8mm film: 1940-1941 color amateur movies of pre-WWII America

[@gardengeek3041]

In summer 1941, very few families had yet to acquire a movie camera. We owe a big thanks to the AO family for saving these films and putting them online. Its a perfect, unscripted view of US life at that time. My dad turned 30 that same summer. It was a time of optimism. Like millions of Americans, he had survived the Depression and even owned his first car. Not so well known nowadays is that most Americans (about 65%, I think) lived on farms or in small towns, like the one where the July 4 parade is seen. That what makes this film footage so real. Notice how many hands pitched in to bring in the hay, and to set the oat bundles in stooks, 12:00, a teepee shape that kept the grain end dry. Kids, grandparents & probably some townsfolk all working together happily. In my community, stooking was something of a social event until the 1950s. Absolutely no stigma because it was manual labor. The way it still is in France for the grape harvest ... all hands on deck! This might be partly why all the 1941 people look so fit. And of course we don't see a single fast food outlet anywhere in this film. Why did it change so drastically, almost irreversibly? Thanks for the memories!

[@lexba]

I really appreciate taking the time to add your comment which provides significant background information to these films.

[@wildcatkelly1966]

This is simply amazing. Life was so much different 80 years ago. My father was 11 in 1941, he passed away in 2019 at 89. Thank you so much for this wonderful video.

[@bonniebluebell5940]

People were a lot more grounded...they had to be and will have to be once more. When we put God above ourselves, we know where we stand. We are born of the Spirit so KTF!

[@Sheri451]

I love watching things like this, it was made before my mother was even born. It's nice to see these people. My father would have been two years old in 1941 and he's no longer with us. He passed away in 2012. I sure wish I had some old home movies of my family. But unfortunately, my parents had no movie camera. And back when they first married, in 1961, they could probably buy one like this one at a reasonable price.I sure would have loved to see all of my family members. I remember very little of them, my fathers side were all in their 60s and 70s when I was born and my mothers family are 500 miles away.And just a few of them are still alive now.

[@lexba]

You might be surprised that perhaps that some of your relatives do have home movies of your parents, and yourself. I found that out myself and saw movies of me as a child and other family members like my grandparents that I had no idea exited until I was much older. It was a delightful discovery.

[@esmeephillips5888]

I guess these pix were shot on 'Standard 8' Kodachrome, which had been marketed since 1932. Each roll gave about four minutes at 16 frames per second, but you had to change it around halfway through and reload in low light to avoid flare. Because it was color the speed was slow and shooting indoors in ordinary light was tough, but some cameras let you crank the film backward and shoot again for double exposures and dissolves. Standard 8 was the norm for home movies until Kodak introduced 'Super 8' cassettes in the 1960s.

[@lexba]

Thanks for the information about the film types.

[@FischerRestoration]

Enjoyed watching these images from the 1940-1941 era. I actually have a 1941 Chevrolet Business Coupe that's a real joy to drive! It gets attention where ever I go! 😊

[@lauranorwar]

Oh man!! I bet that is a beautiful car!!!

[@MrKmoconne]

I liked the automobiles from back then. They had so much character.

[@6omega2]

At 3:22, the movie "Man Hunt" was released on June 13th, 1941, so that would date that scene to the summer of 1941. Great video, thanks for sharing.

[@lescobrandon3047]

6omega2 - then i was five months old. When my grandparents and one aunt were the subject of my dad’s 8mm, they just remained stock-still. Movies were not quite understood. And most home movies were filmed during meals where everybody would be in one place. So much of my old movies from back then featured people chewing food.

[@footballlvnlady]

I have always wanted to go back to the 40’s - 60’s. A simpler time. This video is wonderful! No one staring at phones all the time. Home cooked food. Eating together at the table. No one shopping in pajama pants. I’m fortunate to have been born in 57 and had my early years in the 60’s. Thank you for this wonderful video of years gone by. ❤

[@lexba]

How true what you wrote! Thanks for the comment.

[@markparee99]

Brilliant upload. Choice of music is excellent

[@lexba]

Thank you.

[@kerryincolumbus]

What a charming and VERY delightful video! the music was perfect and it was great to see that era in color! GREAT JOB lexba!!

[@lexba]

Thank you, Kerry, for taking the time to write.

[@patromano4]

Why did life seem so innocent back then? Loved it. Thank you.

[@lexba]

Well yeah, it's not a exactly a secret about the ugly side of America and world then and now. This video is from family home movie films: it is a record of their family, activities, and interests. Do you really expect them in 1941 using expensive and rather exotic consumer technology for that era (color 8mm film equipment), to go out and film crimes and countless terrible situations? That was the job of news and documentary organizations.

[@awebreeze1]

It was innocent. They censored television so children weren't up with parents watching movies with nude scenes. Men were expected to work and women kept their legs together till marriage. Women wore dresses and men didn't. Children's little butts were spanked if they disrespected any adults. Kids climbed trees, played and intermingled with each other out side, not entertained as now by war, crime killing games. Parents in the 60's were too good for the old ways, now look at things. There were rules and now there aren't. It's called morals. Makes a difference doesn't it?

[@TheRealLaughingGravy]

awebreeze1 - Life today is just as innocent as it was back then, it's no different. You can be sure back then in the 1940's the old people used to complain about kids being disrespectful, and about the radio and movies showing sex and violence, and about young men being lazy and young women being loose with their morals. Everything you complain about today, they complained about back then. Overall, for most people, things are way better today than they were 75 years ago. Enjoy your life.

[@UnknownPerson-ve3uv]

BritishCommentWriter well technically everyone didn’t go through that

[@susanbrogan2517]

@@TheRealLaughingGravy life was a little more innocent. I'm 62 years old and I've seen a difference through the years.

[@TheMagicTaco]

These videos are Amazing! Reminds me of many of the small towns here in Texas, but with older vehicles..

[@lexba]

Glad you like them!

[@Britonbear]

The most interesting thing about these old films and photographs to me is that only the babies are chubby.

[@lexba]

I suppose that people, in general, in those days were more physically active and engaged in more social activities. I walked to school (in mid 1950s) as a first and second grader. It was quite a long distance. There was no school bus and no helicopter parents standing guard watching over my actives and taking me everywhere by SUV. I think it was that way for most kids. Also, there's a fast and junk food epidemic in today's America. When I toured China in 2008-it struck me there were no obese Chinese people.

[@calbob750]

No fast food. You walked almost everywhere. Most work was physical.

[@abeautifuldayful]

@@lexba Corporate control of our waistlines from an epidemic of consumerism and advertising to crave more of everything and work less to get it.

[@dinorossi6611]

Babies were the ones eating junk back then

[@ce7545]

Diet not high in sugar or corn syrup back then

[@stevencohn39]

SPECTACULAR, FANTASTIC TO WATCH! FASCINATING!

[@andreaavila4219]

Very nice! Thank you so much for sharing it.

[@Berniebud]

Aside from the brilliant quality of the preserved film, I loved that you played it back at its proper framerate. So many videos of home footage play them back at higher framerates and makes the motion seem so juttery and unrealistic. It really feels *real* here.

[@lexba]

Thank you. The film itself was in excellent shape, therefore the quality you see is not greatly digitally enhanced except for possibly some minor color balance adjustments due to fading. I do adjust the speed of the film playback in the digitized video with: Corel VideoStudio. I slow the speed to what I think is a natural pace of movements compared to the original projection which is too fast.

[@Vicivicoing]

Very interesting color amateur movies of that period,good transfer as wel from 8 mm to DVD , well done !!

[@lexba]

Thanks!

[@8mmfilmarchive34]

Interesting. Cool transfer and soundtrack! Thanks!

[@dennisseaborn5926]

They put a lot of loves in the family gathering. Awesome story.

[@danielheartfire614]

This is priceless. Thank you.

[@richarddowney1972]

I was two years old in 1941. Good grief!

[@charlesg1150]

Super job…greatest video!!

[@lexba]

Thank you for the comment.

[@raggedyann8762]

Just LOVED this video! 🤗

[@karak9612]

Enjoyed it! thank you.

[@bluetickfreddy101]

God bless america Such a stark contrast How far /fast we’ve fallen The good ole days Thank you

[@cadrolls]

This was AWESOME! Thank you for sharing it. I definitely saved it to my favorites!

[@jasondandan2937]

Great video!

[@lexba]

I appreciate that remark.

[@dalehammond1704]

You've inspired me to convert some of my giant collection of old home movies (8 and 16mm) so I can post them online. We travel and search storage units, estate sales, etc., as a hobby. I've found boxes of old home movies and have never seen most of them myself. The oldest I recall was the 20's. How did you convert your films?

[@lexba]

The process I used involves the use of rare, variable speed projectors. $1k HD Canon video camera (no longer made). PC that I custom built myself running Window 10, with Firewire capture card, two hard drives, and Corel VideoStudio software. The devil is in the details which are beyond the scope of my channel. However, there are websites that provide extensive information on movie film to digital transfers. If you want a pro to do transfers for you, I recommend the highly rated Gary Gibbons, ebay ID: gibbonsvideo3o3 www.ebay.com/usr/gibbonsvideo3o3q?ul_noapp=true

[@wowzieee]

I hope you do transfer them, if not for pubic view, for your family. Check local College or where they study film, over videotography, they might steer you in the right direct. Good luck.

[@frederickwise5238]

Not that far down the road, our world was about to change forever. The 4th of July parade was poignant for me. I still remember 1941. Not quite 6, dad set off firecrackers. We never got to do it again. The war made demands on his and many others lives (too old for war but not for 10 and 12 hr days, 6 and 7 day weeks at a defense plant). Many of the younger men wont make it to 1946 - then came Korea - deja Vu, and then Dien Bien Phu........ So much for the rest of the 20th century.

[@gordonlumbert9861]

Pollock SD is still a tiny place. Its not too surprising this film includes trips too(San Fran)?

[@MichaelAuthorAllAges]

So Cool! Liked, shared and subscribed. :-)

[@loririchardson1625]

So lovely!

[@lexba]

Thanks.

[@elizabethhestevold1340]

Happy Days, Happy New Year.🇩🇰🇺🇸🗽🎇🎉Grass Root America.😎 These people made America Great, let's not forget.🦅

[@awitlods6451]

Fantastic moment

[@furthereast6775]

Before WW2 they were primarily Citizens of a unique and cohesive culture. Beginning after WW2 we were reduced to mere consumers.

[@RandallvanOosten-ln5wf]

One thing I noticed is that there were very few obese people. Additionally, it seems that for the average person, there was a good amount of manual labor necessary for daily life. One scene showed a 10 or 11 year old boy driving a tractor. This was not unusual even during my childhood in Oregon in the 1950s. This was fascinating.

[@richardhinman3046]

A 3-year-old girl sitting, (by herself), on a headlight of a moving automobile. I don't think that would be allowed nowadays. 0:25

[@ginaferracini5014]

Wow love the old cars and when the ladies looked like ladies and men dressed in suits 👍

[@ghayath2011]

Can anyone recommend a software that adds color to black and white video? Thanks

[@ghayath2011]

lexba THANK YOU very much

[@aneditor1112]

+ghayath2011 Blender. I've actually done a lazy attempt on my channel, but you could easily do better.

[@philomeanasandopenocen8368]

Nice video of the good old days

[@peace-yv4qd]

I was born June 2,1945. A few months before the Japanese surrender. In my view the last great generation.

[@neinnein9306]

The Japanese surrenders?

[@VictorFlores-ce5cs]

Some people is so sick today with wate. Than they dont understand why this video is wonderfull the normality not is. The waste of today but the days of of enjoy work and fun. The harvest machines are wonderfull i lived my teenager front massey ferguson. Tractos selling and is wonderfull

[@SuperBarbaretta]

Lovely....

[@lexba]

Thanks but I am only the editor and not the person who made the films before I was even born.

[@Leo15730]

What was the method used to digitise these films ??

[@lexba]

Hi Leo. My process: 8mm variable speed film projector, Canon HD camcorder, Windows 10 PC with firewire capture card. The captured digitized files were edited in Corel VideoStudio and rendered into the format published to KZbin.

[@joeyz5577]

This is exactly what we need to get back to!

[@KurtForbes-f1w]

My father was born on June 18 1942

[@tylergavin8219]

We're that town is at is now under water

[@lexba]

Pollock, South Dakota? There are articles it was moved to higher area.

[@Enigma758]

Is this a frame by frame transfer?

[@lexba]

No.

[@Rarestgameplayer]

almost 80 years ago...

[@kennethschreyer2527]

America Before it Had To Be Made Great Again !!! 🎉❤❤

[@MrPeizo]

simpler life way back then, i almost envied it. the only thing to look forward to was christmas, vacation and a new car

[@MrEjidorie]

In a sense, 1940-1941 was the best period for the United States. While the whole Europe was in a state of war, the United States was peaceful and prosperous until Japan`s attack on Pearl Harbor.

[@garyfrancis6193]

I wonder what thse people are doing now?

[@chuckwagon5518]

Nice film clips but some of the music doesn't really fit the era portrayed.

[@lexba]

It was difficult to find appropriate music when editing this video. I was limited to so-called royalty free music, otherwise, the video might have been banned by KZbin. They have become very picky about using commercial music tracks and my other, newer videos, were blocked or banned for weeks.

[@manga12]

not going to lie I love the outfit on the lady at 3:30 she may be gone and dead in the ground by now but her smile remindes me of a great aunt in a wedding photo of hers from about 5-10 years later but I love the almost red white and blue color of it or maybe purple, but love the red hair bow, its fancy but also kind of youthful, it helps build up the image of the lady much more then the meat market in society today, nothing to the imagination is left, I like when it helps adorn the inner beauty of the lady even if simplistic, and i do think the simplistic patterns look so much nicer visually, and people seemed to dress up just a bit more, now days even for church your luckey to get anymore that dont look like they just rolled out of bed.

[@jefffriedberg]

Background audio shows you were not there and are wrong for attempting this production. Music is all wrong and stoopid.

[@lexba]

Thank you kindly for the constructive criticism.

[@esmeephillips5888]

​@@lexbaAppalling how gratuitously rude people can be behind a cloak of anonymity. Thank you for a fascinating glimpse of everyday yesterday. A set of Rockwellian moments.

[@lexba]

Usually, I delete nonsense comments of the type made by Jeff but it was funny to me because it reflects back on the writer's own level of intelligence.

[@johnpublic8852]

YEAH, back in my times. Back when America was still a country of the people instead of today, a country of corporations. I LOVED those times when men were honorable.

[@raesmith2164]

John Public And women had a sense of fashion, and knew how to cook haha

[@markmiller4376]

Come on. Technology might change but human behavior doesn't. That era had its share of scalawags just like today.

[@MikeyD22]

@@markmiller4376 Actually human behavior has changed significantly since these movies were shot. All you need to do is look at social media and comments from other KZbin videos to see the total lack of civility as well as the constant spewing of hatred.

[@山下達郎-b8i]

板東英二さん(1940年)、徳光和夫さん、仲本工事さん、萩本欽一さん、倍賞千恵子さん(1941年)生まれ。

[@lexba]

The characters translate as: Eiji Bando (1940), Kazuo Tokumitsu, Ken Nakamoto, Kinichi Hagimoto, and Chieko Baisho (1941) were born.

[@thatmanstumototours2270]

Those kids riding on the fenders by themselves....not happening today...

[@slepwick01]

This is the first classic film like this of its kind. Before this, people just drew pictures of each other and of their surroundings. Sometimes they filled in the line with paint or colored pencil.

[@anibalcesarnishizk2205]

Hard working people.👍👍👊👊💪💪

[@jnolette1030]

Those days are gone

[@NealSchultz]

Everybody was very skinny and looked healthy. Just think how much longer they all would've lived without alcohol and cigarettes....

[@daffyduk77]

Didn't see a fat person on these clips. Now you'd be lucky to see many slim ones

[@Fraevo10]

Human Beings are fascinating

[@michaelt3308]

Not so much....

[@harrytruax5195]

What?? No cell phones to stare at endlessly? How could they possibly have survived?

[@NiinaSKlove]

Time machine 😄

[@wm631]

Jackets and ties at a picnic outing; women in Sunday best there, also (complete with flowery hats). Explain that to kids today.

[@lexba]

Most people in those days dressed with a sense of pride and it showed in their public attire. Nowadays, even in church, I see some adults dressed as if they just came from the dollar store, the beach or gym.

[@Quipson]

Why do some men have crappy haircuts and for the women the salon didn't finish what they started? Maybe it was because it was windy outside? The little kids had better haircuts than the adults.

[@neinnein9306]

pre-WW2 ? The support for Britain and USSR at this time was'nt very neutral, seen partly before in WW1 ;)

[@chrishill6276]

1940-41 is not pre war. It had been going since 1939. You in the USA chose not to get involved.

[@lexba]

Chris, you are not the first to make this comment. The film was made in the USA, hence the use of the terms in the title. You didn't state what country you are from but obviously you have a different point of view. If you are Chinese, you might have the view that WW2 started in 1931 or 1937 when Japan invaded China. Nevertheless, the USA declared war on Japan and Germany near the end of 1941. There had been considerable debate and strong pressure among various groups for the USA to stay out of the European war-that is, until Japan attacked America.

[@VickGos-yr2gi]

What beautiful moments of history, of life in the great 😊 USA 🇺🇸

[@lexba]

Yes indeed!

[@MD-zo7cl]

EVERYONE LOVED THE COUNTRY❤🇺🇸🙏

[@johniboz1]

Wow, flag waving patriots who love their country. Different America. Sad

[@ikant312]

But, if we are to be honest, millions of citizens were relegated to second class citizens during that time. Those days were sad because of that. The good old days were not all that good.

[@elenashulikina452]

NEUROSETNI FILM !!!