Weirdo Video Rare & authentic films of cultural, historical, and ironical significance.

A Day of Thanksgiving

1950's

A Day of Thanksgiving

A Day of Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving in 1951 might not be as different for many today as it was back then. Bill Johnson’s family can’t afford a turkey this year. Dick, Tommy, Susan and baby Janet are devastated. But there is still much to be thankful for, especially in the shadow of what the world was like only a few […]

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The Stranger

1946

The Stranger

Feature Film: The Stranger - 1946

In 1946, Mr. Wilson (Edward G. Robinson) of the United Nations War Crimes Commission is hunting for Nazi fugitive Franz Kindler (Orson Welles), a war criminal who has erased all evidence which might identify him, with no clue left to his identity except “a hobby that almost amounts to a mania—clocks.” Wilson releases Kindler’s former […]

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Anti-War March ’67

1967

Anti-War March ’67

Newsreel: Anti-War March - 1967

In this clip from 1967, newsreel presenter Ed Herlihy narrates  the anti-Vietnam War marches which took place in New York City, San Francisco, and across the US. Martin Luther King, Jr. petitions the UN, students burn their draft cards at demonstrations, and anti-anti-Vietnam protesters make their support of the conflict known. Fifty years later, we […]

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Rosalie Allen: Chime Bells

1940's

Rosalie Allen: Chime Bells

Rosalie Allen: Chime Bells - 1940's

Who doesn’t love a great yodeler? It’s Rosalie Allen, who taught herself to play music as a child in Pennsylvania on her brother’s guitar. Involving herself with radio, she scored her first hit covering Patsy Montana’s “I Want to Be a Cowboy’s Sweetheart.” In this piece, Rosalie sees her beau off to war, a scenario […]

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Baghdad Pact ’58

1958

Baghdad Pact ’58

Newsreel: Baghdad Pact - 1958

Over 60 years ago, an uncertain peace held the Mideast together, while 60 years later, an uncertain war pulls it apart. The late, great Ed Herlihy narrates this report from the Baghdad Pact conference in Ankara, Turkey in 1958.

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So They Tell Me

1919

So They Tell Me

So They Tell Me - 1919

So They Tell Me, circa 1919, skewers the top headlines of its day, the World War I era. Crude animation attempts to punctuate the sardonic and off-color humor supplied by political raconteur Warren W. Brown. Though the jokes are somewhat arcane by today’s standards, the tone tries to balance between being bombastic and nativist. Targets include labor […]

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Black Marketing

1940's

Black Marketing

Black Marketing - 1940's

Like a television courtroom drama, the prosecutor deconstructs a criminal enterprise within the meatpacking industry. The dramatization hints at Hollywood crime films of the day, with shakedowns, oblivious accomplices and bribe money wrapped in paper with a soup bone. Despite the fact that the accused are given no opportunity to defend themselves, this piece of […]

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82nd Congress Opens

1951

82nd Congress Opens

Newsreel: 82nd Congress Opens - 1951

Welcome to the US Capitol as the 82nd US Congress convenes in early 1951, where new faces in both the Republicans and Democrats are taking seats. Lyndon B. Johnson rose to Senate Whip as the Democratic Senate majority would be cut to only two votes. The Capitol building is seen being remodeled to accommodate a […]

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The Civil War

1950's

The Civil War

Civil War - 1954

In this 1954 educational documentary tightly condenses the American Civil War into a snug fifteen minutes. Beginning with John Brown’s revolt at Harper’s Ferry, the film uses artwork, photographs, dramatizations and panoramas of significant locations. As we move from the attack on Fort Sumter to the Battle of Antietam to Lee’s great defeat at Gettysburg, […]

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