151. Dorothea Lange: The Closer for Me (29:03)

Date:
1965
Main contributors:
Indiana University, Bloomington. Audio-Visual Center
Summary:
Provides an opportunity for the viewer to compare the personality of Dorothea Lange, photographer-artist, with her work. Many of her photographs are presented; these cover various periods, such as the depression, World War II, and the growth of the urban sprawl in contemporary California. Lange is shown in her home as she states she is convinced the world is not being truly photographed at all today. To the present generation of photographers, she proposes a new photographic project with the cities of America as the subject--to be done on a scale comparable to that of the Farm Security Administration Photographic Project of the thirties.

152. Dorothea Lange: Under the Trees (29:02)

Date:
1965
Main contributors:
Indiana University, Bloomington. Audio-Visual Center
Summary:
Provides a close view of Dorothea Lange and her photographs, enabling the viewer to share her deep involvement in her work and her philosophy as a photographer. Looks in on Lange as she prepares for a one-woman exhibition of her work covering the past fifty years and comments on the reasons and emotions that have moved her to photograph particular scenes. Represents, with her death in October, 1965, a memorial to her and to the despair and hope which she captured so well in her documentary photographs.

153. Echoes of jazz (29:15)

Date:
1965
Summary:
Traces the development of American jazz dance, from tap dancing through the stylized theatrical form of the 1900's and orchestrated jazz of the Thirties, to the cool, abstract music of the Sixties. Demonstrates the basic steps of tap dance (sand shuffle, waltz clog, time step, buck and wing) as performed by Honi Coles. Presents Paula Kelly, Dudley Williams, and William Luther dancing to "Storyville, New Orleans" and the music recorded by Jelly Roll Morton, and Grover Dale and Michel Harty dancing in "Idiom 59" and to recorded music of the same title by Duke Ellington. Presents John Butler's choreography of music by Gunther Schuller, variations on a theme by John Lewis.

154. Flicks #1 (27:43)

Date:
1965
Summary:
Defines movies as glorified shadow shows and traces the motion picture revolution from a simple shadow on a wall to modern movies. Presents a history of the development of the movie camera, film, and other photographic inventions. Includes Al Jolson, Lon Chaney, Laurel and Hardy, and sequences from The Great Train Robbery and a Conquest of Space.

155. Gift of choice (edited version) (29:03)

Date:
1965
Main contributors:
Richard Lukin, Ron Allen
Summary:
Condensed version of "Gift of Choice" episode of Population Problem. Reports on experiments being carried out to determine the factors controlling pregnancies both to aid those who want children and to control fertility for those who want to limit family size.

156. India--Writings on the Sand (59:58)

Date:
1965
Main contributors:
See Other Contributors
Summary:
Explores India's most critical problem and examines proposed solutions. Discusses the agricultural crises and the social customs which interrelate with the population problem. Shows the educational strategy to control the size of families. Presents illuminating accounts of major aspects of life in contemporary India.

158. Japan--Answer in the Orient (59:21)

Date:
1965
Main contributors:
See Other Contributors
Summary:
Presents an historical examination of Japan and the factors involved in the solution of her population problem. Surveys crowded, modern Japan and illustrates change by focusing on a family and by tracing Japan's history with a fast-moving blend of art prints. Deals specifically with legalized abortion and birth control meetings and documents the advantages that a balanced population provides for Japan.

159. The daybooks of Edward Weston : how young I was (29:16)

Date:
1965
Summary:
Illustrates Edward Weston's philosophy of photography and life through his writings, which he called "Daybooks." Relates the feelings of the photographer as photographs are presented from Weston's soft-focus period, his abstract photographs, and his work done in Mexico. Evaluates Weston as an artist through discussions by two of his sons, his second wife, and one of his former students.

160. The daybooks of Edward Weston : the strongest way of seeing (29:01)

Date:
1965
Summary:
Illustrates Edward Weston's philosophy of photography through his photographs. Includes photographs from his study of Point Lobos, California; his record of California and the western United States; portraits of his cats; and samples from his satirical series and his civil defense series.

161. The Daybooks of Edward Weston: How Young I Was (29:10)

Date:
1965
Main contributors:
Indiana University, Bloomington. Audio-Visual Center
Summary:
Illustrates Edward Weston's philosophy of photography and life through his writings, which he called "Daybooks." Relates the feelings of the photographer as photographs are presented from Weston's soft-focus period, his abstract photographs, and his work done in Mexico. Evaluates Weston as an artist through discussions by two of his sons, his second wife, and one of his former students.

162. The Daybooks of Edward Weston: The Strongest Way of Seeing (28:52)

Date:
1965
Main contributors:
Indiana University, Bloomington. Audio-Visual Center
Summary:
Illustrates Edward Weston's philosophy of photography through his photographs. Includes photographs from his study of Point Lobos, California; his record of California and the western United States; portraits of his cats; and samples from his satirical series and his civil defense series.

163. The Philadelphia Woodwind Quintet (29:09)

Date:
1965
Main contributors:
Morton Gould, Sol Schoenbach, Clark Jones
Summary:
Introduces the music of the woodwinds. Presents the story of their evolution from outdoor performances to the concert hall. Includes the following: the Second Movement of Haydn's Divertimento in B Flat Major; the First Movement of Antonio Rosetti's Wind Quintet in E Flat; and the Pastorale of Gabriel Pierne.

164. The renaissance band (29:22)

Date:
1965
Summary:
Presents music of the renaissance played by the New York Pro Musica using authentic instruments of the period. Demonstrates the recorder, brumhorn, sackbut, dulcian, viola da gamba, and shawm. Performs such compositions as: Passamezzo for the Coronettas, Galliard of Monsieur Wustrow, Galliard of the Battle, Reprise, Spanish Pavane, Bourree, The Queen's Courante, Passamezzo, and Galliard.

165. The union man (31:53)

Date:
1965
Summary:
Examines trade unionism in Australia, England, and the United States and pursues in its comparative study what trade unionism has come to mean to Australins.

166. This question of color (55:07)

Date:
1965
Summary:
Talks about a new anti-discrimation bill going before Parliament. This episode is seen through the eyes, experiences and observations of Sha Jahan, 23 of Pakistan and Rudy Kizerman, a young British subject from Barbados. Discusses hostility towards many Indian, Pakistani and African immigrants and social aspects of race in the country.

167. Three men (27:26)

Date:
1965
Summary:
Focuses on the United Nations' three Secretary Generals: Norwegian Trygve Lie, Sweden's Dag Hammarskjold and U Thant of Burma. Interspersed with film excerpts, photos, and commentary, the show also includes an interview with General U Thant and Andrew Cordiers, Dean of Columbia University's school of international affairs.

168. Trouble in the family (1:32:07)

Date:
1965
Summary:
Reports on family therapy, a relatively new and unusual form of psychotherapy in which a family is treated as a unit. Examines a middle class New England family undergoing family therapy. Uses a one-way mirror technique to record the candid reactions of the family. Follows their progress in nine of the thirteen actual therapy sessions. **Part of the Mental Health series within America's crises

169. A breeder in the desert (1:00:56)

Date:
1964
Summary:
The desert plains of central Idaho bore silent witness to many events in history – the coming of the Oregon Trail, the wars between the whites and the Indians, the events of the Old West, Today they are witnessing a change that is far more important – the coming of atomic power. On the lava plains of central Idaho is the National Reactor Testing Station, famous for “firsts” in nuclear energy. Here electricity was first generated from atomic energy and atomic power first was used to light a town. Principles of nuclear submarine propulsion were worked out in “a ship on the desert” in Idaho. “Challenge” visits the National Reactor Testing Station to look at a power plant of the future, a reactor that makes more nuclear fuel than it consumes. The principle is not perpetual motion. This reactor takes the part of uranium that is not fissionable fuel (more than 99 per cent of the total) and converts it into plutonium, a man made element that is a good nuclear fuel. Because the reactor “breeds” plutonium it is called a “breeder” reactor – Experimental Breeder Reactor-II. How this breeding is accomplished, and how fuel for EBR-II is fabricated by remote control, is explained in this program.

170. A chemical somersault (59:18)

Date:
1964
Summary:
A few years ago history was made at the United States Atomic Energy Commission’s Argonne National Laboratory where this program was filmed. This is the story of the dedicated research scientists whose search for truth ended a fallacy in chemistry which had existed for more than half a century. Although their efforts were not as exciting as the discovery that the world was round and not flat, the scientists at Argonne disproved that a group of elements called “inert gases” would not react with other elements to form compounds. This is not to imply that these elements – helium, neon, argon, krypton, xenon, and radon – did not have utility. Helium is the gas used to send balloons aloft. Neon, argon, and krypton are used in light bulbs: xenon in high speed photographic cells; and radon in medical therapy to irradiate cancer cells. What the Argonne scientists investigated was the atomic structure of these elements. For years it had been falsely believed that the electrons within these elements could not combine with electrons within the atoms of other elements. Following a report of Canadian scientists, the researchers at Argonne found that, instead of picking up electrons from other atoms, some of these so-called “inert gases” actually gave up electrons when combined with other elements. Using Krypton, xenon, and radon, in separate experiments, the Argonne scientists succeeded in making compounds which previously were unheard of. In fact, they also found at least one xenon compound for which they weren’t looking. This was xenon trioxide, a powerful explosive, made from xenon and oxygen. Many new uses will doubtless be found for these new compounds, according to the scientists. One might be the use of xenon tetrafluoride to store large quantities of fluorine as an oxidizing agent in rocket fuel.

172. Automation (1:00:42)

Date:
1964
Summary:
Mr. Hoffer examines the role that works plays in self-esteem as well as the effects of growing automation upon this self-esteem. He comments on the basic human need in all societies, in every period of history, for self-realization. It is, he feels, the feeling of worth derived from productive activity whether it be manual labor or the creation of art, literature and philosophy. Mr. Hoffer points out that early science grew out of Western man’s conception of God as “a master scientist,” and that Leonardo da Vinci, for his art, investigated anatomy and became interested in science because he believed it was “God’s work.” He then traces the development of machines from early civilization to what he terms, “present day over-mechanization and automation.” Today’s fast-growing automation and shrinking labor market is turning early man’s dream of luxury and leisure into a nightmare. Unemployment among workers is outstripping the ability of today’s economy to supply jobs for the unskilled. Mr. Hoffer cites current unemployment figures and projects them into the future, commenting that “when man is cut off from the chance to exercise his skills, he loses his confidence, his joy for life, and his sense of worth. Where you have people without a sense of usefulness, you have a potentially explosive situation ideal for the growth of hatred, bigotry and racism.”

173. Canada in crisis (53:19)

Date:
1964
Summary:
Examines the French-Anglo Canadian controversy and French-Canadian dissatisfaction with the Anglo-Canadian controlled country, and describes the economic, educational, social, and traditional factors that have ignited the conflict.

174. Chinua Achebe (28:27)

Date:
1964
Main contributors:
See Other Contributors
Summary:
Opens with an interview involving Nkosi, Soyinka, and featured guest, Achebe. Focuses on the craft and work of Achebe himself and questions whether he deliberately avoids passing moral judgment. Shows Achebe discussing the influences which have shaped his artistic life and recounting experiences from a U. S. visit. Closes with an examination of the traditional novel and a possible new African novel form.

175. David Rubadiri (29:25)

Date:
1964
Summary:
Presents Mr. Nkosi interviewing poet and educator David Rubardiri of Nyasaland and Kenyan poet Joseph Kariuki. Discusses Rubardiri's personal struggle as a creative writer in an emerging nation and the general state of contemporary African literature. Describes native oral tradition involved in African writing, discusses possible future forms, and examines how African literature is taught in the schools.

176. David Rubadiri, Leopold Sedar Senghor, Bernard Fonlon, Wole Soyinka (29:44)

Date:
1964
Summary:
Examines French African literature and the concept of "negritude," the idea of a unique African collective personality. Visits a classroom in Nyasaland, where the teacher-poet Rubadiri discusses Soyinka's poem "Telephone Conversation." Presents President Senghor of Senegal, also an admired poet, who speaks on the concept of "negritude." Closes with an interview of Dr. Fonlon in Cameroon, who discusses dangers facing African literature.

177. Down on the farm (1:01:05)

Date:
1964
Summary:
In this program research scientists explore a mystery that has baffled man for ages – the life process itself. To gain knowledge that someday might answer questions such as, “How do plants make food?” and “What will control the spread of cancer?” Scientists at the United States Atomic Energy Commission’s Argonne National Laboratory are experimenting with the simplest forms of plant and animal life. One avenue of research is centered on the study of algae, one-celled green plants commonly found in pools of stagnant water. The algae were singled out because, like man, they are basically chemical factories – only infinitely more simple in structure. Scientists explain, in this program, how they have succeeded in growing algae in pure “heavy” water, a rare form of water that has hydrogen atoms that are twice as heavy as Normal hydrogen atoms.From a unique “algae farm” the scientists harvest these tiny plants. Their crop gives them chemicals that have heavy hydrogen in place of ordinary hydrogen atoms. Other larger plants are being grown successfully in mixtures of heavy water and ordinary water, and these also are valuable chemical factories.The scientists found that organisms growing in heavy water grow at a slower rate and have different nutritional requirements than organisms growing in ordinary water. From these findings, research scientists are exploring the possibility that heavy water might cause a slow-down in the aging process. Scientist has experimented also with mice to determine what effect heavy water has on animals. Already, they have succeeded in replacing about 30 percent of the normal water in mice with heavy water. Scientists have found that heavy water retards the growth of mice and that tissue which normally grows the fastest appeared to be the most retarded in growth. This latter finding may someday have a bearing on understanding cancer in humans and may lead to a breakthrough in its treatment.Other startling biological effects also have been demonstrated in organisms which have been given doses of “heavy” carbon, nitrogen, and oxygen. In these experiments, scientists were able to alter the growth of the organisms. These alterations may hold further clues to the life process.

178. Ezekiel Mphahletle (28:22)

Date:
1964
Summary:
Presents an interview with exiled South African essayist and short story writer, Mphahlele, who discusses the advantages and disadvantages of a writer in exile. Reveals that he feels he has absorbed both the European and African traditional ways of life but shows he remains gloomy about creative writing in a divided society. Discusses the author's autobiography and the impact of emerging African literature.

179. Harnessing the rainbow (1:00:12)

Date:
1964
Summary:
What fingerprinting is to the F.B.I., spectroscopy is to the scientist. Through its use, astronomers have been able to learn more about the chemical composition of the sun than is known about the composition of the earth. Spectroscopy is used in food research to find impurities in canned food and cans of beer; it is used to trace the origin of paint found on a car in a hit-and-run accident; or to determine how jewelry was made centuries ago. Just how does this technique work? It is a simple story as explained by physicists at Argonne National Laboratory. Yet its applications are extremely precise. The basic instrument is the spectroscope, which can be as simple as a piece of glass used to split sunlight into a “rainbow” of color or as complicated as a piece of delicate apparatus that can single out sixty thousand different colors and requires a room as big as a small house. The use of spectroscopy was extremely important during the development of the atomic bomb. Large quantities of uranium and graphite were needed to produce the bomb, and scientists knew that the very success of the project depended on obtaining these elements in their purist forms. Using a spectroscope, scientists were able to measure the purity of the valuable elements. They knew that each element emits certain colors in the same manner that each man has different fingerprints. Thus, scientists could “look” at two pictures of different samples of uranium and determine which was the purer, since uranium containing impurities gave a different color or wavelength when photographed and compared with photographs of light from pure uranium. Scientists have spent literally years studying photographic plates from the spectrograph to determine the frequencies of light from specimens of chemical elements. The measurement and interpretation is an exacting and time-consuming task which is important if scientists are to understand the structure of atoms.

180. Machines that think (30:09)

Date:
1964
Summary:
The task of today’s mathematicians and computers is to keep abreast of the fast-moving world of nuclear research where yesterday’s successful experiments can be outdated tomorrow. To record the progress being made in this complex field, television camera crews went to the Atomic Energy Commission’s Argonne National Laboratory where in the Mathematics Division men and machines are working daily to process the avalanche of data, the results of thousands experiments that are performed each year at Argonne. In this program, “Machines that think” cameras focus on the latest computers which in a matter of minutes can analyze and solve problems that would take a team of mathematicians a life time to work out. The program reports on computers that have such names as Chloe, Phylis, Engine No.2, and Analog. Chloe is a computer capable of transforming picture patterns, such as chromosome alignments, into numbers, the meaningful language of computers. In the study of radiation effects on chromosomes, for example, Chloe can come up with faster and more accurate answers than human observers. Chloe’s information, in turn, can be fed to other computers which can interpret the findings and “tell” the experimented the results he’s getting while the experiment is still in progress. Still other computers are capable of making adjustments, again while the experiment is in progress, while others can make “decisions,” such as interrupting the function of a main computer to “ask” a question about the experiment. There are other new computers which can tell scientists whether or not their design in experimental models, such as rockets or reactors, will work –even before the machine is built. This is accomplished by feeding the computers mathematical models of the proposed rocket or reactor and asking the computer to test them. Their answers can save scientists years in experimenting by trial and error and millions of dollars necessary to build experimental models.

181. Microscope for the unknown (59:54)

Date:
1964
Summary:
Had it not been for the study into the nature of matter itself, the twentieth century probably would be without television, atomic power, and space satellites. This Program looks into a branch of science called particle physics, a study of sub nuclear particles. The experiments are being carried out at the Atomic Energy Commission’s Argonne National Laboratory. This is the story of experiments in a field where the lifespan of one of the subjects can be less than a billionth of a second and where the subject has no mass or shape –terms almost impossible for the layman to visualize yet alone comprehend. One of the particles which scientists know little about is the neutrino, a neutral particle carrying no electrical charge, but which some day may yield the key to the universe. Scientists say the neutrino does not have mass and the only way it can be observed is by collecting trillions of them and forcing them to collide with other particles, and then observing the damage of that collision. To accomplish this collision, a maze of machinery and nearly infinite timing and precision is required. This program reports on some of these experiments and the machinery employed. For these experiments, where the sub nuclear particles are in existence less than a few billionths of a second and are without mass, scientists have invented various detection devices. A sophisticated electron detector can observe and record these collisions in a manner similar to conventional radar which can follow aircraft. Another method which the program illustrates is high-speed photography which is capable of following the collision in the same way vapor trails from a high-altitude jet can be photographed without the camera capturing the plan itself. The ambition of the sub nuclear physicist is to unify all of nature’s phenomena into coherent sets of laws. His eventual goal is to find the answers that are at the core of the universe.

182. Talent (59:54)

Date:
1964
Summary:
Mr. Hoffer argues that the men working beside him as longshoremen on the San Francisco docks are “lumpy with talent.” Genius, he notes, is not rare, it is wasted; and the talent of the workingman is a kind of common sense practicality. Wherever this talent exists among working men, they do their jobs without “all that fuss” which he considers to be characteristic of the underdeveloped countries of the world. Then, Mr. Hoffer raises a question regarding the forces that bring about creative periods in our history – periods that began quite suddenly and ended just as suddenly. He cites, as examples, “the period of cave drawings,” “the Age of Pericles,” “the Florence of the Renaissance,” and “the flowering of New England,” Mr. Hoffer contends that it was not because there was more talent during these periods (“the artists of Florence,” he notes, “were the sons of shopkeepers, and tailors.”), but rather that others forces which exist in every period of history were at work and these forces freed the talent.

183. Testing for tomorrow (59:54)

Date:
1964
Summary:
Precision and perfection are the watchwords of today’s Space and Atomic Age. Nothing can be overlooked everything must be checked and rechecked before the “go” signal can be given. A crack in a missile’s fuel line, invisible to the human eye, can be disastrous. A defect in an atomic reactor, while not disastrous, can mean costly and time-consuming repairs. This program examines “non-destructive testing”, a new-comer, yet one of the most important engineering techniques. Non-destructive testing is simply a method of examining an object for defects without destroying it in the process. It is unlike other testing methods such as automobile test, for example, in which the vehicle is pushed to its maximum performance before it ends up on the junk pile. The television cameras are at the Metallurgy Division of the United States Atomic Energy Commission’s Argonne National Laboratory, where scientists are using such non-destructive testing techniques as X-rays, gamma rays, and neutron radiography. At Argonne, neutronradiography is an invaluable aid to pinpoint what happens to uranium or plutonium fuel that sustains a chain reaction in an atomic reactor. The knowledge gained through this technique is important in designing the atomic power plants of today and tomorrow. Also shown are the ultrasonic testing methods used to detect imperfections by “bouncing” sound waves through objects that are being tested. One of these methods converts sound waves into electronic signals to show television pictures of hidden defects. The value of these non-destructive testing methods becomes increasingly more important as the tolerances become smaller and smaller for the new atomic reactors, space vehicles, and aircraft engines that are being constructed.

184. The alchemist's dream (59:47)

Date:
1964
Summary:
For centuries men have dreamed of turning common elements such as lead and zinc into more precious metals such as gold and silver. Today, nuclear scientists are looking beyond this and are inventing new elements which are more valuable than gold. This program, “The Alchemist’s Dream,” looks into these new elements –like curium and berkelium –which were unheard of a few years ago. Using an instrument called a cyclotron –an atom smasher –scientists at the United States Atomic Energy Commission’s Argonne National Laboratory are making new elements which do not exist in nature. In a manner of speaking, scientists at Argonne are working in an “atomic shooting gallery.” Houses in a special room behind seven –foot thick concrete doors, a cyclotron bombards target atoms of curium with a beam of a special variety of hydrogen nuclei, resulting in the making of a new elements, berkelium, one of eleven elements which have been “invented” by science. Behind heavy concrete walls, painstaking precautions are taken in the manufacture of these new elements because of harmful radiation, a byproduct of atom splitting. Though these experiments yield only small amounts of the new elements, they enable scientists to work out their chemical properties. This research provides new information on how atoms are put together. It also tells the scientists what to expect when larger quantities of the new elements are available. Already, some of these man-made elements are furnishing the power for satellites and remote weather stations. A small quantity of one of the new man-made elements, californium, scientists predict, could produce enough energy to do the job of a nuclear reactor weighing several tons.

185. The fuel of the future (59:37)

Date:
1964
Summary:
Electrical power to heat and light American homes and industries in the future will be furnished by plutonium. This program reports on plutonium, one of the eleven man-made elements, which as a future source of fuel will produce two million times more energy than coal. Plutonium did not exist on earth until less than a quarter-century ago when it was born in a nuclear reactor. Born in a wartime program to obtain material for the atomic bomb, plutonium is finding important peacetime uses because it is a potent nuclear fuel. In fact, 99 percent of all uranium that is mined must be converted into plutonium in a reactor in order for mankind to use its latent energy. It has been estimated that the reserve of uranium that can be converted into plutonium represents hundreds of times more energy than the nation’s combined reserves of coal, oil, and natural gas. Against this background of the importance of plutonium, the program shows some of the elaborate precautions that must be taken in handling it. Plutonium is highly toxic. It burns easily in air. Its metallurgical properties make it extremely difficult to work with. At the Plutonium Fabrication Building, the cameras capture the elaborate precautions employed, revealing how plutonium is combined with uranium and other elements and shaped into wire-thin rods of fuel. As the program points out, 25 years ago the word plutonium could not be found in the dictionary, but tomorrow – through scientific research – the word plutonium will be as common as the words coal and oil are today.

186. The growth of a train of thought (1:00:05)

Date:
1964
Summary:
San Francisco longshoreman and author-philosopher Eric Hoffer began more than fifteen years ago to identify in his thought the nature of the “true believer,” the inspiration for his book on the subject. After writing the book, he turned his thoughts to the underdeveloped nations of the world, leading him to a consideration of the effects of change. Suddenly, Mr. Hoffer found himself thinking about juveniles; concluding that nations, as people, can be juvenile and that “true believers” are, in fact, perpetual juveniles – “true believers” such as General de Gaulle of France, Premier Khrushchev of Russia, and Premier Sukarno of Indonesia. His conclusion from all this is that each human being has one central preoccupation, - one train of thought- to which all of his thoughts are related.

187. The individual (34:21)

Date:
1964
Summary:
Examines the problem of the individual in a complex society. Analyzes how various aspects of American life satisfy man's need for self-identification. Assesses the impact of government planning on individual initiative and community identification and examines the problems of people living in urban renewal projects. Points out how the Polaroid Corporation deals with the suppression of individuality in industry and how a steel corporation treated an executive who expressed personal opinions.

188. The mysterious occident (1:00:07)

Date:
1964
Summary:
In this program, Mr. Hoffer explains why he believes it is the West and not the East that demonstrates mysterious and unnatural behavior in times of stress and change. His interest in the East and Middle East began in 1955 with the emergence of the new nations of Africa and the East. Their desire for self-rule, for modernization, was, and still is, being accompanied by terrorism, riots and violence. The west, on the other hand, finds that it does not have to resort to these tactics of violence because change has taken place in an orderly way. Mr. Hoffer’s conclusion is that this was the unnatural way… this was not normal human behavior. This orderliness and practical sense that keeps us going is due, he feels, to the rise of the autonomous individual who has the ability to make his own decisions and who must save his soul by his own efforts. This individual did not rise in the Eastern societies mainly because the secular and political powers were one in much the same manner as communism is today. In this way, a man’s religion and political faith were one, and therefore, there was never a conflict. In our society, these faiths are “fighting each other.” It is this struggle within Western man to reconcile these forces that has given rise to the autonomous individual capable of controlling his destiny in an orderly and practical manner. Mr. Hoffer then discusses this practical streak in the Westerner and the antagonism between the practical and the intellectual. Our society, unlike that of the Greeks, is dominated by the masses or the practical man, not by the intellectual as is the general belief. “Any society shaped and dominated by the intellectual,” Mr. Hoffer concludes, “Will not allow practical actions to be a gateway to man’s feeling of a sense of worth. Since our society is governed by practical considerations, it is dominated by the masses and not by the intellectuals.”

189. The new age (1:01:35)

Date:
1964
Summary:
Mr. Hoffer begins his discussion of “The New Age” by pointing out that it is generally, though falsely, referred to in America as the “Age of the Masses” (i.e. mass communications, mass consumption, mass production). He explains that it is no longer the masses who control the political and economic life of the country. In politics, it is the intellectual who is the general, the diplomat, the ruler. Economically, with the rise of automation, it is the intellectual with the machine who is replacing the many laborers and their hands. Mr. Hoffer then compares the intellectual of the past and present in this country. In the past, the intellectual of America, in much the same manner as today’s European, Asian and African intellectual, was a colonial and ruled with the attitude of a colonial. He demanded absolute obedience and power, and his interests were not so much with the needs of the masses as with the construction and initiation of imposing works and great ideas. In contrast to the “Old Colonialism” of America’s intellectual of the past, the “New colonialist” intellectual of America today rose from the masses and his interests lie with the needs and demands of the masses. Mr. Hoffer describes the “New Colonialist” intellectual as “the man in the business suit who looks like everyone else.” Economically, he is interested in wages, clothing and feeding the people. Politically, he wants not blind obedience but the enthusiastic approval and support of the masses for his projects and ideas. He concludes by stating his believe that the “Old Colonialism” of today’s European, Asian and African intellectual leaders should learn from the “New Colonialism” of America.

190. Walter Allen, Amos Tutuola, Ulli Beier (29:32)

Date:
1964
Summary:
Mr. Nkosi begins his survey of African writers in London where he talks to Walter Allen, English critic who has reviewed a number of African books for the British Press. Next the viewer is taken to Nigeria where he meets pioneer novelist Amos Tutuola whose The Palm-Wine Drinkard (correct spelling) was published in 1952 by the English company, Faber and Faber. Tutuola, a master story-teller in the true African oral idiom, talks of his past and of the story-telling of the old people in his village, storytelling which was the basis of his inspiration to write. After reading the opening passage from The Palm-Wine Drinkard, he says that what influenced his first novel was a book in the Youroba folklore tradition, thus dispelling the myth that behind his colloquial, often ungrammatical style lies a more sophisticated background. This program ends with a conversation between the host and Ulli Beier, German-born editor of the African Literary Magazine, Black Orpheus, published in Nigeria. Beier talks of coming to Nigeria in the early fifties when there was no such thing as Nigerian literature. In 1956 when he started his magazine he was forced to rely on translation from the already-established and popular French African writers. In this literary wasteland, Tutuola was the remarkable exception. But in the past few years there has been an explosion of interest in writing. In Nigeria, for example (partly through the encouragement of Mbari, a club where writers and artists meet, exhibit, publish, and discuss aesthetic standards) an enthusiastic group of writers is growing steadily. For whom do they write? Up to now, according to Beier, writers have been gearing to the European public because Europe is where, for the most part, they have been read and published. But the real challenge, he feels, will now be to create a real African audience

191. William Abraham (29:48)

Date:
1964
Summary:
Presents Nkosi and Soyinka in Accra interviewing Professor Abraham, philosopher and author of The Mind of Africa. Focuses in detail on the function of the writer in Africa.

193. Confronted (1:00:32)

Date:
1963
Summary:
Shows the confrontation of several Northern communities with the issue of Negro integration in schools, jobs, and housing. Shows Negroes demonstrating for jobs in construction work in Queens, a New York City borough. White reaction to the demonstration is recorded. There are scenes of a Negro demonstration intended to force the hiring of more members of that race by a St. Louis bank. In Chicago a barber vows he would go out of business if he were required by law to cut hair of Negroes; also in Chicago whites organize to oppose an "open occupancy" ordinance. Violence is recorded by the film at Folcroft, Pennsylvania, when a Negro family moves into a previously all-white housing area.

194. Man's Struggle for Uniqueness (30:18)

Date:
1963
Summary:
Reviews Eric Hoffer's views on man as a truly free being. Describes check of absolute power and struggle away from the animal in man as prerequisites to freedom. Reveals play as one of the best times for man to receive insight.

195. Profile of the Southern Moderate (59:45)

Date:
1963
Main contributors:
See Other Contributors
Summary:
Presents several Southerners who advocate viewpoints and actions which are at variance with extremists on both sides of the civil rights issue. Interviews Governor Carl E. Sanders of Georgia; R. E. McIver, a businessman of Conway, South Carolina: The Reverend James L. Hooten, minister of the First Christian Church, Savannah, Alabama; Beverly Briley, Mayor of Nashville, Tennessee; and Eleanor Sheppard (Mrs. Thomas E.), Mayor of Richmond, Virginia. Indicates that the differences of attitudes and approaches to civil rights presented provided insight into a range of viewpoints which would add sanity and stability to the South in the present period of crisis.

196. Role of the weak (29:29)

Date:
1963
Summary:
Reveals the intense feeling for the weak individual and the place in society which Eric Hoffer has achieved. Describes working as source of power for these people. Focuses on Hoffer's systematized mode of living with its inherent difficulties for the weak individual.

197. Sometimes harmonious, sometimes not (29:38)

Date:
1963
Summary:
Presents, in fable form, the philosophical question of free will versus determinism. The mannequins in a store window come to life and threaten the window dresser. Cartoon figures--symbolizing man--watch the action in the window and react in various but accepted ways.

198. The control revolution (29:04)

Date:
1963
Summary:
Explains how the development of the computer has made possible the automatic control of routine tasks in government, industry, and general business. Includes demonstrations of the use of computers by the Social Security Administration, by a medium-sized industrial plant, by a machine corporation, and at an oil refinery. Comments on the value of computers in administration and management.

199. The expressive society (29:22)

Date:
1963
Summary:
Focuses upon actress Ingrid Thulin and producer-director Ingmar Bergman. Shows Miss Thulin at home and at work as she comments upon the acting profession in Sweden. Presents background to the development of Bergman. Contains scenes from some of his work, including "Winter Light" in which Miss Thulin played the leading female part.

200. The Nature of Man (29:50)

Date:
1963
Summary:
Presents Eric Hoffer in an extended dialogue on man's weaknesses and how they relate to the total process of learning to become human. Describes human nature as highly unnatural in comparison with the simplicity of the physical sciences. Reviews man's struggle to survive by attempting the impossible and overcoming his weakness.