🚀 go-pugleaf

On Tuesday, March 27, 2018 at 5:28:46 PM UTC-4, Ted Nolan <tednolan> wrote:

> >> > The Bell System and the Independents prepared a number of
> >> > customer education films on how to dial.  Back in old days,
> >> > people used to manual operator service had to learn how
> >> > to use a telephone dial.


> I was wondering about that.  Where would this film be seen?  Would the
> Bell System buy time in the trailers at local theaters?

Years ago, it was common for larger companies and government agencies*
to produce films to showcase to the public and new employees their 
mission and accomplishments, as well as making training films for
internal use for their employees.  Many of these films are now
viewable on YouTube (some are available for purchase).  Personally,
I find them fascinating.  The AT&T Archive has a collection of both
internal training and external p/r films going way back.  We've talked
here about some of their computer usage films.  AT&T/Bell Telephone
made a great many films.  The Independent companies made a few, but
they're pretty interesting too (such as showing a small town 
telephone company upgrading their switch.)

Often these films were professionally done and in color (at a time
when most films were b&w).

I once got to see an internal IBM film on their factory work of the
late 1930s.  It showed the many steps in the machine shops.  It was
rather dry, but still interesting to see the work.  Some old IBM
films are viewable on the history section of their website.

Burroughs has an interesting old film, available on YouTube, about
their manufacturing.  Worth a look.

I don't know about Remington Rand/Univac, but probably they made
films, too.  Don't know about the computer divisions of RCA, GE,
Honeywell, CDC, NCR, etc.

Anyway, one of the tasks of the p/r department was to have a
Speakers Bureau.  These folks, generally personable and well
trained, went around to schools and clubs--anywhere when invited--
and brought along the training or p/r film from the company.


* During WW II, the US Signal Corps prepared both p/r and training
films for the Army.  Initially, it was done inhouse, but the results
were crappy.  Then they turned to Hollywood, which made high quality
training and p/r films for them at cost.  These include the Frank
Capra series, "Why We Fight".

>From time to time, TCM shows various government "motivational" films
made during the war to encourage citizens to be selfless and take
work in a defense plant, conserve critical materials, recycle,
and otherwise contribute to the war effort.  Feature films made
in Hollywood at that time also included a lot of wartime 
propaganda embedded in the story.  In return for Hollywood's
many contributions, the government went after them in the 1950s
accusing Hollywood of being all communists.