Please Note: Primary source documents used in this post may contain harmful language. See NARA’s Statement on Potentially Harmful Language. Are you in need of some winter sports action during the break between the Olympics and Paralympics? The U.S. Forest Service has the perfect film for you, aptly titled Winter Olympics. Winter Olympics documents the 1960 … Continue reading The U.S. Forest Service Presents: Winter Olympics
This week’s story is from the 1936 Summer Olympics, held in Berlin, Germany. The games are most well-known for the controversy surrounding them; there was strong support in the United States and around the world for a boycott because of the Nazi regime’s racist ideology and discriminatory actions against Jews. The United States’ team attended the games, but several Jewish … Continue reading This Week in Universal News: The 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin
Are you ready to stay in for two weeks to watch the skiing, figure skating, and curling that comprise the 2014 Olympics? To prepare, here’s a story about the games held fifty years ago. The 1964 Winter Olympics in Innsbruck, Austria opened January 29, 1964 and closed February 9th. From the release sheet: WINTER OLYMPICS … Continue reading This Week in Universal News: The 1964 Winter Olympics
June 23, 2022 is the 50th anniversary of the passage of Title IX, the landmark federal bill designed to guarantee equal opportunities for women in education and sports by prohibiting sex-based discrimination in federally funded schools. Title IX was passed as part of the Education Amendments Act of 1972, U.S. federal legislation under public law … Continue reading Celebrate the 50th Anniversary of Title IX with Archival Footage of Sporting Legends
The Universal Newsreel Collection chronicles some of the most important historical, cultural and sporting events and trends of the early to mid 20th Century. Among the footage of military invasions, coronations, and Olympics it is possible to find footage of lesser known citizens who also made their mark on history. One such story comes from a … Continue reading Spotlight: Learning More About Female Firefighters From Universal News Production Files
Though our research rooms remain closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, National Archives staff have been diligently working from home to make records more accessible to the public. In this vein, Still Picture staff have been converting finding aids into online catalog descriptions. Making descriptions searchable via the catalog will ultimately help researchers locate and … Continue reading An Update on Still Picture Catalog Additions
The Hawaiian Islands (FC-FC-484) is a silent, black and white film from 1924, part of the Ford Motor Company Collection. At the time this film was made, Hawaii was a territory to the United States and would remain that way until it achieved statehood on August 21, 1959. The film consists of unique footage of … Continue reading A Trip to the Hawaiian Islands
For forty-seven days Louis Zamperini drifted idly in the Pacific Ocean. Armed with a few small tins of drinking water, a flare gun, some fishing line, and a couple of Hershey D-Ration candy bars, Zamperini and two other soldiers struggled to stay alive. Their struggle was exacerbated by vicious sharks, blistering heat, treacherous swells, and … Continue reading Louis Zamperini: The Story of a True American Hero
On July 15th, 1931, legendary tennis players Helen Wills and Hazel Hotchkiss Wightman competed against Hilda and Helen Boehm in the first round of the National Doubles Championship at Longwood Cricket Club in Brookline, Massachusetts. The 17-year-old Boehm twins were junior doubles champions in 1931. Between 1922 and 1938, Helen Wills won 19 of the … Continue reading This Week in Universal News: Tennis Legends Wills and Wightman Take on the Boehm Twins, 1931
To commemorate the fiftieth anniversary of the British Invasion, we’re posting our weekly Universal News story a few days early! On this day, fifty years ago, the Beatles landed at Beatles landed at New York City’s recently renamed John F. Kennedy airport. Here’s the report from Universal, complete with John, Paul, George, and Ringo’s trademark charm, … Continue reading This Week in Universal News: The Beatles Come to America
