| Description |
1 videodisc : sd., col., b&w ; 4 3/4 in. |
| System Details |
DVD. |
| Note |
Title from disc label. |
| Summary |
In troubled times, it's often important to look to the past for guidance and instruction in basic American values. And where better to look than these film shorts where we're taught basic Americanism from the Union of Retail Clerks, Texaco Oil, Boeing, and the Warner Electric Brake & Clutch Company. A watch for Joe concerns an abused clerk who works in an auto supply store who is persuaded to join a union. |
| Contents |
A Watch for Joe (41 min.) -- g Speaking of competition -- Why fan a cool engine? -- The Boeing 707 Stratoliner. |
| Note |
A Watch for Joe (color -- actually, it's "Presented in Super Cine color") is a 41minute mini-epic in which ex-Dead End Kid, ex-East Side Kid, and ex-Bowery Boy BOBBY JORDAN stars as Joe Adams, a poor schmuck who works in a auto-supply store for a miserable bastard named Mr. Jordan. How miserable is Mr. Jordan? Why, he's played by the great ALAN MOWBRAY (Sherlock Holmes adversary Duncan Bleek in Terror by Night) who not only exudes elegant arrogance with every syllable, but docks Joe's pay over a bounced check. Joe's best friend tells him that being a union member would prevent that from happening, but Joe doesn't like unions: "If I can't get ahead on my own merit, I just don't deserve to get ahead!" His mother agrees with him and -- oblivious to the irony -- proudly shows Joe the gold watch his father was given after 30 years of underpaid servitude. Even Joe's brother-in-law (RICHARD REEVES from Target Earth) is anti-union: "I got pickets!" But Joe-s view changes when he falls in love with Linda -- BEVERLY GARLAND, back when she was still billed as "Beverly Campbell" -- who preaches the gospel of unionization while on a date atop Linda's roof. (Honest. They stand right in front of a big photo of the city.) Then Joe meets Superman. Yup, good ol' KIRK ALYN -- the Man of Steel in two Columbia serials -- is a union organizer who wants to recruit the workers at Joe's store. Naturally, things get ugly: "I'll close the store before I give in to those hoodlums!" All of which is soothingly narrated by EDWARD ARNOLD (The Devil and Daniel Webster). |
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Speaking of Competition (color): Sitting between ARTHUR Q. BRYAN (the original voice of Elmer Fudd) and JACK OAKIE (The Great Dictator's Napaloni) at a businessmen's luncheon, gas station owner Sid Cooper (comic VINCE B ARNETT of The Corpse Vanishes) is outraged when he sees his new competitor is also a guest. Wanting out of the business, Sid sells his station to Ned, the affable boyfriend of his bitchy daughter GLORIA TALBOTT (Daughter of Dr. Jekyll), who quickly learns that "if you want to stay in business, you've got to stay competitive!" Poor Ned not only goes door-to-door telling car owners about his station (!) but doesn't flinch when a Texaco executive actually uses the word "gallonage." |
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Why Fan a Cool Engine? (color) is a 9-minute animated short singing the joys of a Warner Electric Fan Clutch. |
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The Boeing 707 Stratoliner (color) features a Stepford stewardess taking us on a semi-"make believe" tour of "America's First Jet Airliner" where "everything is new and modern!" From its "luminous gay color schemes" that give one a feeling of "luxury and well being" to "the ultra-modern kitchens fully equipped to prepare the most tempting of foods," this 11-minute short is a nostalgic reminder of the optimistic days before metal detectors, terrorists, and shoe bombs. |
| Subject |
United States -- Civilization -- 1945-
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United States -- Social life and customs -- 20th century.
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Popular culture -- United States -- 20th century.
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Labor unions -- United States -- Drama.
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Competition -- United States.
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Automobiles -- Equipment and supplies.
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Boeing 707 (Jet transports)
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| Added Author |
Something Weird Video (Firm)
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| Added Title |
Lifestyles USA. Vol. 13 |
| Music No. |
3311 Something Weird Video |
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