This is the only collection of WWII films that aims to discover the social effects of the war through the eyes of the camera. So much historical information about our culture can be found in these films. Take a look at the human side of the conflict with these preserved educational movies from our past, all presented in DVD format. This box set is not available anywhere else.
Included Films:
The Magic Bond
The Magic Bond
Produced: 1955
Length: 14 Minutes
This early Robert Altman-directed film promotes the Veterans of Foreign Wars fraternal and social organization as a way to benefit the community through its various programs. The film is packed with jaw dropping scenes, like soldiers in a burned down house in war-torn Europe that foreshadows Altmans later signature style of an ensemble cast with overlapping dialogue. Using war correspondents and a bombastic narrator to promote the idea that the Veterans of Foreign Wars organization, the focus is on a way to fight the neglect of veterans, apathy, juvenile delinquency, and smugness. The group sponsored community events such as marbles tournaments, voter information, assistance for disabled vets, and patriotic memorial events. The Magic Bond is a gem of a film by master director Robert Altman and is an enriching cultural experience.
Supervising Women Workers
Supervising Women Workers
Produced: 1944
Length: 10 Minutes
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.
Freedom Comes High
Freedom Comes High
Produced: 1944
Length: 12 Minutes
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.
As the Twig is Bent
As the Twig is Bent
Produced: 1943
Length: 11 Minutes
As the Twig is Bent discusses the problem of juvenile delinquency during World War 2 on the home front and offers advice to parents on how to keep their children out of trouble. During the war, fathers were at war or working and mothers were defense workers in plants and factories. Because of this, older children, and especially teenagers, were often left to their own devices, even at night if their parents worked the night shift. This is pointed to as one of the main causes of youth crime for children in World War 2. Scenes show teens involved in drug use, teen gangs and mob activity, burglaries, and vandalism. Victory Girls are shown entertaining servicemen in the films attempt to scare parents about their childrens loosening sexuality. The film places the blame for juvenile delinquency during both World Wars squarely on the shoulders of the overworked parents, suggesting that parents werent spending enough time on making sure their children were accounted for. The film gives several suggestions for social responsibility in order to keep kids safe and out of trouble. As the Twig is Bent is a fantastic way to understand juvenile delinquency history as well as the effects on civilian population during World War 2.
A Ceiling on Your Home
A Ceiling on Your Home
Produced: 1945
Length: 11 Minutes
When the servicemen came home from World War II, they often found that deflation and rising housing prices combined to make housing and retail goods unaffordable. The film captures a series of young couples going from place to place, always confronted with a No Rentals sign. The film addresses these concerns and exhorts the public to assist in keeping prices down in order to help young families get a good start in life. The trials and tribulations of WWII veterans is a subject not always touched upon in postwar films, making A ceiling on Your Home a unique and important movie.
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Homes for Veterans
Homes for Veterans
Produced: 1946
Length: 28 Minutes
To unify the many federal housing agencies, President Roosevelt created (1942) the National Housing Agency, which included the Federal Public Housing Authority, the Federal Home Loan Bank Administration, and the FHA. The short film tackles the depressing housing conditions of the veterans and the governments action to resolve the problem.Welcome home. Well done.At the start of the film Robert is welcomed with these warm words when he came home from the war. There is no place like home. However, there was no home for him to come to. His wife and son were living with relatives in a three-room apartment. When he asked where the kids hung out, they pointed to the couch. He asked himself, What has happened in the land of the free and the home of the brave? For him this is unacceptable. Now that he is back, he will get a spot for his own family. He wants a roof of their own, a place of their own. Robert and his wife looked all over the city to buy a house or an apartment to rent but to no avail. Everyone seemed to be looking for a place to live in. The film showed that Robert is not the only veteran who had housing problems after the war as this was a major problem of the government after World War II. There had been a lag in housing construction while population has rapidly increased. There was also shortage of building materials as well as manpower. Pledge to the Veterans At the time it was a priority of the US government to build houses for the veterans. It was clear that the veterans were in no position to buy or build houses so the government gave them options to rent or to borrow money. As this program requires community action, the federal government pledged to utilize resources to stimulate the amount of production. Labor industries on the other hand pledged to augment manpower for the production of the houses. The FHA will issue insurance and mortgages. The Federal Home Loan Bank will aid the veterans by lending money with very low interest. Operation: Hometown USA The main point of the film is to show that the US government is aware of the problems faced by the veterans. This awareness led to the launching of the Veterans Emergency Housing Program. The goal of this project is to solve the housing problems in 100 cities in America. The target is to build 2.7 million homes and apartments by the end of 1947. However, this cant be done overnight. The government, the housing industry, and the labor force needs to join in an all out effort to address the problem. An emergency committee was created, composed of friends and neighbors who gathered to discuss the communitys concern. The veterans, the local housing authority, the real estate developer, the home financing institution, the minority groups, the media, and the womens organization were all represented.All over the country, large and small cities all created similar committees to solve housing problems. The film shows a typical meeting wherein different subcommittees presented their methods in helping resolve the housing issue. The referral subcommittee, for example, opened a referral center wherein returning veterans can get information, consultation, and advise regarding their desired house. If the veterans decide to build a house instead of rent, they will be advised to submit an application to the FHA and Federal Home Loan Bank Administration.It can also be seen in the film that efforts are made by the Publicity subcommittee to disseminate information regarding the housing projects. This includes releasing of posters, asking radio stations to interview the veterans, and asking newspapers to feature articles regarding the housing. Letters were also sent to clergymen requesting them to appeal to members of their congregation to open their homes. Similar letters were also sent to womens clubs, service clubs, realtors, and property owners. The subcommittee on planning on the other hand surveyed the city of unused housing, garage or attic space that can be used to accommodate more people. Large houses were also planned to be remodeled into apartments. Building the FutureThe film concludes with Robert and his wife and son still looking for a place to live. They might have to wait a bit more before they can have a place of their own. The important thing is the welfare of veterans like him is the top priority of the authorities. Committees were already created so that local problems are faced and argued out in a democratic process, planning their future and the future of the nation. Everyone is meeting the large demands of the 20th century. Communities will provide neighborhoods where men and women can live in comfort and dignity. There will be wider spaces and community facilities will be available for all. There will be more air and sunlight, more living rooms to hang out, more houses, and rich full lives for everyone.
Show the Content
It’s Your America
Produced: 1945
Length: 34 Minutes
Arthur Kennedy stars as a World War II soldier returning home after service who realizes what he must do in order to participate in the civic life of his country. Shown to servicemen before they returned home, this film was an attempt by the U.S. government to interest GIs in voting and otherwise participating in their civic duty. This film focuses on an American soldiers quest in discovering his country. It starts with a view of soldiers in a ship on its way home. The soldier, who is also the narrator, shows a penny. The film flashes back to the time before the soldier joined the army. He found the penny under a street light on his way to the armys recruitment center. He would have been hit by a truck had he not picked it up and he considered it his lucky charm. The story will revolve around the penny and its features – Abraham Lincoln, wheat, E Pluribus Unum, and 1918 which was also his birth year. America was introduced to the soldier by the people he met and the places he traveled when he was a soldier. During army training, he met another soldier who told him that the penny is very important because its got America on it. He did not understand what the soldier meant at that time. After training, the soldier was transferred to England, Americas ally during the World War, where he met a pub waiter who introduced him to the great people of America like Washington and Abraham Lincoln. The soldier was then introduced to democracy by a medic who was attending to his wound. The medic told him what E Pluribus Unum meant. He used the surgical knife which was made of steel alloys to explain that the strength of America lies in the different people united in one nation. The soldier then met a French soldier who told him of his experience at the Nazis concentration camp. The Frenchman told him that the real test of freedom is the ability to vote. He emphasized that when free men vote together, they can do anything. Realizing that he has never voted in any election, the soldier made up his mind to vote when he comes home from the war. Next he meets a soldier who used to be a farmer. While looking at a barren wheat field, the farmer told him that the leaves in the penny which he thought were feathers were actually wheat. At this point in the film, the fight for freedom took off from America to the rest of the world as the farmer mentioned that other nations are burning their wheat for the Americans.
Unfinished Business
Unfinished Business
Produced: 1948
Length: 20 Minutes
Unfinished Business opens a window into the bygone days when corporations made an effort to prove to employees that loyalty and lifetime job stability were important objectives. Jim Robbins, a young veteran just returning home from service, has a nice homecoming with his family, distributing presents to his parents and wife, then goes off to check in at the local U.S. Steel plant. When he arrives, he is given a generous welcome by a counselor who tells him that the job he had before the war is still waiting for him. The counselor sets Jim up with classes and training in order to get him back up to speed, and in this way he is welcomed back into the industrial family. This film serves as a historical document revealing the problems of reintegrating veterans back into the home front after World War II.
English Children: Life in the City
English Children: Life in the City
Produced: 1949
Length: 11 Minutes
English Children: Life in the City paints an idyllic picture of a typical Yorkshire family in post World War II England. The film documents their family life, including the kids at school, playing cricket, Mum making tea, going shopping for groceries, and listening to sports broadcasts on the wireless. When Dad comes home from his job on the railways, the family takes a holiday to the seaside, in Whitby, in order to visit their grandparents. There are some great shots of the famous 199 steps up the cliff and fishing boat fleets. This film shows a Britain that was quickly recovering from the bombings, food rationing, and economic hardship of the war.
