2. A new fire bomb (08:46)

Date:
1942
Main contributors:
United States. Office of Civilian Defense
Summary:
Describes and provides information about methods of defense regarding a recently developed type of German explosive fire bomb. In dramatic reenactments, wardens and civilians are warned to keep away from bombs that have fallen in the street. Various methods are shown for attacking bombs that have fallen in houses. The film demonstrates ways of applying water while taking advantage of the protection of brick walls.

3. A new supervisor takes a look at his job (12:36)

Date:
1944
Main contributors:
See Other Contributors
Summary:
A machine tool operator is made a group leader and his plant superintendent explains to him, through dramatized illustrations, the meaning of working with people instead of machines.

4. Airscrew (21:07)

Date:
1940
Main contributors:
Tharp, Grahame, 1912-
Summary:
This short nonfiction film depicts the intensive testing that goes into developing and producing aircraft propellers. It opens with the whirring or propeller blades. Animated diagrams show how the bite of the propeller moves it through the air and how the pitch determines the size of the bite. A trip through an airplane factory shows the manufacture of a satisfactory alloy. The rest of the process is painstaking hand work interspersed with dozens of careful inspections. The operation of the variable pitch mechanism and its use in taking off and cruising is shown. Then the propeller is assembled the complete job is tested for balance.

5. An air raid warden's report (10:50)

Date:
1942
Main contributors:
United States. Office of Civilian Defense
Summary:
Shows the importance of accuracy in the information a warden collects at the scene of disaster and the exact manner in which he should transmit information to the control.

6. Battle wreckage (10:09)

Date:
1944
Main contributors:
United States. Army Pictorial Service
Summary:
Explains why large quantities of war materials, in particular steel, are needed for the war effort. Shows the sea battle and beachhead landing of the Normandy invasion.

7. Health in war (13:19)

Date:
1940
Main contributors:
Jackson, Pat, 1916-2011
Summary:
"Offers revealing insights into the re-structuring of health services in London and elsewhere in Britain following the outbreak of WWII ... The film is broadly divided into three parts. The opening sequence looks at the advances made so far in the battle against sickness and disease, brought about through slum clearance, preventative and curative medicine and research. The middle section describes the re-organisation of existing services in preparation for air raid casualties, with the redeployment of city centre hospitals for emergency services and first aid, and the movement of convalescent, maternity and evacuation hospitals further out into the country. The final section uses pictures of happy, healthy children running free in the English countryside to remind cinema audiences of what Britain is fighting for."--British Film Institute website.

8. Improving the job (09:37)

Date:
1944
Main contributors:
See Other Contributors
Summary:
A supervisor asks an employee for work-improvement suggestions; the employee talks the problem over with his father and sister, obtains their advice, and makes some worthwhile suggestions.

9. Into the blue (10:39)

Date:
1940
Main contributors:
Catling, Darrel, 1909-1991
Summary:
Shows how young airmen are trained by the R.A.F. Not only is the standard training such as solo flying shown, but also learning Morse code, navigation lectures, and special bombardier and fighter pilot training.

10. Introducing the new worker to his job (15:21)

Date:
1944
Main contributors:
See Other Contributors
Summary:
Dramatization of how not to orient a new employee and get him started on his job; then by contrast, what should have been done.

11. It's up to us (10:39)

Date:
1941
Main contributors:
General Motors Corporation
Summary:
Focuses on the conservation of important natural elements such as rubber, oil and metal needed to support the U.S. Victory Program. Viewers are shown various ways in which they can change daily habits to get the most out of these materials.

12. Mr. Proudfoot shows a light (08:00)

Date:
1941
Main contributors:
Howard, Sydney, 1885-1946
Summary:
Humorously using the arrogant and bumbling Mr. Proudfoot, this film serves a dual purpose of emphasizing the importance of obeying blackout hours, as well as easing the stress of the time period by encouraging laughter.

13. Negro colleges in war time (08:28)

Date:
1943
Main contributors:
United States. Office of War Information. Domestic Branch. Bureau of Motion Pictures
Summary:
Presents the wartime activities of four African American colleges--Tuskegee Institute in Alabama, Prairie View College in Texas, Howard University in Washington, D.C., and Hampton Institute in Virginia.

15. Paratroops (09:00)

Date:
1943
Main contributors:
United States. Office of War Information. Domestic Branch. Bureau of Motion Pictures
Summary:
"A quick overview of the weeks spent in learning to jump, tumble, and fall, in practice jumping from a tower and from a dummy plane, in packing the parachute one's life depends on, in learning to jump from a plane in half a second, to guide a chute by working the shroud cords, to land without splintering a leg, to disengage the chute and come up fighting."--War Films, Bulletin of the Extension Division, Indiana University, February, 1943.

16. Perishable rush (13:48)

Date:
1945
Main contributors:
United States. Army Air Forces.
Summary:
Shows how the Army Air Forces during World War II flew wounded men from Pacific battle areas to hospitals and home towns in the United States. Uses a mix of actuality footage and fictional reenactments to follow a soldier from being wounded in action, cared for by medics on the battlefield, undergoing surgery in a mobile hospital near the front lines, recuperating in Guam, being shipped back to the United States, and convalescing in hospital near the soldier's home town.

17. Photography fights (13:36)

Date:
1944
Main contributors:
Quackenbush, Robert S., 1904-1985
Summary:
Dramatization showing how Navy photographers and photographic interpreters provided the intelligence necessary to launch a strike against a Japanese airfield in the Solomon Islands. Ends with a statement by Commander R.S. Quackenbush, Jr. urging viewers to purchase war bonds.

18. Placing the right man on the job (12:28)

Date:
1944
Main contributors:
See Other Contributors
Summary:
Dramatized cases of five different workers, unsatisfactory in particular jobs, who are reassigned to other jobs more suitable to their abilities and capacities.

19. Planning and laying out work (09:58)

Date:
1944
Main contributors:
See Other Contributors
Summary:
A plant supervisor talks to his son, who has built a boat in the basement too large to go through the door, about planning a job in advance; and recounts several illustrative experiences at the plant.

20. Ready on the home front (23:56)

Date:
1942
Main contributors:
Constable, J. M.
Summary:
Presents the general aims of the civilian defense program during World War II. Describes the training and duties of the air raid warden. Closes with a proclamation by Governor Schricker.

21. Right of way (07:35)

Date:
1943
Main contributors:
Eastman, Joseph B. (Joseph Bartlett), 1882-1944
Summary:
Follows a troop train, a freight train, and a truck rushing to deliver men and supplies to a ship convoy in 1943. Explains the reasons for transportation delays and the shortage of goods in wartime. This film was intended to promote understanding and support of the war effort despite inconveniences on the home front.

22. Road to Berlin (18:48)

Date:
1943
Main contributors:
United States. Army. Signal Corps.
Summary:
Using dramatized events and newsreels, this film shows the organizing done during World War II to ship war supplies to the military. Shows the work of the Army Transportation Corps in providing ship convoys, as well as the work done by supply depots.

23. Secrets (07:11)

Date:
1945
Main contributors:
United States. Navy Department
Summary:
Discusses the importance of various secret weapons used throughout World War II, such as radar and the atomic bomb. The film emphasizes the development and use of these weapons as being critical to winning the war, thereby justifying their costs. Ends with a plea to purchase victory bonds to support research that will prevent future wars.

24. Story of a transport (20:58)

Date:
1945
Main contributors:
United States. Coast Guard
Summary:
Reviews the World War II service of the transport "Wakefield," formerly the liner "Manhattan"; shows it being used for the transportation of troops, bombed at Singapore, and burned in the Atlantic.

25. Target for tonight (48:28)

Date:
1941
Main contributors:
Watt, Harry, 1906-1987
Summary:
Presents an account of an actual air raid by the Bomber Command of the Royal Air Force. Aerial photographs disclose the objective to be raided. Then staff planning, routine preparations, and the tension of the evening take-off are shown. Follows a big Wellington bomber through its bombing of the target, engine trouble, the wounding of its wireless operator, and finally its report back to headquarters.

26. Target lights (17:36)

Date:
1943
Main contributors:
United States. Office of Civilian Defense
Summary:
"This film is an illustrated narrative of the method of preparing any home for a "black-out". It illustrates the vital importance to every family of knowing what to do and just how to do it. No details are omitted and the instructions are clear and well illustrated. Preparation of a shelter room is described and illustrated."--Frank Frankowiak, "Analysis and Evaluation of 16mm Motion Pictures Library Available at Indiana State Teachers College" (thesis), June, 1948, 109.

27. The battle of brains (12:23)

Date:
1941
Main contributors:
Hawes, Stanley, 1905-1991
Summary:
"This film illustrates the difference between World War II and the war of 1914, emphasizing the importance of mechanization, and contrasting the mobile tactics with the immobility of trench warfare. The scientific approach, both to problems of military strategy and to new weapons, is all-important. The film shows some of the work done by Canadian scientists to make these weapons as effective as possible."--National Film Board of Canada description.

28. The calls that cure (11:08)

Date:
1945
Main contributors:
DeVoe, Ralph G. (Ralph Godwin), 1883-1966.
Summary:
Shows the telephone center and the bedside telephone service in a U.S. Army hospital. Discusses the beneficial effects on the soldiers of receiving telephone calls from home and advises families at home how to handle these important calls.

29. The children see it thru (07:51)

Date:
1941
Main contributors:
Fletcher, Yvonne, 1917-
Summary:
A British production made as a fund raising appeal to American audiences to aid British children affected by the Blitz. The film depicts the hardships of life during wartime for children and discusses the relief efforts of the Save the Children Federation.

30. The Earthmovers (14:07)

Date:
1944
Main contributors:
United States. Army. Signal Corps
Summary:
Shows heavy equipment of all types used by the Corps of Engineers and the Seabees during World War II. Describes how the "work power" of military construction units clears beaches of mines, constructs new roads, builds bridges and airstrips, and sets up water purification systems. Contrasts the pre-technological building techniques of China, India, and Africa with the technological might of the U.S. military.

31. The gardens of victory (08:00)

Date:
1943
Main contributors:
Associated Sales Co.
Summary:
Shows the wartime need for vegetable gardens in every American community.

32. The work of the rescue unit (14:24)

Date:
1942
Main contributors:
United States. Office of Civilian Defense
Summary:
Presents the training of civilians for rescue work during World War II. Shows the procedures for assigning volunteers to the type of work for which they are prepared and training them to perform as a unit. Follows a squad from the sounding of the alarm, going to the scene, surveying the wreckage and taking notes, and tunneling for buried victims, to the orderly departure of the squad from the scene.

33. These are the men (12:16)

Date:
1943
Main contributors:
Osbiston, Alan
Summary:
Takes Leni Riefenstahl's footage from the Nüremberg speeches of the Nazi Leaders and superimposes English "translations" over a set of orations in English "in which Hitler, Goebbels, Göering, Streicher and Hess report their sins and mistakes as frankly as if they were victims of one of those notorious 'confession drugs'." (Documentary News Letter, March 1943, 195).

34. Troop train (11:01)

Date:
1943
Main contributors:
United States. Office of War Information. Domestic Branch. Bureau of Motion Pictures
Summary:
Shows the movement across the country in 1943 of the 201st Armored Division.

35. Venture adventure (07:43)

Date:
1941
Main contributors:
Hasse, Charles, 1904-2002
Summary:
Short film on the Air Training Corps of the British Royal Air Force, showing recruiting, enlistment and training.

36. Western front (20:22)

Date:
1942
Main contributors:
Wilding Picture Productions
Summary:
Begins with a short summary of American attitudes to the War in Europe and how the U.S. underestimated the militaristic tendencies of the Japanese. Argues that the Chinese have been fighting World War II longer than any other allied nation and should be considered one of America's chief allies. Describes America's effort to supply allied nations in the Pacific with war materials. The desperate need of the Chinese people is stressed. Scenes include the carrying of supplies over the Burma Road and the bombing of Chinese cities.

37. What to do in a gas attack (15:03)

Date:
1943
Main contributors:
Price, Sherman
Summary:
Explains what war gas is, how it is used by the enemy, and how simple household items, such as bicarbonate of soda and bleaching solution, may be used to prevent casualties.

38. Words for battle (07:54)

Date:
1941
Main contributors:
Olivier, Laurence, 1907-1989
Summary:
Laurence Olivier's reading of passages from Milton, William Blake, Robert Browning, Rudyard Kipling and Abraham Lincoln accompany scenes of daily life in wartime Britain. The texts selected emphasize national identity and heritage, patriotism, and the justness of the Allied cause.