In this newsreel from 1956, the great newsreader Ed Herlihy describes the futuristic glass elevator recently installed in the El Cortez Hotel in San Diego, California. Believe it or not, this will be the future ... of soon-to-be developed tract buildings everywhere. See more at: http://www.weirdovideo.com

We Work Again is a US government civic-minded film aimed specifically at the unemployed African American population in the wake of the Great Depression. Produced by the Work Projects Administration, the largest New Deal agency, We Work Again works to illustrate how black citizens would not be left out of the FDR's relief plan. We Work Again incl...

With the coming of Oktoberfest, (and in response to the above mentioned film As We Like It), let us reminisce of beer celebrations held nightly during the 1950's and '60's in the Teutonic hamlet of Hamburg. A phenomena that grew from a chronically disaffected population of post-war Germany, you may never see so many irretrievably plastered people ...

Before the History Channel produced such hard-hitting documentaries about the History of Cheese or the Story of French Fries, trade groups had to rely on themselves if they wanted to promote their industry. Hence came the short As We Like It, an educational/propaganda/lobbying film that revolves around one of the world's greatest pastimes, Beer, p...

This short travel promotional film Around the World in New York was produced in the early 1960's. In Around the World in New York, the City becomes more than Manhattan but a world of various cultures and traditions. Our tour begins in the Lower East Side in the street markets near the Puerto Rican barrios. Although baseball is the sport of choic...

A short World War II propaganda documentary examining the uses of hands, and how the united hands of America and her Allies will defeat the Axis. See more at: http://www.weirdovideo.com

During the Depression, lack of money and technology did not stop folks from making great music. Take this duo who put on a porch concert with a ukulele, washboard & kazoo. A teapot becomes a horn, a wooden tube creates an added acoustic element while the infectious rhythm keeps it swingy.

An animated, idealized illustration of how the stock market works, produced lovingly by the New York Stock Exchange in 1952. See more at: http://www.weirdovideo.com

In Memoriam: Coney Island, USA (1952) See more at: http://www.weirdovideo.com

Red Chinese Battle Plan 1964 - Cold War Propaganda

Olympics in Tokyo - 1964 A short newsreel recounting the Olympics held in China's uneasy neighbor Japan. Forty-four years ago, notice the absence of corporate sponsorship and the lack of steroid enhanced wins. See more at: http://www.weirdovideo.com

Moonlight Cocktails - 1942

Sure, Kobe Beef is considered some of the most delectable, succulent meat in the world. But have you ever wondered how it got that way? In this clip, we have an actual demonstration. Some might think it cruelty to animals, others might think they were being treated too well. See more at: www.weirdovideo.com

In this clip multi-instrumentalists and all-around talents Cliff Crofford & Billy Mize perform rollicking, stomping rendition of Waterloo. From 1959, this number is another prime example of the world famous Bakersfield Sound. See more at: http://www.weirdovideo.com

A fascinating look at the nation of Iran before the 1979 revolution. This film is not merely a survey of Persian history, but examines a civilization undergoing a transition into 20th century modernity. Although made nearly sixty years ago, this short film portends the inevitable tension the Iran would be the center of due to its natural resources...

In this vintage promotional film produced by the Jewish women's group Hadassah, viewers are reminded of the need to develop a skilled workforce in the young state of Israel. Interesting footage of early kibbutzim and Israeli industry are highlighted in this film, with a stress on modernizing the economy and culture, the stress is on becoming an equ...

Olvera Street - Street of Memory ca. 1937

A declassified vice squad training film, Subject: Narcotics, produced in the 1950's, takes an unflinching look at the lifestyle of heroin users during. Made in the pre-rock & roll era, the junkie flophouse depicted here resembles a scenario more out of beatnik novel than the more glamorous goth-punk facade we've become accustomed to today. See m...

Dim Lights, Thick Smoke (and live, live music) performed by Joe Maphis & wife Rose Lee, LIVE in 1959. Maphis. known for the flatpicking style he developed in the 1930's, sings magnificent harmony with wife Rose in this 1950's crowd-pleaser. See more at: http://www.weirdovideo.com

A trailer for a nudie film that masquerades as an anti-'marihuana' morality tale. Watch wild & reckless youths lose their souls to the devil's weed. See more vintage films at: http://www.weirdovideo.com

Damascus to Jerusalem - 1936

Educational film to teach viewers about the dynamics of propaganda, made in the in the late 1940's or early 1950's. A teacher dissects the processes in which propaganda works to an eager student. In it are moments of classic hokum, but curiously it all rings true today. Beware of Propaganda. See more at: http://www.weirdovideo.com

A brutal documentary account detailing the infamous Sao Paolo high rise fire of February 1, 1974. With strange 1970's era electronic music soundtrack, shocking photojournalistic footage, iconic animation, and a deadpan narration, the film deconstructs the deadly conflagration and what went wrong.

Occassionally, people do get the future right, as they seem to have done in this film, Century 21 Calling, made more than 45 years ago to promote Bell Labs at the 1962 Seattle World's Fair. Call-waiting, call-forwarding, pagers, auto-dialing, news & weather info retrieval, central computer databases that log all of your private information (so tha...

Virginia native Zanddervon Beliah Lamb, renamed Bela Lam by Okeh Records, performs the song Poor Little Benny with wife Rose Meadows. With Bela's brother-in-law Paul and son Alva, they became local favorites near the Blue Ridge Mountain region in the 1920's, eventually being called to New York City to record six songs. Influenced by the local r...

Have you ever wondered what makes some cities better than others? In public access television pioneer George C. Stoney's 'How to Live in a City,' the argument is that it all depends on the quality of the public space. New York City folk singer and architectural critic Eugene Ruskin guides us through unique locales which illustrate the fine line b...

Hawaiian Hula Song, a classic. A seductive beauty does the hula while a duo play on guitar and slide. During the last third of the song, the rhythm picks up, becoming swingy. Where Hawaiian traditional and American Jazz meet, practically western swing. See more at: http://www.weirdovideo.com

This tremendous educational documentary from the mid-1970's examines the priceless contributions of African-Americans to musical heritage, so closely tied to their unique history in the United States. From Africa upon slave ships captive immigrants brought with them melodies, cadences and rhythms that inarguably gave rise to music considered 'moder...

Now, Louis Jordan is going to school you on the difference between now and then, between yesterday and today, between the modern and the antiquated. Even back in the 1940's, this ingenious musician, lyricist and performer, Louis Jordan, had it right. To this day, no one still could disagree — Today You Gotta have a Beat! "People today is...

Just because you're snowed-in here-and-now doesn't mean you wouldn't have been in similar circumstances there-and-then. I n this case, the passenger train "City of San Francisco" has been stranded in over ten feet of snow after a blizzard within the legendary Donner Pass. The travelers survived this journey, unlike their fabled predecessors, t...

After all, "The way to a man's heart is through his coffee." By the way, does anyone know when movie week is? See more at: www.weridovideo.com

This is a story of a holiday and home. Helping make ready a celebration is part of the fun. Especially for one of the nicest days of the year - Thanksgiving. There is happiness in the air, and the smell of turkey. Mmmmm, that does look good. Thanksgiving is a day for the best of everything. And friends invited to dinner. We remember the pilgrims ha...

Bob Wills shows his master showmanship as both bandleader and musician in this short known as Fiddlin' Man. Backing the king of western swing, the gum-chewing pianist, the expressionless guitarist, and the giddy drummer make playing with Wills look easy. See more at: http://www.weirdovideo.com

From murky underwater caverns ooze monstrous aqua-beasts! Hungering for human victims! "Attack of the Giant Leeches." Then, out of the swamp's depths, again appears horrifying, mysterious creatures thirsting for lovers' blood. What are these giant mutations whose attack on people sends the whole countryside on an endless search? And then, brin...

Gordon Terry performs his hit song 'It Ain't Right' live, backed by the great Billy Mize and the equally talented Cliff Crofford. Another clip documenting the birth of authentic rockabilly. See more at: http://www.weirdovideo.com

If you were taking a sea cruise from the Eastern Seaboard to the West Coast via the Panama Canal, this might be the film you'd see before disembarking in San Diego, Los Angeles, or San Francisco. An exquisite travel film documenting the magnificent landscape and locales of pre-WWII California, this film showcases classic old school California, fro...

Pre-dating both Marty & Elaine and Millie Jackson, Martha Davis wears the pants in this relationship. Influenced by the great Fats Waller, she and her husband, bassist Calvin Ponder, who would later play with Earl Hines, performed in nightclubs across Chicago. See more at: http://www.weirdovideo.com

In this anti-fascist film produced by US Military in the wake of WWII, the producers deconstructs the politically motivated social engineering of Germany by the Nazi regime. Its argument is just as timely and relevant today. See more at: http://www.weirdovideo.com

Though it's now Fall, Summer is just a click away with our next featurette, Lady Life Guards, produced during the 1930's. See more at: http://www.weirdovideo.com

Say you're a native from a colony of the visiting the utopian Capitol of the Empire. How can you travel from one institution to another in a polite, efficient and civilized manner? Why, a journey on a London bus is the answer, of course. Produced by the British Colonial Unit's propaganda arm, this piece high-lights why London's traffic is some of t...

This is a humorous gag trailer with a for a movie that never existed, Bug-O-Rama ... "Your skin will crawl, your flesh will creep, after you've seen our Bug-O-Rama. It's the show to recommend to your enemies. The unbearable terror may drive them MAD, MAD, MAD, MAD. A licensed exterminator will be on duty at all performances. But just in case, brin...

Ozark Jubilee Boys perform "Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On" live in this country tinged version of Big Joe Turner's rhythm & blues hit. Witness rockabilly in the making as this young western swing band goes rock & roll. See more films at: http://www.weirdovideo.com