If I asked you to tell me what you think of when you think of silent films, one characteristic you may mention is that silent films are black and white. While it is true that most silent films were shot using black and white film, by the time they were projected many had vibrant colors … Continue reading Colorful Chemistry and a Visit to Your National Parks
How do you get around when you live on a 1.2 square-mile island with no privately owned vehicles? If you live on Kwajalein Island, bicycles are the answer. But these aren’t just any bicycles. Kwajalein Island is a part of the United States’ Ronald Reagan Ballistic Missile Defense Test Site (formerly Kwajalein Missile Range). The … Continue reading A Bike Like No Other
In late July, Audrey and I traveled to Bucksport, Maine, to attend the Northeast Historic Film (NHF) Wunderkino 5 symposium. The theme for the annual event was “Images of War and Peace,” which aligns perfectly with the types of films preserved at the National Archives (NARA). We were delighted to see several presentations that highlighted … Continue reading NARA Holdings Well-Represented at Archival Film Symposium
Dogs have a long history serving alongside humans in military campaigns. The earliest recorded use of war dogs is from around 600 BC, and dogs have acted as scouts, sentries, and fighters in conflicts around the globe. Some dogs, such as Sergeant Stubby in World War I and Chips in World War II, have even … Continue reading From War Dogs to Remote Controlled Monkeys: Animals in the Military
This month the National Archives Museum in Washington, DC opened a brand new exhibit, Spirited Republic: Alcohol in American History. The exhibit contains many records from NARA’s holdings, including films digitized right here in our Motion Picture Preservation Lab! Spirited Republic highlights how the United States government’s policies towards alcohol have changed over time, including the period from … Continue reading A Spirited Republic in Motion: Prohibition is Repealed!
It’s no surprise that history is a passion for many of the employees at the National Archives and Records Administration. But even in this environment, there are people whose dedication to interpreting the past stands out. For over forty years, Mark Meader, an Archives Specialist in NARA’s Motion Picture, Sound, and Video Branch, has participated … Continue reading Performing the Past: Archives Specialist Mark Meader Makes History Come Alive
In past blog posts, we've highlighted some of the favorite films of Motion Picture Preservation Lab staff. Because the motion picture holdings at the National Archives and Records Administration are so voluminous, we are always encountering new films that jockey for the top spot on our list of favorite things. One Time Too Often, a 1969 … Continue reading Mortal Moonshine: Treasury Agents Take On Backwoods Bootleggers
If you’ve been following this blog for a while, you already know that there are some amazing films at the National Archives and Records Administration (see: Curious Alice). One of my favorites is No Fuelin’, We’re Poolin’: An Altogether Way of Getting to Work. Aside from having one of the best titles of any government … Continue reading Romancing the Vanpool: Energy Conservation on Film
Today is the anniversary of the launch of Apollo 11, the fifth manned mission in NASA’s Apollo program, and the first to land humans on the surface of the Moon. Apollo 11 was the culmination of a decade of work to develop the technology necessary to meet President Kennedy’s goal of “landing a man on … Continue reading Stepping Stones to the Moon
Let’s suppose you have a child, and that child loves puppet shows. You might decide to introduce your child to The Muppets Take Manhattan or the Thunderbirds television series. Or, you could introduce them to something much darker: a 1952 United States Information Agency (USIA) production titled Tomas and the Huks. Marionettes were fairly popular … Continue reading With Strings Attached: Rice, Murder, and Awkward Communist Puppets
