[1962 HOME MOVIE LAUNCHING OF M.M DANT, EDWARDS AFB AIR SHOW, NS SAVANNAH, LA COUNTY FAIR]

Year Published: 1962

Description: This silent color 1960’s home movie was filmed by an unknown American. It includes footage of an air show at Edwards AFB, and the launching the M.M. Dant at the NASSCO San Diego Shipyard, and the nuclear powered ship NS Savannah in California waters. The family also visits the Calico Ghost Town and Los Angeles’s 1962 County Fair. The film starts at Edwards AFB with images of a Douglas DC 6 (:07), pedestrians on the airstrip, a DC-4 (:26), vintage cars in the lot (:43) and unidentified fighter jets running past the San Gabriel Mountains (:46). Paratroopers drop to the ground (2:50-3:13). The Vought F-8 Crusader (3:26) and McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom (3:46) follow. Shot’s over the crowd highlight an early 1960’s style (4:17). F-4’s fly towards the camera (4:41). Another conducts mid-flight refueling (5:34). A series of Sikorsky H-34 helicopters touch down (6:29). The Convair Atlas Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles (6:57) were the first US made operational ICBMs. Pedestrians look over a grounded F-4 with an open cockpit (7:10). Footage transitions to the ship launching in San Diego (11:19). A NASSCO banner hangs over the stage (11:27). NASSCO; a division of General Dynamics, got it’s start around 1905. In the 1960’s, they were dealing with repairs and construction of US Navy ships most notably the USS Mars and the SS Cape Johnson. Ground views highlight the ship’s immense size (11:34). Shots pan down for the slipway and crowds below (11:45). Executives make addresses (11:51). The company was owned by a consortium consisting of Morrison-Knudsen, Henry J. Kaiser and F.E. Young. The M.M. Dant gets christened and pushes off from the slipway (11:55-12:49) and into the Port of San Diego. Personal scenes of a young girl and her father in the driveway interject (12:56). Footage from Calico Ghost Town Amusement Park in Buena Park shows peacocks (13:09), goats (13:18), a monkey (13:37), a railcar of the Ghost Town & Calico Railroad (14:11) and locals wandering the western themed park (14:28-14:37). Female candy shop workers prepare almond nougat (14:59-15:21). A mother holds her young daughter up for the camera (15:28-16:23). The SkyRide (17:06) carts guests over Broadway Street for a bird’s eye view of the 1962 LA County Fair. The fair began in October of 1922. Guests enjoy horse racing, agricultural contests and amusement attractions. By the 1960’s the popular California event had secured it’s foothold as one of the US’s largest county fairs. The Convair F-106 Delta Dart (17:11) and LGM-30G Minuteman III ICBM (17:21) appear. Other fair footage include a monkey playing with children (17:46), crowds pushing through the fairground midway (18:35) and the iconic ‘Hot Dog on a Stick’ vendor (18:33). The young daughter plays with a rocking horse in the yard (18:50). A lengthy section features the film maker filming the 1962 Rose Parade on the television with their personal film camera (19:52) until the NS Savannah appears in California waters (24:44-25:26). In the 1960’s it was working as a traveling demonstration ship for the “Atoms for Peace” project. It concludes as tugboats perform a ceremonial water salute (26:28-27:12). The break-bulk vessel Cape Johnson, originally named M.M. Dant and later Mormacsaga, was constructed for States Steamship Company (commonly known as States Lines) by the National Steel and Shipbuilding Company (NASSCO) in San Diego, California in November 1962. It was the fifth of six sister ships; Newport News Shipbuilding and Drydock Company in Newport News, Virginia built the first four. M.M. Dant and its sister ship C.E. Dant were named for members of the Dant family of San Francisco who owned States Lines. M. M. Dant began service for States Lines in 1963.

Online Copy: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HvJgXpiI0kA

Metadata Source:YouTube