Vitus_Verdegast
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New World Through Chemistry
New World Through Chemistry 16 Magnacolor print
http://www.archive.org/details/new_world_through_chemistry
silent late 1930s chemistry propaganda-movie in colour !  
A review :
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DuPont sponsored film from c. 1939 about the benefits around the house by the advances in chemistry. Unfortunately, the soundtrack has been lost for
this film, but we are left with some interesting, if faded, 2-strip color footage. The film has footage of the manufactering of various household
items, such as rubber gloves and household sponges. The bulk of the film centers around the various applications of man-made fibers, such as nylon.
While there are a lot of pretty models twirling colorful period dresses, we are also treated to a rather interesting vignette of a waiter spilling
something on a lady's dress, only to have to cleaned off with water, and a scene of a man testing the flame-resistance of two dresses. There is also a
rather interesting sequence showing the manufacturing of nylon stockings and brushes.
After a few scenes of man fishing, the film moves onto plexiglass, showing some early precursors to fiber optics used as dental tools. The best shot
in the entire film is near end, when the camera focuses in a clear plexiglass telephone; a stunning example of late Art Deco design. Finally, more
fashions and interesting clear plastic furniture end the film.
Despite the lack of soundtrack, this is an interesting film to watch, and would make for great source material for industrial or period fashions.
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Apple Quicktime is best used to watch this... (MPEG4)
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Vitus_Verdegast
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A Test Tube Tale
another one!
with sound this time, from 1941....
http://www.archive.org/details/TestTube1941
review:
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Test Tube Tale presents the "magic of chemistry," showing how industrial chemists have altered our immediate environment. Men, the experimenters,
fabricate products for women to use: windowshades, upholstery, nylon stockings, transparent plastic raincoats. The camera dwells tellingly on the
young chemist's older sister, showing her legs as she dons new synthetic stockings. "Chemistry is responsible, too, for the gossamer-light threads of
these new stockings." Music issues from a new plastic radio.
But chemistry is not just the bringer of goods to be worn and consumed. It also protects against dirt, disease and pollution. In an unintentionally
revealing sequence, the film shows how soot, dust and sulfuric acid emanating from factory chimneys and auto exhausts cause metal and stone to decay.
Chemistry becomes the protector against damage, much of it of its own making. A decade and a half before Silent Spring, Test Tube Tale reveals the
dangers of pollution and the hidden costs of industrial development. Circling without a solution, technology creates problems and responds to them
with more technology.
Test Tube Tale makes no mention that much of the world is already at war. However, it's a strong (if implicit) statement that industrial chemistry was
a a strategically important industry to the United States in 1941, especially given the worldwide strength of Germany's chemical combines. In
addition, the duPont family, who held a controlling interest in General Motors, would have viewed the message of this film through friendly eyes.
As in The 1936 All-American Soap Box Derby, this film ends with a call to young men, which one might interpret as a plug for a strategically important
industry: "Great things have been done. But much more remains to be accomplished. Some young man, perhaps one watching this very picture, may develop
a startling new formula from a test-tube experiment, may give the world finer things to use , to wear, to better man's health. In this new world of industrial chemistry, the horizon is unlimited. Unexplored
potentialities beckon. Hidden secrets of nature sound a call to this young man, the industrial chemist, the pioneer of tomorrow." Rubbing his eyes, a
young experimenter opens his window to reveal a still image of the rising sun, on which is then superimposed an image of a bubbling beaker  .
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Those were the days it seems...
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Vitus_Verdegast
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archive.org again proves to be a real treasure chest...
Speaking of Rubber (1951)
http://www.archive.org/details/Speaking1951 (part I)
http://www.archive.org/details/Speaking1951_2 (part II)
 
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Narrated by a retired "rubber man", this classic industrial film shows the uses and manufacturing of rubber products. With excellent images of making
boots, tire manufacturing, traction tests, and innovative uses of rubber. |
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Vitus_Verdegast
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Oil!
Oil for Aladdin's Lamp (revised version) (ca. 1949)
http://www.archive.org/details/OilforAl1949
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The romance of the petroleum industry, showing how dependent our society is on oil and petrochemical products. Remake and update of the original
(1933) version.
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More Power to You (ca. 1930s)
(Sounds like something that might have come from the Bush family  )
http://www.archive.org/details/MorePowe1930
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How oil is drilled, transported, refined, reformulated, and consumed. Narrator: Lowell Thomas. |
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Vitus_Verdegast
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there's more...
The Alchemist In Hollywood (1940)
http://www.archive.org/details/Alchemis1940 (part I)
http://www.archive.org/details/Alchemis1940_2 (part II)
 
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Explains chemical processes used in the motion picture laboratory. Diagrams and demonstrations of exposure, photochemical reactions, development, and
printing. Photographer: Shirley Burden. Sound Recording: Bernard B. Brown. |
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Vitus_Verdegast
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Posts: 297
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Fire (1946)
http://www.archive.org/details/Fire1946
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Dry (and therefore combustible) Encyclopedia Britannica film about fire. We're shown how to make a campfire, some simple science about combustion, the
uses of fire, and some simple ways to put out small accidental fires. Covers the basics in a not-too-boring fashion, but offers no surprises.
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