Detroit: Today and Tomorrow - Socony Mobil Oil Company and Parks and Recreation (1957)

2015.011.034
Color 16mm film containing an installment of the Detroit Tomorrow Committee's series "Detroit: Today and Tomorrow," focusing on Detroit-area parks, and the Socony Mobil Oil Company.
The segment on parks begins overviews of several of the city's parks. Belle Isle is handled first, with shots of the Anna Scripps Whitcomb Conservatory, and James Scott Fountain. The film then turns toward Metropolitan Beach. Here, shuffleboard, archery, the beach itself, storytime at the park's tipi, the food bar, And the roller rink are highlighted. Rouge Park is also covered. The park's playground, picnic area, the Rouge Golf Course, and the Charles H. Brennen Memorial Swimming Pool are all shown. At the Detroit Zoo, the film focuses on the Tauber Family Railroad, the daily animal shows (in particular the elephants), and the habitats of several of the animals. Finally the film covers Kensington Metropolitan Park. The bulk of this segment focuses on a ride on Kent Lake aboard the excursion boat ISLAND QUEEN, but the park's beaches, boat rental dock, nature trails, and fishing are also covered.
Following a transition montage that includes shots of the skyline and Detroit river, the Alexander Macomb Monument on Washington Boulevard, the buildings towering over Griswold Street, the City-County Building, and Second Avenue in front of the Fisher Building, the segment on the Socony Mobil Oil Company begins.
This half of the film starts with a focus on the Socony Mobil Oil Company refinery at 20089 West Road in Trenton. The oil first arrives at the refinery after a trip by pipeline from oil wells to tank farms. At the refinery, crude oil is processed into gasoline and fuel oils, as well as into grease and other lubricants. The narrator describes the oil refining process, including the roles of the distillation tower, the coking unit, the thermofor continuos catalytic cracking unit, and the sovaformer.
Then the film shows technicians at the Socony Mobil Research Laboratories, as well as the packaging of the company's lubricating oils and greases for consumers.
The role of the Socony Mobil Oil Company Wyoming Terminal is covered next. Here bulk gas and oil is carried by pipeline from the refinery. From the terminal the Mobilgas and Mobilheat truck fleet supply the Detroit area.
The film follows a Mobilgas truck to a Mobil Gas Station, where the tank is filled. The services performed by the gas station attendants are then detailed. The company's training classes for service attendants are also shown. A winter time Mobilheat home deliveries is also shown. Finally the narrator makes mention of the company's service stations for boaters over footage of the station at Gregory Marina.