostalgic view of a more elegant and civilized Mardi Gras.

Author: QIP1
Added: Thu, 09 Oct 2008 15:53:25 -0800
Duration: 40

This amateur footage of the Krewe of Rex parading in the 1941 Mardi Gras celebration in New Orleans has spectacular color. It documents just how different the celebration of pre-World War II is from the modern ones. The spectators are all lavishly costumed as cowboys and Indians, characters from Gone with the Wind, and others. They participate with the parade instead of just standing on the sidelines. The floats emulate creativity and loving craftsmanship. There is also footage of a dance contest where the contestants throw themselves into the spirit of things with a reckless joy. This is valuable documentation of an early Mardi Gras, a jubilant and nostalgic film that captures the elegance and intimacy of earlier celebrations.

Author: QIP1
Added: Thu, 09 Oct 2008 15:53:25 -0800
Duration: 48

This wonderfully rare compilation of amateur footage shows South Dakota and Yellowstone National Park in all their natural glory, with scenes of mountains, waterfalls, and pastures. The gem of the film, however, is video of an incomplete Mount Rushmore! Yellowstone, one of the most beautiful nature preserves in the United States, is magnificently represented to its fullest in this precious historical film.

Author: QIP1
Added: Thu, 09 Oct 2008 15:53:25 -0800
Duration: 76

When the Lincoln Junior High Teen Club decides to sponsor a dance, George, an insecure youngster, must take the plunge into the world of dating. Fortunately, he and his group of buddies all manage to find dates to the Winter Frolic! Thus begins a classic 1950s social etiquette film on dating. The group of kids in this movie represents the varied emotional and physical development that exists in George's age group. This film presents a somewhat realistic view of the limited nature of social interaction between young teens, but also includes some unintentionally funny moments (like how Georges date is a full foot taller than him). Studs Terkel even makes a cameo as a helpful swimming teacher. On the whole, Beginning to Date provides a healthy dose of retro culture, fun, and goofiness from a socially structured era in American history.

Author: QIP1
Added: Thu, 09 Oct 2008 15:53:25 -0800
Duration: 70

Mental Health: Keeping Mentally Fit outlines the four steps to mental health: express your emotions, know your own abilities and limitations, respect others, and solve problems in a timely manner. Kind old Dr. Martin tours the mental health of his town at the high school graduation. As the camera pans over the celebration, Dr. Martin informs the audience that some of these kids will end up in a mental institution. Amidst interesting scenes of small town life, the doctor begins correcting the childrens problems with ludicrously oversimplified explanations. Overall, Keeping Mentally Fit is a somewhat strange snapshot of 1950s psychology.

Author: QIP1
Added: Thu, 09 Oct 2008 15:53:25 -0800
Duration: 73

This vintage film seeks to offer emotional reassurance to troubled youths, but fails to do so in strange ways. Howard is a C-student who wants to make As desperately. However, when he falls short of his goals he ends up in trouble. His teacher sends him to see the principal, who gives Howard a helpful lecture. Amazingly, Mr. Edmunds counsels Howard that he shouldnt have such high expectations for himself, but that he should keep himself emotionally balanced. Without the dangerously high expectation, he can focus on attacking the problem. There is a great scene where other kids are shown doing some activity that they hope to excel in, double-exposed so that they have the fantasy double of themselves right next to them, for example, one girl is singing next to a grand piano with a double exposure of herself next to her dressed in fancy costume, singing. But the overall message of the film is to temper expectations in order to not get swept away by possible failures a ...

Author: QIP1
Added: Thu, 09 Oct 2008 15:53:25 -0800
Duration: 76

Joan Avoids a Cold offers dated and sometimes hilarious advice about how to protect yourself from others germs. Joan and her brother go through a typical day, where Joan does everything right and her brother constantly screws up. On their walk to school, Joan avoids the puddles, but her brother jumps in them like a normal kid. He also shares food with someone at school, which Joan frowns upon. Now, swimming with other peoples germs, and sitting in sopping wet socks, Joans brother begins to show signs of a cold. The teacher sends him to the nurse, whose office sports a sign that reads "Bodies, like buildings, should keep erect." After noticing the wet feet and taking his temperature, the nurse declares him sick and calls his mother. Mom takes the added precautions of boiling his dishes after hes eaten and making him spit into the toilet instead of the bathroom sink when hes brushing his teeth, so that no one else will catch his cold. Other scenes include kids being dosed with cod ...

Author: QIP1
Added: Tue, 07 Oct 2008 10:53:09 -0800
Duration: 73

Understand Your Emotions was an attempt to lend a biological understanding to emotional responses. Enthusiastic science teacher Mr. Brent performs experiments on his students in order to teach them about how emotions effect voluntary and involuntary behavior. He first tries out the old Jack-in-the-box trick on three of the students, and notes their reactions to the surprise. He then performs other experiments, including hooking up one student to a polygraph machine and then testing his uncomfortable reaction to words like drill and probe. The film is often ridiculous, as is the premise since emotional response is hardly understood biologically even today. This film is a good example of the sorts of questionable material that was forced on young people in the 1950s.

Author: QIP1
Added: Sat, 04 Oct 2008 21:52:53 -0800
Duration: 66

The United States Office of Inter-American Affairs made this film to honor South American contributions of natural resources during World War II. Republics such as Chile, Bolivia, and Brazil contributed vital raw materials such as manganese, nitrates, rubber, quartz, sisal, and tin to the American war effort. Without these materials, this film contends, the war could not have been won. While reeking of governmental propaganda, Gracias Amigos has an earnest nature and a good message about sharing credit for victory. Such gentle overtones are largely missing from politics today, which means this film provides valuable historical perspective.

Author: QIP1
Added: Sat, 04 Oct 2008 17:52:55 -0800
Duration: 65

The Hare and the Tortoise, a classic of Aesops fables, is brought to the screen in live-action with real animals! An owl, a rooster, a raccoon, a fox, a goose, a tortoise and a hare are all here, recreating the story in a lively and fun way. Made the in the 1940s, the film ensconces audiences in the warmth and wholesomeness that was only possible in an earlier time. Each live-action animal is a character in the classic contest of speed: the owl is the referee of the race, and fox creates the race course, the goose gossips, and the raccoon tries to wake up the hare so he wont lose the race. The Hare and the Tortoise is a timeless fairy tale and this vintage film does it justice.

Author: QIP1
Added: Sat, 04 Oct 2008 10:52:50 -0800
Duration: 75

Birth of the B-29 is an astonishing World War II propaganda film fraught with anti-Japanese racism and pro-American production of the super fortress B-29 bomber. The movie sets the Japanese up as an enemy known for their brutality, showing executions and other scenes of carnage. Then, the narration informs us that the way to win against such a ruthless foe is through air power, with Americas deadly new bombers. The wing is so light a girl could lift it with about the same effort as adjusting a flower in her hair! - such is the wisdom of this antiquated film. The B-29 was larger, could carry more, and fly farther without needing to refuel than any previous war plane. The footage of the factory, where workers from all walks of life labored together, shows laborers stopping to gaze at the skies and listen for the music of the planes flying overhead. The scenes of mass scale machinery and production are breathtaking. This gorgeous footage and information, combined with the ...

Author: QIP1
Added: Sat, 04 Oct 2008 10:52:50 -0800
Duration: 71

D-Day Minus One is a tremendous documentary that reveals the role of the lesser known Airborne Divisions the day before D-Day - when paratroops, gliders, and troop carriers landed in France behind enemy lines to prepare for the invasion of Normandy. A patriotic film that never falls into the usual traps of racism and jingoism, the film illuminates how these brave men engaged in heroic operations that prepared the way for, or worked in concert with, the epic invasion that next day. The footage of these troops being dropped behind enemy lines is excellent, and the narration stirring and moving. This vital exposure to the military experience in World War II is a fascinating walk through a momentous event in history. D-Day Minus One is unquestionably one of the best vintage World War II films ever made.

Author: QIP1
Added: Sat, 04 Oct 2008 10:52:50 -0800
Duration: 74

A captivating film, Mission Accomplished: The Story of the Flying Fortresses is a superb WWII motion picture. This film documents the autumn 1942 bombing mission of the 8th Army Air Force over occupied Europe. The star of the film is the B-17 Bomber, the vaunted Flying Fortress, that soared through the enemy infested skies of World War II. Most interestingly is shown how the preparation of the planes and the pilots, from maintenance to briefings, was accomplished. Stunning aerial footage of the mission, as well as what happens to the Flying Fortresses when they return to base, consummates this awesome film. Thanks to high production values, top notch information on the B-17, and thrilling war scenes, Mission Accomplished: The Story of the Flying Fortress is a powerfully enriching experience.

Author: QIP1
Added: Sat, 04 Oct 2008 10:52:50 -0800
Duration: 68

This bike safety film, set in the early sixties suburbia, brings back memories for those who grew up with Schwinn bicycles. The film goes over the basic rules of bike maintenance, proper equipment, and the rules for riding on the roads along side traffic. In the (not so true) world of this film, kids spend hours on bike maintenance, respect the rules of the road, and always yield to pedestrians. But this is a reflection of the conservative mentality in the 1960s, and thus provides historical insight. Bicycle Today, Automobile Tomorrow is a no-nonsense film that provides timeless tips on safe riding.

Author: QIP1
Added: Sat, 04 Oct 2008 09:52:53 -0800
Duration: 73

Drive Your Bike is a strange blend of a driving safety and bicycle safety instructional films rolled into one! An adorable young tyke tells his father all about a nifty school program where the children learn to drive their bikes the idea being to learn the rules of driving a car while operating their bicycles. Interspersed throughout are some hilarious shots of kids riding on the hoods of cars and other odd auto pranks illustrated to dissuade people from performing them. The film has even more value since it contains beautiful 1950s footage of southern California (specifically Burbank and Glendale). Drive Your Bike is a fantastic old video with many different layers of value.

Author: QIP1
Added: Sat, 04 Oct 2008 09:52:53 -0800
Duration: 64

Planet of the apes on wheels! One of the strangest and most entertaining bicycle safety videos ever made, One Got Fat is a bizarre concoction of 1960s goofball childrens antics. The film poses many startling questions: for instance, why is it necessary for all the kids in this movie to wear monkey masks and tails while they go out on reckless bike rides? Bordering on surrealism, the masked youths meet various terrible fates as they get hit by trucks and fall down holes though theres no violence at all and the mood is humorous and cartoon-like throughout. One Got Fat is a must see film for anyone interested in the fascinatingly unusual cinema that was produced in the 1960s.

Author: QIP1
Added: Fri, 03 Oct 2008 10:52:48 -0800
Duration: 77

Angry Boy is a beautiful dramatic film about the psychological discord in a 1950s family and its effects on a young boy. Tommy is an adorable 10 year old, full of youthful potential. But this film is not a cheesy, overly rosy postwar WWII movie, and heres why: Tommy, loveable and perfect though he is, is a thief. Instead of condemning him, this special film takes the approach of counseling and therapy for not just Tommy, but his entire family. The roots of this familys pain run deep and they are slowly unearthed through diligent efforts by the Tommy, his parents, and their therapist. In addition to being an uncharacteristically sensitive and touching movie, Angry Boy was produced with an artistic flair: stirring music, deft direction, and vividly portrayed emotional. This film soars to lofty heights and treats a tender subject with the grace and courage it deserves.

Author: QIP1
Added: Thu, 02 Oct 2008 16:33:29 -0800
Duration: 76

Don't Get Angry espouses the pressure cooker school of thought about anger. It advises young children that angry feelings are normal, shouldnt be bottled up, and need to be channeled into non-violent expressions. There are several dramatizations of scenes where children get angry about something, culminating with the image of a boiling teakettle superimposed over their faces. Paul is mad at his friend Pete, because Pete doesnt want to play model airplanes with him, so he goes to the school gym and uses the punching bag. Susan is mad at her sister Carol, because she wont take turns at jumping rope, so she writes a short story about her angry feelings. Each child learns a different way to deal with their feelings without resorting to violence toward someone else or themselves.

Author: QIP1
Added: Thu, 02 Oct 2008 16:33:29 -0800
Duration: 78

Don't Get Angry espouses the pressure cooker school of thought about anger. It advises young children that angry feelings are normal, shouldnt be bottled up, and need to be channeled into non-violent expressions. There are several dramatizations of scenes where children get angry about something, culminating with the image of a boiling teakettle superimposed over their faces. Paul is mad at his friend Pete, because Pete doesnt want to play model airplanes with him, so he goes to the school gym and uses the punching bag. Susan is mad at her sister Carol, because she wont take turns at jumping rope, so she writes a short story about her angry feelings. Each child learns a different way to deal with their feelings without resorting to violence toward someone else or themselves.

Author: QIP1
Added: Thu, 02 Oct 2008 16:33:29 -0800
Duration: 78

Emotional Maturity is a social guidance film with an atypical darkness not often explored at the time. The movie follows the trials of Dave, whose girlfriend has dumped him, whose father thinks he is a loser, and whose football coach has benched him. Instead of reigning in his emotions as he should, Dave slashes the tires of his ex-girlfriends new boyfriend's car. But it doesnt end there: Daves emotional instability becomes a cascading shower of maliciousness and destructive behavior. Lacking the false and forced wholesomeness of most every film of this ilk, Emotional Maturity is a well produced and piercing film.

Author: QIP1
Added: Thu, 02 Oct 2008 16:33:29 -0800
Duration: 79

The Empty Life is ostensibly about psychological boredom, which resembles modern depression. The film depicts several dramatizations of different people who are bored with their lives and have developed some neurotic compensating behavior or other problem. Ann Galloway, a bored housewife, anesthetizes herself with alcohol, the grocer who lives down the street is a nymphomaniac, and Hugh Marriott hates his job but cant quit because his domineering wife wont let him. Hugh is the star of the show, and the film shows how his mother (also domineering) and his wife have ruined his life and the life of his son. This movie has themes that are very typical of the 1950s, including blaming women for mens problems while ignoring the fact that womens lives were usually even more boring, confined, and depressing than the men they were supposedly bringing down. A weird jazz soundtrack and heavy-handed narration adds to the camp factor of this film, but there are moments when the pain of the ...

Author: QIP1
Added: Thu, 02 Oct 2008 14:52:41 -0800
Duration: 73

An offensively brutish film, Control Your Emotions offers an oversimplified version of the effects feelings can have on adolescents. A bogus doctor explains a troubled teens bad behavior by saying questionable things like fear is triggered by loud noises, and your emotions can be your own greatest enemy. Likening emotions to fire in their tendency to get out of control if not carefully regulated, this film advocates the suppression of emotion as a way to be a well-liked and happy member of society. Further warnings from the doctor reach higher levels of stupidity: If this kind of behavior is repeated often, it might lead to a permanently warped personality. Control Your Emotions exemplifies everything that was bad about the rigid conformity imposed in 1950s culture, as well as revealing the outright dishonesty involved in such control.

Author: QIP1
Added: Thu, 02 Oct 2008 14:52:41 -0800
Duration: 63

This interesting 1950s social guidance film for young women discusses how to find a mate. Instead of talking about how to dress and act on a date, however, Choosing for Happiness concerns itself with the issue of women taking men as they are and not trying to change them into the person they might want them to be. Mary, the narrator, is surprised that her vibrant and attractive friend Eve isnt engaged yet. She investigates the issue, and shows flashback scenes from Eves past relationships. In each, a boy with a different personality type is subjected to Eves controlling ways, resists, and each relationship eventually fails. With the help of her realistic friend Mary, Eve learns that instead of trying to change her boyfriends, she should focus on the ways she can change herself for the better, and make fewer demands upon her suitors.

Author: QIP1
Added: Thu, 02 Oct 2008 14:52:41 -0800
Duration: 60

It Takes All Kinds attempts to train the viewer in how to successfully choose a spouse. It focuses on how to choose a person with the right personality traits. Several different couples run out of gas on a country road, an annoying situation where peoples worst traits often come out. Max is bossy, Tom is helpless, Bill is a chauvinist pig, and Irene is a nag. The one couple who have all the right characteristics are Lily and Gerald. Shes calm and competent, and hes strong and silent. Together, they make the perfect post-war couple. It Takes All Kinds is an illuminating glance at a time when the perfect relationship was considered to be the same for everyone.

Author: QIP1
Added: Thu, 02 Oct 2008 14:52:41 -0800
Duration: 50

When Nora wonders if shes really in love with her boyfriend Jack, she goes to her mother for advice. Mom talks to Nora about the nature of mature love. Later, Nora gets a chance to test out her advice when she goes out on a double date with Jack, his brother Bob, and his fianc, Jean. They go to a Chinese restaurant, but Jack is not adventurous enough to order anything but the leg of lamb, so Nora must share Lobster Cantonese with Bob and Jean. When Jack asks her about the new recording of the Brahms violin concerto, she is stumped. Slowly, as she watches real couple Bob and Jean, and reflects on her mothers advice, she realizes that she isnt really in love with Jack. She and Jack are happy to just be friends, and they make a roller-skating date for later on. This film offers a snapshot of the way love and relationships were perceived in a time now long past.

Author: QIP1
Added: Thu, 02 Oct 2008 12:33:29 -0800
Duration: 74

Park Conscious is a beautiful vintage film that wholesomely informs its viewers of the importance of how we treat our surroundings. Campgrounds and the wilderness are to be protected and respected, and this video proves that it can be done in a mannerly way (a clear indication of 1950's culture). People and nature interact through a give and take relationshipif we are mindful of how we treat our parks and recreational centers, then we will be treated well by them in return! The thrill of the outdoors is made clear in this short film, and proves how it can be attained at any age. Overall, the Park Conscious illuminates the beautiful State and National Parks during a much less developed time in American history.

Author: QIP1
Added: Thu, 02 Oct 2008 12:33:29 -0800
Duration: 60

Are You Ready For Marriage? It is a question many people should ask themselves when on the brink of engagement. In this 1950s Christian film, the two young adults, Sue and Larry, want to be married and go in search of answers from a marriage counselor at their church. After some strange advice by today's standards (sex is glossed over with amusing code words), this youthful couple realizes there is still a lot to learn from each other before becoming husband and wife. This video takes a realistic approach in discussing marriage and understanding just how practical people were in the mid 20th century.

Author: QIP1
Added: Tue, 30 Sep 2008 16:33:20 -0800
Duration: 70

How to Say No is not as didactic as others of its ilk, but instead presents a discussion-type format in which teen actors talk out situations where it is difficult to say no. Each teen relates a story about a time where they were asked to do something they didnt want to do. The topics include drinking after football practice, smoking at a sleepover, and petting. Some of the suggestions are laughable, but the film must be credited for trying to come to terms with the fact that kids need real solutions to this problem, not just a voice of authority telling them what not to do. How to Say No is a film which possesses a timeless merit, since saying no and being true to oneself is still very much an issue today.

Author: QIP1
Added: Tue, 30 Sep 2008 12:34:22 -0800
Duration: 75

How Much Affection?, a telling vintage social guidance film, discusses whether or not to indulge in heavy petting. When Laurie and Jeff get deeply immersed one night while parking, Laurie suddenly regrets her behavior and runs off to have a heart to heart with her mother. Timeless wisdom is delivered: If you'll just slow down the rush and pressure of your feelings a little, then judgment has a better chance to take hold and guide you away from wrong behavior. When you can rely on judgment rather than emotion to rule your behavior, as you did tonight, then you'll really be grown up. Resorting to scare tactics, gross depictions of different couple who went too far, got pregnant, and had to get married fly across the screen. How Much Affection? is a telltale conservative 1950s film that makes for fascinating viewing today.

Author: QIP1
Added: Tue, 30 Sep 2008 12:34:22 -0800
Duration: 76

Junior Prom teaches proper etiquette for all aspects of going to the junior prom by showing the adventures of two different boys, Jerry and Frank, who go out on a double date together to the prom. Jerry is the perfect 1940s example of a well-mannered gentleman, while Frank exhibits many characteristics of incorrect prom behavior. Jerry guides Frank through these tough choices as the narrator makes comments like Allow the ladies to be more colorful. All the rigid social ceremonies and strict behavior is covered, with a right and wrong way to handle every situation. Junior Prom is a wonderful examination of the history of the prom, as well as social structures and conformity in mid 20th century America.

Author: QIP1
Added: Tue, 30 Sep 2008 12:34:22 -0800
Duration: 76

This 1940s vocational film explores the ever important field of nursing. Choosing a nursing school, what qualifications the school requires, state licensing examinations, choosing a specialty, private nursing, and public health nursing are all examined in detail. Many fascinating scenes showing women training in laboratories, practicing on each other, treating patients, and taking tests are shown. The film comments that men can be nurses too, but are generally employed by psychiatric hospitals and heavy industries. Overall, this film illuminates what nursing was like in the 1940s in an engaging manner.

Author: QIP1
Added: Tue, 30 Sep 2008 12:34:22 -0800
Duration: 68

This amusing 1950s dating instruction video stars a bunch of shy boys who cant muster the courage to ask girls out. The wholesomeness of the film is funny but also oddly endearing, like when a young couple finds out that they both like to like going to weenie roasts and taffy pulls. Its a match made in heaven, as these two flirt at the rummage sale, then have a picnic! Things get sillier as the young men learn how to save money on dates and keep things from getting boring, though these activities would make a current teenager comatose. What to do on a Date is a campy gosh darn good time.

Author: QIP1
Added: Tue, 30 Sep 2008 12:34:22 -0800
Duration: 66

Reeking of dated social structure, this entertaining 1950s conservative film calls into question the practice of going steady. It uses title cards to ask, Should teens go steady? in order to provoke a discussion on its benefits and problems back when the topic of going steady was edgy! According to the film, going steady introduces problems such as getting hurt by being too serious, moving too far sexually, and more. Marie and Jeff, the stars, find their friends describing their relationship as going steady and theyre not sure they like it. They agonize with themselves and their parents over the question. Classic hilarious scenes include Mom commenting, I hope Jeff doesn't feel he has the right totake liberties. Going Steady is an exemplary manifestation of conservative societys fears about what is now considered harmless behavior.

Author: QIP1
Added: Fri, 26 Sep 2008 12:46:58 -0800
Duration: 72

In the old days, there were only the animal, vegetable, and mineral kingdoms, but this film adds a new one: the plastic kingdom. In this cute educational film, little Susie doesnt know about the fourth kingdom as she plays twenty questions, though, so her engineer dad has to set her straight. Unfortunately for the other kids at Susies party, dad then launches into a lesson on plastics, thermoplastics, thermosetting compounds, and plastic production. This film was sponsored by GE, and shows all the wartime and peacetime applications of plastics. Then to the best most entertaining part, the film goes on to speculate wildly about the ways plastic might be used in the future: plastic shoes, fabrics, and more. The Kingdom of Plastics illuminates the post World War II demand for peacetime plastic uses, as well as providing campy entertainment in a wonderful vintage film.

Author: QIP1
Added: Fri, 26 Sep 2008 11:53:11 -0800
Duration: 55

A prophetic vintage video, this promotional film seeks to educate the public about a new and exciting technological breakthrough material: plastic. The thrust of the film is a reaction to the ramped up production of World War II, thus the need to promote peacetime manufacturing with wartime materials. All the same, the video discusses the history, production, and use of plastics in great detail, creating a high educational value. The science and chemistry behind the production is also touched upon, adding further historical value. Overall, this film is a highly informative piece on a material that is hardly recognized today, yet ironically is invisibly pervasive in nearly every facet of daily life which is enhanced by technology.

Author: QIP1
Added: Fri, 26 Sep 2008 11:53:11 -0800
Duration: 74

An expensively produced mixture of infomercial, science fair, and game show, this film is the perfect look at vintage marketing. Demonstrating the wonders of DuPonts latest product, Mylar, the film takes camp to the next level. A super strong transparent polyester film, Mylar is resistant to temperature changes, stress, acid, and more. Its durability is apparent, because this film documents many dramatic (and hilarious) tests being performed on this new material. Narrated and hosted by a scientist and his cute female assistants, the film shows Mylar being used as a trampoline, being boiled in acid, catching a bowling ball, and trapping odors by enclosing a live skunk! Bizarre and fun to say the least, this film excels with all the charm, creativity, and general wackiness that simply cant be found in promotional videos today.

Author: QIP1
Added: Thu, 25 Sep 2008 15:53:28 -0800
Duration: 74

Brazil Gets the News is a highly fictitious World War II Propaganda piece that insists Brazils media was as free and unrestricted as Americas, as well as other dubious claims. Brazil was being courted by the United States for help in World War II, and this film was a part of that effort. The footage itself, propaganda aside, is full of fantastic shots of historic printing presses and other newspaper production machinery. Other ludicrous claims, like how Sao Paulo is the Detroit of Brazil, make this historical film engrossingly antiquated. Brazil Gets the News is a superb vintage video for several reasons.

Author: QIP1
Added: Thu, 25 Sep 2008 15:53:28 -0800
Duration: 72

An amazing vintage film that illuminates the history of communications, Telephone and Telegraph is a phenomenal historical experience. As the film reveals, telegraph jobs were similar to those in the growing telecommunications field of the 1940s. There is stock footage of a late 19th century Western Union office and a Bell telephone, as well as a lot of great video of analog equipment. Most interestingly, the film also reveals the gender roles of the era when it divides the available telecommunications jobs up by sex, saying that some jobs just werent open to "girls." Men were encouraged to get a college degree, which would help them in their careers as engineers, couriers, executives, installers and others. Women, on the other hand, are told that they could work as operators, clerks, or secretaries. This vintage film illuminates the history of telecommunications like no other!

Author: QIP1
Added: Thu, 25 Sep 2008 15:53:28 -0800
Duration: 72

This fascinating an important film which shows many scenes of life as an army nurse in World War II. It documents their entire journey through military nursing, from basic training to their work in field hospitals caring for the wounded. The gender of the women is somewhat idealized, In her there is the tenderness of all women, of mother and sister and friend. Her voice and touch lend encouragement, instill hope. There is an amazing amount of real WWII footage here, showing the nurses in many activities. They are shown helping surgeons dress, laying out instruments, and generally assisting the doctors. They are also shown caring for men in convalescence, including transporting them in flying hospitals to interior hospitals. They build and tear down mobile field health centers. There are even sequences showing the many uses of the GI helmet, including as dishpan, washbasin, and cooking pot. Really, the wealth of historical information about womens roles in World War II is too ...

Author: QIP1
Added: Thu, 25 Sep 2008 15:53:28 -0800
Duration: 82

Supervising Women Workers was one of the first real attempts to address the fact that women were taking over mens jobs during the manpower shortages of World War II. When Joe, a factory worker, admits to the boss that hes scared of his new female coworkers and doesnt know how to behave around them, his boss gives him a lesson on the female mind. According to the film, women were highly individualistic, jealous, slow to pick up on instructions, and not naturally familiar with mechanical principles. He also, among other things, warns Joe not to mix business with pleasure. Supervising Women Workers represents American businesses difficulty and confusion about how to deal with the problem of female workers, and ends up surfacing the rigid sexism and discrimination that was accepted at the time.

Author: QIP1
Added: Thu, 25 Sep 2008 15:53:28 -0800
Duration: 69

Narrated by none other than Eleanor Roosevelt, this film about the National Youth Administrations efforts to train women for home front jobs is an engaging snapshot of World War II home front activities. Young ladies are shown doing such male jobs as welding, electronics, sheet metal, and tool and dye work. Little did Mrs. Roosevelt know, this would not be a turning point in womens liberation, as these women were sent back home when the war was over. All the more interest due to the irony, Training Women for War Production is an enriching viewing experience for anyone interested in the evolution of gender roles in American history.

Author: QIP1
Added: Thu, 25 Sep 2008 11:53:25 -0800
Duration: 74

Brazil at War is an interesting World War II video about Brazil joining the Allies in the fight for freedom. Brazil literally gave a division of men to the U.S. command to be trained and managed in combat. It was a successful relationship, by and large, and this film elaborates on how Brazil is a great country, second only to the U.S. in natural resources and manpower. The cosmopolitan Rio de Janeiro is praised as being a modern city like those in the America. The selectively progressive nature of this United State war propaganda film contrasts sharply with racist videos on Americas WWII enemies. Of great historical value, Brazil at War is a fascinating glance at mid 20th century Brazil and Americas stance towards them at the time.

Author: QIP1
Added: Tue, 23 Sep 2008 15:53:18 -0800
Duration: 74

This Works Progress Administration (WPA) video documents the destruction and rebuilding that occurred after the January 1937 flooding of the Ohio River that stretched from Pittsburg, Pennsylvania to Cairo, Illinois. The effects of this devastating incident were increased further due to the struggles that America was already facing while in the midst of the Great Depression. While the devastation was extensive and left many people homeless or dead, it would have been further compounded without the help of the Works Progress Administration, a New Deal Agency created to provide work to the unemployed. These workers bravely and tirelessly aided in the evacuation of people from the area, the distribution of food supplies and clothing, and the eventual clean up of the wreckage caused by the flooding. This video strongly and rightly praises these workers and acts as a motivator for those employed by the WPA and stands as a persuasive justification for the funds spent to employ the workers.

Author: QIP1
Added: Tue, 23 Sep 2008 15:53:18 -0800
Duration: 58

Girls Beware is ostensibly about girls protecting themselves from untrustworthy men, but its underlying message is that girls are fragile victims who have to guard their honor or pay the penalties (i.e. incarceration by the Juvenile Authority). There is a certain validity to the idea that girls are vulnerable, and this film has some common sense tips for girls who are babysitting, dating, and in other situations. The last part of the film concentrates on the dangers of girls dating older boys. It implies that girls who do this can expect to find themselves in trouble with nowhere to turn. Interesting for its examination of antiquated gender roles and social stigmas, Girls Beware is a top notch vintage movie experience.

Author: QIP1
Added: Tue, 23 Sep 2008 15:53:18 -0800
Duration: 67

During World War II the need for welding and other high skill manufacturing was desperately in demand. This vintage vocational training film promoted a crucial vocation that was necessary for the war effort: welding. Methods shown include flat and overhead welding and cutting, electric resistance, arc welding, shielded arc, metal table, and carbon rod. Spot welding and stick welding are also shown. The film explains what types of jobs are out there for welders, and what physical and school requirements are needed. It discusses production jobs, work in the steel or automotive industries, air craft building, and bridge and pipeline work. While oxy-acetylene equipment is now considered obsolete, the methods shown here are not much different from modern ones, and a hobbyist or someone interested in welding as a career will find much of interest in this informative film.

Author: QIP1
Added: Tue, 23 Sep 2008 09:53:16 -0800
Duration: 74

In the Beginning contains splendid imagery, including animation and early photomicrography, of all parts of the mammalian reproductive process. At first, the film documents scenes of animal life, including human children, then the film moves into more biologically detailed scenes that include photos and animation of ovulation, fertilization, and cell division. There are several views of biologists dissecting rabbits in order to show the reproductive system, the young in-utero, the placenta, and the umbilical cord. All the while, narration provides clear explanation of the imagery.

Author: QIP1
Added: Mon, 22 Sep 2008 16:33:56 -0800
Duration: 61

This silent film explores the manufacturing process, and virtues, of beer in the early 20th century. The video possesses great camp value: through bizarre text boxes one speaker extols the healthiness of drinking large amounts of beer! But, as with most silent films, the most striking aspects of it are the beautiful moving images of now historical brewing facilities. For Good Living is the perfect film for people interested in home brewing, classic brewing, or just the history of beer.

Author: QIP1
Added: Mon, 22 Sep 2008 16:33:56 -0800
Duration: 50

Social Sex Attitudes in Adolescence follows Mary and Bob from infancy all the way to their courtship and marriage in order to demonstrate the importance of family life. A prototypical 1950s social guidance film, the focus is on convention (Bob is a football player) and proper conduct at every point. From their perfect families, Mary and Bob are sure to come together so long as Mary can avoid the parked car groping from men of lesser character! The perfect film to learn about the way sex and culture were perceived in 1950s America, Social Sex Attitudes in Adolescence is a classic vintage movie.