Educational film magazine; (19-)

"THE GREAT AMERICAN AUTHORS" A SERIES of twelve one-reel pictures visualizing locales associated with famous writers and some of their best- known works is being placed within reach of non-theatrical exhibitors seeking high-class material of combined instructional and entertainment qualities. John Greenleaf Whittier is the subject of the initial release. Opening with a quotation from the poet's work followed by his portrait, the picture then offers views of his birthplace in Haver- hill, Massachusetts; the near-by "Haunted Bridge;" Haverhill Academy, where Whittier studied; the family home at Amesbury; and the poet's grave. Following are scenes of rare charm illus- trating "The Barefoot Boy," as with rod and line and alert small dog he wanders joyously through the farm lands of a New Eng- land summer. Complete harmony is maintained between the scenes and the poet's lines which are given as sub-titles. The sec- ond poem illustrated is a portion of "Maud Muller" with airy, sun-blessed hay fields forming a picturesque background for the scenes between Maud and the Judge. Some may feel that the Judge's sentimental admiration of the young girl's ankles might have been omitted; yet on the whole this poem is well illustrated. The Longfellow reel is quite ideal, with portrait; views of the poet's birthplace and his boyhood home, both in Portland, Me.; and Craigie House, Cambridge, Mass., where his adult years were spent and where he died. The grave in Mount Auburn is also shown. "The Village Blacksmith" is beautifully illustrated and the film ends with fine seashore views linked to quotations from "The Psalm of Life." The series will include James Russell Lowell, Edgar Allan Poe, Washington Irving, Nathaniel Hawthorne and others, whose works are among the great American classics. This series will be watched with interest, as it meets a need and meets it artistically in the fullest sense of that much- abused term. James A. Fitzpatrick, director of the series, is no stranger to non- theatrical exhibitors, his well-known Courtship of Miles Standish attesting to his skill and discrimination as a director. The series is edited under the direction of Charles Urban. The Great American AMthors, 1 reel each. Kineto Company of America, Inc. THE MUD-DAUBER WASP AND HER YOUNG AN instructive new film produced by the Society for Visual Educa- tion reveals the construction of a mud wasp's nest, after the same plans and out of the same materials as were used by the first mud- dauber centuries ago. "The mud-dauber is one of the solitary wasps," says L. M. Belfleld, of the society's staff. "In constructing the adobe apartment house which is to shelter her wasplets, she has no helpers. Alone she scrapes up the mud with her strong mandibles, mixing it with her saliva until she has formed a firm cement. Using her jaws as a trowel, she plasters a foundation and then proceeds to shape the inch-long tubes which are to serve as breeding cells and nurseries for her babies. The star of the film was apparently of a retiring nature, for she elected to build her nest high up among the dark rafters so that in order to get the picture it was necessary to employ adjustable mirrors, one on the roof catching the light and reflecting it to another mirror inside, which in turn lighted the nest itself. "Tlie solitary wasp not only builds the nest unaided, but provisions each cell with live spiders which she has stung into paralysis. "The mother wasp captures spiders, makes them helpless with her sting, and packs a generous supply into each tube. On the last spider she lays a tinv egg. Then slie brings more mud and caps the opening. After her apartment house is completed and each tube well stocked with food, she carefully smears over the outside to camouflage the exact location of the cells, and with that considers her duty done. By and by a tiny grub will batch from the egg, set diligently about its business of cramming itself with fresh spider meat, and presently spin a tliin brown cocoon. In tlie spring it emerges from this silken shell and with its strong-toothed jaws cuts its way out of its house of clay into a world of work and sunshine." GREATEST NAVAL BATTLE OF THE GREATEST WAR "The Battle of Jutland," in Three Reels, Took Three Years to Produce and Is Historically Accurate rHE BATTLE OF JUTLAND, the three reel motion picture which has been in preparation in England since the close of the war and which gives the first clear visualization of what actually happened at that greatest of all the world's naval conflicts, has been brought to the United States by Educational Film Exchanges. The monumental character of the work under- taken by Maj. Gen. Sir George Aston, Bruce Woolfe, and their colleags when they set out to film the battle of Jutland is difficult to comprehend. The task of preparing the outline of the action took two years, and another period of twelve months was occu- pied in the filming of the battle. All British reports of the battle were studied, and every detail in the logs of gunnery officers of the British fleet was noted. Then Sir George, Mr. Woolfe and their colleags began the study of the corresponding material on the German side. When the data of both sides were compared it was found that they were fre- quently at variance, and the British and German authorities were brought together to iron out the differences. It was not until both sides had agreed on every move in this terrific conflict that the work of actually filming the picture was begun. A model was made for each ship which took part in the battle— an exact replica of the fighting vessel. These were so small that the models of both fleets were maneuvred on a field only eight feet square, although at times there were as many as seventy ships in movement at the same time. A model could not be moved more than a sixteenth of an inch at a time. The picture, of course, was taken by the "stop motion" process, one exposure at a time. Before each of these exposures the models had to be moved in accordance with the detailed plan of the battle. Fre- quently each ship in the field had to be moved for each separate exposure. Nearly 2,000,000 separate hand movemenU of the models were made. The film really consists of 50,000 snapshots merged into one composite film and is a triumph of patience, tech- nical skill, and historical accuracy. VISUALIZING PREHISTORIC ANIMALS ly/TAJOR HERBERT M. DAWLEY has followed his prehistoric •^ one-reeler, Ghosts of Slumber Mountain, with a two-reel film of similar theme, entitled Along the Moonbeam Trail. The in- structive message of the picture is presented in the form of a dream fairy story. Two boys, who are camping out, dream of a trip by magic airplane among the stars under the guidance of Queen Mab and Mother Goose, landing finally on a strange and distant planet. Here they see, alive, the huge animals of prehistoric times which they have known before at the Natural History Museum in restora- tion or reproduction. This picture has the endorsement of Raymond L. Ditmars, the American Museum of Natural History, and the New York Zoo- logical Society. It is a notable achievement of decided scientific and instructional value for children old enough not to be fright- ened by the unusual monsters. Prospective exhibitors may wish to view the picture with their individual groups in mind. Along tlie Moonbeam Trail, 2 reels. Distributed by Alexander Film Corp., ISO West 46th St., New York; Lea-Bel JFilms Co., 804-806 South Wabash Ave., aiicago; New Era Films, 21 East Tth St., Chicago. A device for rapid unloading of grain, coal, and other products from box cars was successfully demonstrated by film in the salesroom of the Ottumwa Box Car Unloader Company, Ottumwa, 111.