AV Geeks 16mm Lunch 3-7-2025

a rollup screen has been placed where it can conveniently be pulled down when required. Black curtains have been provided to darken the room when the picture is run. The sound speaker is placed on a pedestal built to bring it as close to the center of the screen as possible and above the heads of the audience. Hello everybody. This is Skip Alzheimer. Welcome to the AV Geeks Lunchtime streaming show where we tried something new. I love making this streaming show more and more difficult every time. And so this is what we did is uh this is a lomography um film scanner. And you see there's a film strip in there. And there is a camera or actually cell phone. My cell phone is there. And um it has little viewpoint there. And I'll pop this. And then you can see that this goes. And there's a little knob. So I can do film strips on the fly now. Um, that's great. Uh, so, uh, I had a one of these that I got a long time ago because I did a, uh, um, a talk at AMIA, Association of Moving Image Archists, and said, "Here's a $40 2K scanner." And, uh, that was the title of the presentation. And people went nuts. They got very excited. And so, the place was packed out. And I was like, "Yes, you can make imagery off of the films, but it's you having to hit save, save, save, save, and then you have to compile it, then you have to sync it up. Um, it's not worth it." So, that was ultimately um trying to head off all these people who all these folks who were like, "Oh, I made I finally made a film scanner." And I'm like, man, film scanners are so easy to make. It's video. Video is hard. So that's I was like, stop reinventing the wheel. There's already film scanners. Anyhow, um we normally watch 35 or 16 millimeter films, and these are 35. So it's 35 across. Um, and here's one uh to watch when the day when nothing feels like it makes sense. This is a Centron film. Enjoy. [Music] What do you think, Mike? I think it'd be great. Can't you just see it? A fivemile bike trail right along the river. It really would be great. Anyway, we're starting a campaign to get people interested in clearing a trail. Want to help? Sure. it. But what can I do? What can Mike do? Have Mike write to the newspapers. Explain all the good things about having a bike trail along the river. Me right? Yeah, that's how you get things done. Well, I'll write if I could write whatever I feel like. But put it in some kind of sensible order. What do you call order? Well, one kind of order. Whatever you should write should have a beginning, middle, and ending. Beginning, middle, ending. Oh, come on. We're not in school now. I'll just write whatever I feel like. This is important, Mike. You have to make things clear. Clear? Oh, come on. Well, write it your own way. I will. It'll be nothing short of a masterpiece. Mhm. Okay. Thank you very much. I don't know whether this is a joke or not. It's a letter to the editor from a Mike Johnson, and it has something to do with the river and a bicycle. Maybe he lost his bicycle in the river. Let him advertise in lost and found. I hope the ad is clearer than the letter. They didn't print it. You see, I wrote it, but they didn't use it. If it's a good idea, they don't use it. Well, the idea is not very clear, Mike. It's clear enough. If you don't follow some logical order, nothing makes sense. Oh, who needs logical order? Oh, don't be defensive. I'm not defensive. I'm just saying who needs logical order. What was that? Well, I didn't hear anything. See you tomorrow. Yeah. [Music] Breakfast. Mike. [Music] There's something wrong with the TV today. It's not working. Mom. Mom, these eggs are raw. Eat them up, honey. Eggs are expensive. But they haven't been cooked yet. Go ahead and eat them. I'll cook them later. How can you cook them later? You see, Mom, the wos. First you cook them and then I eat them. It's that simple. If you don't want eggs, have cereal. I don't care. But there isn't any cereal. I know. I'm going to get some later. But then I can't have cereal now, can I? Mike, are you getting to be one of those fussy eaters? Mom, what's gotten into you today? I'm going out. [Music] Come on, let's have a game. Shoot it here. Anytime you're ready. Okay, I've got 10 points. You have nothing. Well, we haven't even begun yet. He says he has 10 points. That's right. He has. But we haven't even started yet. This is the last shot of the game. I win. Good game. Good game. But there wasn't any game. He wins. He did not. How can the game end at the beginning? That doesn't make any sense. What's going on with everybody today? You know, I've never seen this game before. Oh, they don't play ball in your country, eh? I'll try and explain the game to you. See, the batter, he tries to hit the ball. Okay. Now, if he takes three strikes, he's out. Okay. The pitcher, he throws the ball and the outfielders, they try and catch it on the fly. Now, the other team, Excuse me, umpire, but but the way you told her, she might think that the pitcher throws the ball to the outfielders. Yes, but that's wrong. You see? All right, play ball [Music] down the middle. Home run. Home run. What? He can't score. Why not? Everybody scores on a home run. But there can't be any home run. I haven't thrown the ball yet. We'll throw it. Well, how can I throw it when he's already scored? He can't hit it before I throw it. He Oh, what's the use? Bad day. Terrible. Want to play batgon? I don't know how. I'll show you. You like chess? I don't know. I've never tried. Well, I'll show you that, too. Not both at once. Okay. One at a time. Chess first. Now, let me guess. You've won already, right? The game's over and you've won. What are you talking about? We haven't started yet. Oh, never mind. All right. Every piece has to move in a certain way. The king can only move one square at a time. There's a piece from the back gammon game. You see, you've got some of the chess pieces in the back gammon game. It's all right. I have everything I need to explain, but I can explain two things, you know. Yes, but first you have to put the things together that belong together and then explain them in a logical order. How do I do that? Like I said, before you begin, you put the things together that belong together. The back gam pieces belong together with this board. The chest pieces all look different. They belong together over here. It looks neater. That's how you organize before you begin. You put the pieces together that belong together and then explain them in a logical order. Now, this one first. Now, go from a beginning to middle to end. Understand? Mhm. Hey, look how you set those pieces. Your king is checkmated. What does that mean? I won. Okay, I agree. I don't like it when things don't follow any logical order, and I can't expect anyone else to. This time, I'm going to clobber them, but with finesse. I'll work it out all on scrap paper first, but keep my mistakes to myself. points I want to make about a bike trail. Let's see. Well, it's scenic along the river, and the area along here is not used. Bike trail wouldn't interfere with anything. It's mostly just a weed clearing job, not expensive. It's healthy exercise, safer than bicycling on the street. There's an old unused road here already. Well, let's see. And I've got six good points. Now I need to put them in order. One, scenic area. And two, unused area go together. A clearing job. No. No. First I should say three, there's already an old road there. So So four, it's mostly just a job of clearing weeds in a few places. Five, it's safer place to ride bikes than on the streets. And safety and health go together. So six, the last big point will be healthy exercise. Well, I'll need a short ending that clinches it. Anyway, I've got the main part, the middle, organized, and I've got to think of a beginning, an opening that's interesting and gets the reader right into the subject. Hey, Mom. Yeah. I've just discovered something. What's that? I have a form here so that I could write any theme, explanation, or speech. Well, they'd all have to be different, wouldn't they? Well, different subjects, sure, but but I could use the same form every time. Look, I gather my information and then I put the points together that belong together. Arrange them in a logical order and then I write a beginning or introduction to the subject. Go through a points I have for a middle and write a short clinch at the end. It works. Excuse me. I just thought of a [Music] beginning trail along the river. Did you read Mike's letter? Sounds like a lot of fun. Would be a lot safer. Hey, read this. We ought to consider it, mayor. Your presentation is next on the agenda. How soon will it be? In a couple of minutes. Thank you. I can't believe we got this far so soon. The city's actually going to listen to us. Do you remember what you're going to say? Sure. No, I don't. Now, just follow my outline. And it goes from step to step in a logical order. That's how Mike got us here. I got an idea. Why don't you do the talking for us? Me? No, I'm the writer. All right, you can come in now. [Music] I like it's kind of a grammar Twilight [Laughter] Zone. It's uh it's pretty great. Uh I have not seen that before, but it it definitely resonates with me. um mostly because it's from the 70s. Um and so somebody mentioned in the comments the making of a list is uh is a cornet thing, not a Centron thing, but there was a period where uh Coret own Centron. So there you go. They come by it honestly. Uh calendar is it as confusing to you as it is to me? Maybe this cartoon will explain it to us. Enjoy. Ow. Ow. Here are Robert and Kathy and their uncle Frank. They all have lots of days to remember. Birthdays, holidays, special days, and like everyone else, they use the calendar to help them do that. Except Uncle Frank, that is. Uncle Frank hardly ever uses the calendar. He just uses his memory. Or at least he tries to. Uh, let's see. September 3rd. That's uh 3 weeks before no uh 6 days after due. Of course, that gets him into a lot of trouble. He never seems to know when special days are coming up like people who use calendars do. Of course, this isn't the only calendar Robert and Kathy could use. Calendars come in lots of shapes and sizes. big ones, little ones, calendars all on one sheet, calendars with separate pages, calendars in date books and on desks and wall calendars. But they are all alike in an important way. They all help us keep track of time, and that's what Robert and Cathy's calendar helps them do. One day, they were out in the yard with Frank when Kathy remembered something. Robert, isn't Uncle Frank's birthday pretty soon? Birthday? They thought it wasn't very far off, so they went into the house to look at their calendar. My [Music] birthday. Robert and Cathy's calendar has one page for each month of the year. How many months are there? 12. Each one has a name, and they have a certain order. The year starts with January. We'll explain what those orange boxes are later. The next month is do you know February. If you can say the rest then come March, April, May, June, July, August, September, October, November and the last month is December. My birthday is in November. [Music] Every space with a number in it means another day. Since this is October, these spaces stand for the days in that month. Robert and Kathy knew Uncle Frank's birthday was on November 3rd and that today's date was October 24th. They knew that because that was the date on today's newspaper. So to find out how many days there were until Frank's birthday, they needed to start on October 24th and count spaces to November 3rd. This is October 24th. That's what this 24 means, the 24th day of October. So Robert and Kathy started counting spaces from here. We can count with them. 1 2 3 then go down to the next row and keep on counting. 4 5 6 7 They found that there were seven days from here to the last day of October. Then they turned the page to the next month, November, and kept counting. Remember, we're on seven. Now 8 9 10. That's it. November 3rd, Uncle Frank's birthday. There were 10 days from October 24th to November 3rd. So, Robert and Kathy knew that there were 10 days until Uncle Frank's birthday. They decided that now would be a good time to go get him a present. Now, a calendar can tell us many things, not just how many days there are to a special day. It also tells us the names of the days. A calendar can do this because of the way it's made. Imagine the numbers weren't written in for the days of this month. This is how they would get put in. Every day of the month has a number. A month starts with number one. That's the first day of the month. This month is October. So this is October 1st or the 1st of October or October 1. There are different ways you can say it. The next day is number two, the second day of the month, October 2nd. And the third is number three, the third day of the month. and then the fourth and fifth and sixth and so on until the end of October which is 31 or October 31st. The last number always tells us how many days there are in a month. So anyone looking at this page knows that October has 31 days. Up here are the names of the days of the week, one at the top of each column. Seven columns and seven days. The first column is headed sun, which stands for Sunday. If we put in the whole word Sunday on this calendar, it would be too big for the box. It would stick out on the sides. So, we just shorten the word to sun. S U N is an abbreviation for Sunday. We can use abbreviations for the other days of the week, too. The day after Sunday is Monday, abbreviated M O N. You can say the rest of the days if you like. Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. That's seven days, Sunday to Saturday, or one week. On a calendar, any row of seven days all the way across is one week. This is one week, for instance. And so this seven days, one after the other make a week, too. So this is a week and this is a week. All of the days in each column come on the day of the week that's printed at the top of the column. For instance, all of these days are Tuesdays and all of these days are Wednesdays and all of these are Fridays. Now Robert and Kathy wondered what day of the week Uncle Frank's birthday was on. First they found the right date, November 3rd. Then they looked at the top of the column November 3rd was in. And what did it say? Saturday. So they knew Uncle Frank's birthday was going to be on a Saturday. That's a good day for a party. No school. And most people don't work then either. So Robert and Kathy decided to have a surprise party for Uncle Frank. A few days later, Robert and Kathy were seeing how many days were still left before Frank's birthday when Robert noticed something that we've noticed before. That one of the days was colored differently from the others. Kathy knew what that meant. It meant it was a holiday. Robert knew that that wasn't the only holiday, so he looked for some others in some other months. He found many of them. The first day in January is a holiday, New Year's Day. And in February, there's Valentine's Day. All over the world, people use the calendar to keep track of days that are special in their countries. The 4th of July, for instance, is Independence Day only in the United States. The 14th of July is Bastile Day, a special day for people in France. The second Monday in October is Thanksgiving Day in Canada. So, the days of October passed. Robert was especially happy when October 31st came because that was one of his favorite holidays, Halloween. [Music] Another thing the calendar is good for is to keep track of other kinds of special days like the day library books are due so you won't forget to return them or the day when you are going to see a [Applause] play or the day you visit your grandparents. Well, Halloween was the last day of October the 31st. The next day, Robert turned the page to November. It began on a Thursday. He expected November to begin on a Monday like October did, but it didn't. This is why it didn't. The last day of October, the 31st, came on a Wednesday. So, the next day, November 1st, was a Thursday, the next day of the week. A month can begin on any day of the week. Robert also knows this made him curious. So he looked at the other months. He saw that some had 30 days, some had 31, and one had only 28. Cathy knew a rhyme to help remember all this. 30 days have September, April, June, and November. All the rest have 31, except February, which has 28, and leap year gives it an extra date. Then Kathy showed Robert another way to remember the number of days in each month. You can use your knuckles. You start here. The high places stand for the months with 31 days. The places between them, the low places, stand for the shorter months. January, this is a high place. So, January has 31 days. February, this is a low place. Usually only 28 days. March 31 days. April, a low place, 30 days. May 31 days. June 30 days. July 31 days. Then start again. August 31 days. September 30 days. October 31 days. November 30 days. And December 31 days. November made Robert think of something. He thought he should probably lock the closet in order to keep Uncle Frank's birthday present safe. So, he went to do that. [Music] So, as Robert and Kathy know, the calendar does many things. It tells us the months in order and the number of days in each month. It can help us find the number of days between two dates. It tells us the names of the days of the week and helps us remember holidays and special days. In all of these ways, the calendar helps us keep track of time. Well, time kept passing. The days kept going by and it was getting closer and closer to Uncle Frank's birthday. Finally, November 3rd arrived, and Uncle Frank found out what he was getting for his birthday. A pair of roller skates and a calendar. [Music] Oh, I had a uh leader lady at the end. Uh or a lad lady. Uh Kodak lad. Lad. I can't remember what it stands for. It's some sort of um process that uh Kodak made when it came to processing motion picture film and that was a test thing so that you could uh someone who's processing the film would know like oh it's a little too orange or it's a little too uh whatever. And this is before the film actually would fade. Um, so, uh, in general we call them leader ladies or leader leader lads. Um, but that was a lad lady. All right. Um, we're going to go back in time a little bit. Uh, and this film is another cornet film because I don't know if you knew this, but we're scanning a bunch of cornet films. Um, we have done probably close to 5,000 so far and we we just keep going uh because we have 9,000 cans of film that we are actively scanning uh from the uh cornet collection. A lot of that is uh outtakes and things like that. But this film is I I found the raw footage of this and I was like what is going on? So I'm very excited to actually find the film edited and with a soundtrack. It makes sense, but just barely. It's basic court procedures. And uh you know, I'm happy I collect films because otherwise I'd be collecting diuramas. Uh and this one has an amazing diarama. So enjoy [Music] Look, Jeff, be reasonable. All the evidence indicates that Lefty James did hold up the bank. But it's an open andsh shut case. That's not the way I see it. All the evidence is circumstantial. There's not a shred of direct evidence. You don't think that alibi would hold water? Why not a jury in the country? Agree. I just saw Andrew's car pull in the drive. But the play isn't finished. Well, I know it's written up to where the jury files back into the jury box. But we can't agree on a verdict. Well, isn't Andrew coming here to check your play? Yes. He's been practicing law for 15 years. Why not let him decide your case? It's a deal. Fair enough. Come in, Andrew. Hello, Virginia. It's a good thing Jeff has his eyes set on a legal profession or I'd never get to see my favorite brother. Hi, Uncle Andrew. Hello, Jeff. You know my friend Hal Fleming. Of course I do. Hello, Hal. Hal's been working with me on this play we're writing for school. Oh, and is this a model of your set? That's right. It's supposed to be Excuse me, but is it all right with you men if I stay around? Of course, Mom. Yes, indeed. You never know when you'll find yourself in court. Why, Andrew? You don't think I'll turn criminal, do you? Our courts do a great deal more than punish criminals. Suppose, Virginia, you were run over by an automobile and required expensive treatment. You might have to go to court to recover your damages. Suppose Jeff did some work for a man who then refused to pay. I'd sue him for breach of contract. Right. And suppose Hal were falsely accused of advocating the overthrow of the government, the courts would protect him from false imprisonment. But if he were guilty, the courts would punish him. I didn't say anything. Purely a hypothetical case. But seriously, it's because our court serves so many different purposes that we have so many different courts. And the court in our play is a criminal court, part of a state circuit court, known in some states as the state district court. As the play opens, the judge is sitting on his bench and the jury has been selected and sworn in. I'm playing the defense council here at the council table beside the defendant, the man who's being tried. I'm playing the prosecutor, the state attorney. Then we have the baiff, the court clerk, the court reporters who take down all the testimony in shortorthhand. Then the various witnesses take the witness stand when they are called. All right. We start our pled with the opening statements of the attorneys. As prosecutor, I'm first. I I tell the jury what I intend to prove and give a general account of the fact that I will present an evidence. But I tell how the defense will disprove the state's case and show the defendant to be innocent. We both lay it on heavy. Then as prosecutor, I call up my first witness. That's right. The witness takes the stand and is sworn in. Once he is sworn in, he must speak the whole truth and nothing but the truth. On this subject, our laws are very strict. For it is only by the administration of true justice that we can preserve our individual rights and live together in a decent society. Now, Mr. Prosecutor, I call as the first witness a teller of the city bank. Under my direct examination, he testifies that on the morning in question at about 11:00, a mask man entered the bank and at the point of a gun forced him to hand over $30,000. I cross-examined the teller to bring out that he cannot identify my client as the robber. Then I call several other witnesses, people who were at the bank at the time it was held up. They testify that the robbers's height and other physical features were like the defendants. This is all direct evidence. You witnesses directly saw and heard the crime committed. That's right. And then I introduce an evidence. This what is it? A truck driver's badge that we proved beyond question belonged to Lefty James. But what about it? One of my witnesses found this badge on the floor of the bank immediately after the hold up. But does that prove Lefty held up the bank? Of course it doesn't. It's only circumstantial evidence. That's right, Jeff. This badge only tends to indicate some particular action or circumstance. That's why it's called circumstantial evidence. But of course, circumstantial evidence is admissible in a trial. Well, is that all the evidence you have against this Lefty James? Oh, no. Next, I put on the witness stand Lefty's next door neighbor, and he testifies. I was late getting home that night, but me wife tells me there's been some going on over in Lefty's High. Might be me. She says that Lefty James is up to no good. I object, your honor. I object to hearsay testimony and ask that it be stricken from the record and the jury instructed to disregard it. Objection sustained. The jury will disregard any testimony as to what someone else told the witness. Good. That's the way we wrote it. Now, what's this all about? Well, it's the duty of the judge to see that the trial is conducted properly and fairly, and to decide all legal questions. Evidence of this sort, what somebody thinks or merely heard about, is not admissible in a trial. And when I ask the witness whether he'd ever seen Lefty James wearing a dark brown suit, I object again to a leading question. What does your judge rule this time? He overrules my objection. And so I take exception. Isn't that one way to lay the ground for an appeal? Yes, it is. For all this legal talk, it seems to me you boys are giving the case mostly against Lefty James. That's because the prosecution presents its witnesses first. Then, as defense council, I step in. Isn't this the time to move for a directed verdict? You could. Directed verdict? Doesn't that mean the judge directs the jury what verdict to bring in? That's right. You see, I could claim that the state has not made out a case which would legally support a conviction, but courts are very reluctant to grant such motions. Let's assume, Jeff, that you are overruled and take the usual exception. Then, does your defendant take the stand? Yes, he does. I know an accused man doesn't have to testify in his trial, but on the stand, my client testifies that first, he was in the bank that morning on business 1 hour and a half before the robbery took place. Second, he left town immediately in his truck and drove to Canfield. Third, he was in Canfield 1 hour after the robbery was committed. And you can't make that 60-mi run in a low-speed truck in 1 hour. and I produce other witnesses to prove he was in Canfield. But my cross-examination turns a hole in the alibi. There was plenty of time for Lefty to drive the truck out of town and turn it over to an accomplice who would drive it on to Canfield. While Lefty slipped back into town in an automobile, then Lefty could pick up the bank, drive the car to Canfield in an hour, get back in his truck, and be there to establish his alibi. But lefty says the truck had a breakdown. And then I put on the witness stand the owner of a garage who testifies that the truck did stop there for repairs. Yes, the truck. But he can't make positive identification of Lefty. That's because Lefty was under the truck trying to fix it and his face was all muddy and greasy. But the witness says that sure looks like the driver. And that driver was in the garage 30 miles out of town at the time the holdup was staged. Well, that ought to convince your jury. Well, maybe so. But then comes my time to cross-examine the defendant's witness, and I asked, "Uh, when you finished working on this truck, did the driver sign a service ticket?" Uh, yeah, they always do. Uh, did you see him sign? Sure. I I gave him the ticket and and he signed it. Now think carefully. Did he sign with his right hand or with his left hand? He uh he signed with his with his left hand. How do you know? Because he he started to write with his right hand, then seemed to change his mind, and then he signed it with his left hand. H. Now, would you say this man, this truck driver, was naturally a right-handed person and was only trying to act as though he were left-handed? Your honor, I object. That's a leading question. Moreover, this witness is not a handwriting expert. Overruled. Then I do introduce a handwriting expert who testifies that the signature on the service ticket was not in his opinion written by a naturally left-handed person. And remember, our defendant was generally known as Lefty James. Then our expert testifies that he compared the writing on the service ticket with specimens of Lefty's genuine handwriting and that it was not his handwriting. Well, you certainly make it sound possible that this Lefty James was the robber. But possible isn't enough. That's what I bring out in my closing argument after the prosecutor has made his. As prosecutor, I review all the evidence tending to show that Lefty James did rob the bank. And then, in the name of the people of the state, I ask that the jury return the verdict of guilty. As defense council, I summarize my case, point out all the weaknesses in the state's case, and then I remind the jury, a man is presumed to be innocent until he's proved guilty. Prove beyond a reasonable doubt. Then I briefly rebut what defense council says, and I again suggest to the jury that the state's evidence warrants a guilty verdict. And now the judge charges the jury. What's that? The judge explains the law as it applies to the case and tells the jurors what verdicts are possible under the law. The 12 jurors then retire to the jury room to discuss the case and vote upon it until they reach a decision or verdict. In a criminal case such as yours, the verdict must be unanimous. Finally, the jury files back and the foreman announces the verdict. That's the way we have it. And what is the verdict? Well, we don't know. We want you to decide. Now hold on. You've sort of used me as judge. The judge only pronounces a judgment. It's up to the jury to decide the guilt or innocence of the defendant. Virginia, if you were on the jury, what would your verdict be? Why, I don't know. I We really haven't heard the full case, but I think I'd vote guilty. Why, mother? How can you say that? Just because some garage mechanic says, "Now, Jeff, you can't argue with the verdict of a jury, but you can appeal that verdict." Of course, I could carry the case to the court of appeals or maybe even up to the state supreme court. That's right. And in the appellet court, a group of judges review the entire proceedings as recorded by the court reporters and determine whether the defendant has been given a full and fair trial. Well, if the verdict were innocent, could the prosecutor appeal? No. In a criminal case, only the defense may file an appeal. In a civil case, either party may appeal. Well, then our play should end with me as defense council asking for an appeal. Yes. And that's a good way to end it because it shows that while our courts serve to punish the guilty, they also safeguard individual rights and liberties. By offering fair and open trial to all men, our courts fight to preserve democracy. That play is not going to be very good. I can already tell you. I already have a sense in my head. Uh, all right. Um, we're going to go back to showing you some US propaganda from the 50s. And, uh, this was by the United States information agency. At least it was distributed by them. I It might have been, uh, made by Path. So hopefully they won't get mad and try to claim it. Uh this is called Community Chest. And Community Chest is uh besides it being uh a stack of cards and Monopoly, Community Chest was what became United Way. And it was a place where people would donate and help out their community. Um either people who had succumbed to through disaster or uh you know, civic programs. Um, you know, it's a wonderful, wonderful sentiment. Um, and United Way kind of took it over, but uh, I'd love to see it kind of come back again. All right, here's uh, Community Chest. Enjoy. It was a beautiful spring day on the campus of Columbia University. Kind of day when it's hard to go inside. But I hurried along. I didn't want to be late for one of my classes in social studies. Some days before, our professor had given us a list of possible subjects for our term papers. Today, we were to report on the subjects we had chosen. Each of us was to make a firsthand study of social conditions in a specific community firsthand because, as our professor had expressed it, life itself is the best textbook. [Music] When my turn came, I told the class the subject I'd selected, how social welfare problems are handled in a nearby community called Yoners, New York. The professor suggested that in my research at Yoners, I might get help from the city's community [Music] chest. Then he wished me an interesting trip. [Music] Yonkers wasn't very far from the university, but it was a change of scene. And at first, I looked around like any curious stranger. Then I remembered that I'd have to look much more carefully in terms of the city's social conditions. Before I began, I checked in at the local YMCA for an overnight stay. [Music] Then I was ready to start. First, what were the economic resources of the city? I started out to survey the industrial areas. [Music] Yonkers look like a semi-industrial city where large factories provide much of the basic employment. The largest factory in town builds elevators. [Music] Another big plant makes carpets and still another manufactures sugar syrup. [Music] These factories employ thousands of men and women workers. The wages these people earn help to support the grocerers, the clothing and shoe stores, the restaurants and other businesses in the town. It's upon these citizens the community's resources and manpower and wealth depends. citizens who can keep well, abide by the laws, support themselves and their families. Next, where and how did these people live? In one residential district of the many roommed houses built years ago when families were larger, most of the people today live in modest apartment [Music] houses. Some live in more dilapidated buildings. The people who live here are part of the city's busy life. Yet I could see that many had problems too great to solve alone. Poverty, juvenile delinquency, illness, and old [Music] age. From my social studies, I knew that the whole of any community suffers in proportion to the extent of the misery and unhappiness of its individual members. I kept wondering how much was the community aware of its human problems. Was it taking practical steps to do something about them? The next step was to call the headquarters of the community chest. Perhaps there I could find the answers to my [Music] questions. The executive director said to come right over. [Music] The director was very helpful. He told me Yoners was one of,250 American cities which has the community chest, a central fundraising and administrative organization. The Yoners Community Chest consists of 17 member welfare agencies. Then the director made a surprising statement. Surprising to me anyway. My idea of social welfare had been helping people already in difficulties. Psychological, physical, economic, all kinds of difficulties. He said that most of the agencies of the chest aimed at prevention as well as cure. In fact, prevention came first. He told me about certain welfare agencies which stress prevention of social ills through long range training and education. Among these are the Boy Scouts, the Girl Scouts, the YMCA, the YWCA, the Women's Institute. Also included are the community centers sponsored by neighborhood groups to provide a safe, healthy play atmosphere for adolescence. Preventive measures against the sources of human difficulty are wise. Prevention saves money, time, and effort otherwise required for rehabilitation and cure. Then there are the other agencies equipped to give quick help to those in trouble like the visiting nursing association, the family service society, the society for the prevention of cruelty to children in the general hospital. In a two-day visit, I couldn't study all of these member agencies of the community chest. The director advised that I examine an agency that worked with personal or family problems such as the family service society, an agency that dealt with illness and disease like the Visiting Nursing Association, and an agency that promoted group activities like the YMCA and the Boy Scouts. He said that my first visit might be to the Family Service Society, and he called them for an appointment. Now, I would see for myself exactly what some of these agencies are doing for the people. [Music] At the Family Service Society, the counselor in charge said, "I'd arrived in time to see three people off to a fuller life. A childless husband and wife had come to receive the custody of a baby girl they were [Music] adopting. To be sure the baby was normal and healthy enough to enter their lives, she had been given a number of tests of her mental and physical health over a period of months. Today was the final checkup. [Music] The couple had waited long for this happy day. And the baby, well, she couldn't say much, but I think she was happy, too. [Music] At least I felt she had a good chance for happiness when the counselor told me how carefully these parents had been [Music] selected. Orphaned and given up by relatives who were unable to rear it properly. The baby had previously been in a founding home just like many other babies. But not all such orphan children are adoptable. They may have a relative or even a parent who expects to take them someday. Or there may be serious mental or physical reasons why they cannot be adopted. That's why so many little ones remain in hospitals and institutions. That's why there are so many would-be parents for every adoptable baby. And that's why the counselors can choose much more carefully among parents who are right for the child. [Music] Consider this new family of three just starting out life together. The baby was healthy and adoptable, and her future parents had waited patiently nearly 2 years for her to be found. They had met all their tests, too. They weren't wealthy, but they could provide the baby with comfortable surroundings. They were a congenial couple and a calm home would give the child a feeling of [Music] security. They could assure the child of a good cultural and moral background. An added factor was the baby's features. They were very much like the foster mothers. This would later make the little girl feel she truly belonged to her adopted parents. Only after a probationary period of many months would the final adoption papers be signed. But there was every reason to believe this case would then be marked closed. Now I was to find out how the community takes care of its sick through the visiting nursing association. One of the nurses took me along on a home visit. In cars furnished by the agency, calls can be made on the bedridden sick who would otherwise depend on the unskilled care of friends or relatives. [Music] The mother of the family knew the nurse was coming. She was eager to learn how to care for her injured husband, who had been brought home from the hospital the day before. [Music] There was much to be done and the nurse set about her job [Music] efficiently. After seeing that her patient was not in pain or great discomfort, the nurse gave the young wife her first lesson in how to care for the patient herself. The nurse would come again and again to change the dressings, bathe the patient, and teach the mother family health until there was no longer need for her visits. And while the nurse was here, the mother asked her to examine the little girl's sore throat. If neglected, a sore throat might mean a trip to the hospital. But today, a simple treatment was all that was necessary. In cases where the family can pay something toward the visiting nurse's services, they do. But whether they can pay or not, all receive the same competent, helpful [Music] treatment. It was late in the day by then and I went back to the YMCA. The Y is one of the group agencies partially supported by the community chest. How did it operate as a center for young people's activities? Well, the director told me that the Y was providing healthful recreation facilities for more than 6,000 youngsters and young men. The completely equipped gymnasium is in constant use day and [Music] night. The swimming pool provides year-round water sports for youngsters. The YMCA staff gives regular courses in swimming instruction and water safety. But physical recreation is not the sole aim of the Y. There's a large free library kept fully stocked with books for the young. Groups of boys meet to discuss topics ranging from the problems of youth to current events. Outside lecturers, leaders in their field find receptive audiences. [Music] Now came an opportunity to see the work of another community chest agency. I met Jimmy, one of the local boy scouts. Jimmy invited me to a Scott troop meeting. Jimmy's troop meets weekly in the basement of his neighborhood church. Like boy scouts all over the world, they learn to observe the principles of good conduct. This study is combined with the fun of Scott craft and healthy recreation. I noticed my young friend Jimmy was adept at Scott techniques like artificial respiration. He also seemed popular with the other [Music] Scots. I was surprised to learn that just a few months ago, Jimmy had been a very different boy. Born in the slum district, he'd grown into a bully living by the code of the streets. [Music] One day he heard about the regular boxing matches put on in the church basement. He didn't know how to fight according to rules, but he did like to fight. The next time the boxing matches were held, Jimmy volunteered rather condescendingly. He wanted to show off what he considered his superior technique. [Music] Jimmy found it hard to take defeat. He discovered that the other boy had learned how to box at summer camp with the boy scouts. His new friend offered to bring him to the next scout meeting and introduce him to the boys. After a trial visit, Jimmy joined the scouts. He found that he could get the feeling of accomplishment without hitting out at people. No longer does Jimmy play in the streets or fight in the alleys. Scouting has taught him to earn his honors in his [Music] leadership. Well, my assignment was almost finished. I'd seen various agencies of the community chest at work. I was impressed both by what they did and the way they did it. I knew that it takes money for these agencies to operate. Money for buildings, money for equipment and supplies, money for salaries of trained workers. [Music] money for all the member agencies of the chest given to them according to their needs. Where does this money come from? I revisited the director of the community chest to thank him for the cooperation he had arranged and to get the answer to the question of community chest funds. He began to tell me how the money was raised, most of it through a yearly drive for the community chest by volunteer workers. Such a drive relieves each individual agency from spending the time, money, and effort to raise its own funds and permits the agencies to concentrate on their work. The funds come from the businessmen of the city. [Music] From the school children who willingly give their pennies and nickels and [Music] dimes. From the housewives, from every class and group and section of this community. One overall contribution pledged once a year to the community chest supports partly or alltogether each of its 17 different welfare agencies. The people of Yoners get behind their community chest and contribute generously. Some because of an unselfish love of their fellow man and some because they know the misfortune of the man next door or down the street. misfortune against which he may not be prepared is a blow against the whole community. When families become psychologically and economically insecure, the whole community ultimately suffers. Everywhere I had gone, I'd seen how this American community takes care of its own. An average community of industrious, self-reliant people. They have the same basic needs as people anywhere in the world. They want adequate food, shelter, clothing, good health, and freedom from fear. They have found that one way to meet these needs is through their support of the community chest. It isn't charity. It's a sound investment in the future of the community. I'd seen a group of human beings working together and together sharing the responsibilities which safeguard the welfare of the individual and the community. I was ready to go back to the university and write my [Music] report. So it's interesting it was distributed by uh the army. that was made by Archaopath. Uh yeah. Um it's all about American way of life and supporting each other. Uh those who are down uh helping to bring them up. Uh because all those people are important. Uh even the sick, the poor, they if you if you boost boost them, then they get better educated. They make more money. They become consumers and taxpayers. You know, there's something to be said for that. Yeah, that's my soap box. Um, all right. So, if you are in Raleigh, uh, tonight I'm going to be hosting, uh, Space Balls, which is a an important film about, uh, I don't know. I'm trying to make it something more than it is. It is an awesome Mel Brooks movie. I talked to somebody who actually really hated it because they said it was so juvenile and I was like, "Duh." Like, that's why it's so great. Uh, it is a wonderful, wonderful film. Uh, and so we're showing it at the Science Museum downtown Raleigh tonight at I believe 7:00. Um, so join us. Uh it's it's a paid event so you have to buy a ticket but uh I guarantee you that I have a special costume I'm going to wear. Uh so basically I introduce the film, we watch a film from my collection and then uh afterwards we bring up an expert and we do trivia questions and uh people can win prizes and then people get to a ask the expert about different topics and so it's always really fascinating and really interesting. So, if you're in town, come on by. Anyways, uh have a great weekend. I appreciate you watching and um yeah, we'll be back on Monday. If you like what you saw, hit the thumbs up, hit the like button, subscribe. Those are great ways to support us in the grand algorithm that uh guides all of us. Um, you can also support us financially with uh the super chat option in YouTube or go to kofi.com/avgeeks or patreon.com/avgeeks or you can watch one of the 24 films that we've put online today. Uh, and we're doing that until we hit 10,000 which might be soon cuz I think we have 9,700 films online right now. So, that's the goal is to hit uh 10,000 and so it might be next week. Uh then I can take a break, not from doing this show, but from putting 24 films up every day. Um yeah, thanks for watching and hopefully I'll see you tonight. If not, I'll see you on Monday. See you on Monday. Everybody take care. We love you. Bye. [Music]