One of five major newsreel companies, The March of Time produced and released newsreels that were shown in movie theaters, once a month, from 1935 until 1951. While making newsreels, The March of Time filmed multiple takes. The footage that was not released to theaters was saved as outtakes that are now preserved at the National Archives. … Continue reading The March of Time Outtakes: Dixie USA and Metropolis
As a follow-up to our Women's History Month post The Women of World War I in Photographs, we wanted to highlight moving images that feature women serving. While working on a project aimed at digitizing a series of films from World War I held at the National Archives, I came across a two-reel set focusing on “patriotic activities” … Continue reading The Women of World War I in Motion
The rumors would usually start at lunchtime. “Did you hear we’re watching a movie today?” The whispers and the excitement would grow during recess, and then came exclamations of joy and/or relief as we filed back into the classroom to find the projector set up. For the next twenty minutes (or longer with the inevitable … Continue reading Obsolete Instruction, or What to Do When Your St. Bernard Has a Hangover
In this week of firsts, we consider the women who first ran for major party nominations in the United States: Margaret Chase Smith and Shirley Chisholm. Margaret Chase Smith Margaret Chase Smith won her first seat in the House of Representatives in a special election after her husband, Clyde Smith, died in 1940. One week … Continue reading Cracking the Glass Ceiling: Margaret Chase Smith and Shirley Chisholm
This post was written by Criss Kovac. Criss is the supervisor of the Motion Picture Preservation Lab. We rely on film and photographs to tell stories every day – from the latest blockbuster, our favorite television series, videos we take and stream, to the cherished photos in our homes. But, sometimes what we see isn’t … Continue reading Forensic Film Archiving: Who Raised the Flag on Iwo Jima?
As a girl growing up in the 1980s, Sally Ride was my hero. On forward flight deck of Challenger, Mission Specialist (MS) Ride reclines above pilot's seat in front of pilot's station control panels. Forward control panels and windows appear on her right and seat back with stowage bag and personal egress air pack (PEAP) … Continue reading Sally Ride and the Women of NASA
As I am writing this, there are six people in space, all aboard the International Space Station. While these missions are now routine, in the 1950s scientists weren’t certain that the human body could survive in a weightless environment. Years before the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) sent Alan Shepard into space, American rockets carried … Continue reading A Medal for Miss Baker, the Original Space Monkey
John Ford’s War Mention John Ford’s name today, and most people think of Westerns. Stagecoach, Fort Apache, or The Searchers might come to mind. But Ford actually directed a lot of films that weren’t Westerns, not the least of which were made while serving in the U.S. Navy during World War II. While no one … Continue reading John Ford and the First Battlefront of World War II
This year the National Park Service is celebrating its Centennial and encouraging Americans to “Find Your Park.” Even though I now reside on the opposite side of the country, I know my park will always be Mount Rainier National Park in Washington State. Growing up outside Seattle, my family took advantage of summer weather to … Continue reading Majestic Mount Rainier: Finding My Park in the Archives
Squirrels have long been popular in American culture. In 1959 Jay Ward introduced us to Rocky the Flying Squirrel and today we have the Unbeatable Squirrel Girl and her squirrel friends. The Washington Post even has an annual squirrel photography contest. So it’s no surprise that in 1953 the producers of the Universal Newsreel series … Continue reading Universal News Presents “A Whirl with the Squirrels”
