The educational screen (c1922-c1956])

516 School Department The Educational Screen day at a county fair. The reel is a collection of typical sights to be seen on such an occasion — the humor supplied by the customary ungrammatical brand of rural language. All interesting enough, no doubt, if one has never seen a county fair, and really wants to know what one is like. There are prize pigs, horses, exhibits of farm machinery, rabbits, goats, cattle being judged (including fine close views of some prize-winning specimens, which might hold interest for a farm audience) a milking contest, a baby display in which infants are measured and weighed before the camera — and at the finish some good views of a horse race. Mildly informative and still more mildly entertaining. One of the Urban Popular Classics. The Industrial Picture Field Conducted by Homer V. Winn With the cooperation of THE SCREEN ADVERTISERS ASSOCIATION A Departmental of The Associated Advertising Clubs of the World D. D. Rothacker, President George J. Zehrung, Vice-President Homer V. Winn, Secretary This association is composed of leading producers of industrial-educational, advertising and technical films and slides, sales managers, advertising men, welfare workers and others interested in non-theatrical screen presentation. "The Spirit of St. Louis" A feature picture of a city, by a city and for a city BOSTON has been getting all the best of it in the history books. As a result of the prominent play historians give this city the little boys and little girls in The Hub's schools learn of what a wonderful part their city played in the Drama of America, and as long as they live they are proud of their Boston. Inhabitants of other cities have much to be proud of, too — only in too many cases ' they don't know it. This is too bad, for every town and every township in these United States has a story that would grip its readers if the story were only told. In having its history narrated in a seven-reel photoplay St. Louis has started something that has tremendous possibilities in the way of selling America to Americans — of giving our citizens a newer appreciation of their own land. Now St. Louis does not say that the historians make a mistake in giving "front page space" to Boston, New York or Philadelphia. This nation was cradled in the East and in history's perspective these places shine forth. What St. Louis does contend is that, as a historical adventure story, the expedition of the little band that came by cordelle boat up the Mississippi from New Orleans to found St. Louis is quite as interesting as the voyage of the Mayflower; that the explorers who faced the dangers of an Indian-infested wilderness in the unknown West were equally brave as those who founded settlements in the East; that the dauntless empire builders who landed at the foot of Walnut street contributed as definitely to the development of America as those who landed at Plymouth Rock. St. Louisans believe that they may well be as proud of their historical heritage as their Boston cousins. Yet with the growing percentage of "new" population, the brief treatment St. Louis receives in the history books and all, the prideful citizens of St. Louis were faced by the fact that to a large per cent of their fellow townsmen the words "Laclede" and "Chouteau" meant only the names of streets. St. Louis went about correcting this situation in somewhat the same manner that the nation's first civic opera was put over. The mayor appointed a movie committee. A group of citizens underwrote the picture production, advancing the cost of the film on the basis that from the theatrical rentals each should receive back just what he put in and not a