Sunday, July 29, 2012

The Grain That Built A Hemisphere

1943


1943 film about corn; produced for Walt Disney studios for the Canadian government. This animated short was nominated for an Academy Award for "Best Documentary" in 1943.

Sunday, July 22, 2012

Day at the Beach

Punch - Aug 26 1980


Conflict of the Sexes
Scene - A Pictureesque Fishing Village on the East Coast
Lor' bless you, Sir. You won't get no place 'ere in August. Leastways not at an evenin' effok. If you was to come down toward the latter 'alf of next week you might have a chance of a mornin'

The debate over using lands for recreational of productive purposes continues.

Saturday, July 21, 2012

Friday, July 20, 2012

Monday, July 16, 2012

Seven Wise Dwarfs

1941


In 1941 Walt Disney produced this short film, which promotes Canadian War Bonds, for the Canadian government. See Donalds Decision

Sunday, July 15, 2012

Erich Sokol, Fate - 1959

It must be fate -- my wife and your husband breaking their legs on the same day

By Erich Sokol December 1959

Friday, July 13, 2012

Donald's Decision

1941


Walt Disney produced this short film, which promotes Canadian War Bonds, for the Canadian government. Produced before the US was at war.

Thursday, July 12, 2012

The New Spirit (1942)

1942


In 1942 Walt Disney Studios created this short film for the US Treasury Department. Donald Duck learns that his tax dollars are going toward the war effort.

It was nominated for an Academy Award in 1943 for Best Documentary.

Tuesday, July 10, 2012

Skylark Poetry

Punch - Aug 26th 1908
Poet to blackbird "For goodness sake be quiet! I am trying to write about a skylark."

Sunday, July 8, 2012

Better than a Newspaper

Punch - Sept 24 1908

Screen for Breakfast Table (Better than a Newspaper)

Still applies in an iPad age.

Wednesday, July 4, 2012

Uncontrolled Campaign Spending V 92nd Congress - November 17, 1971

For the championship of the United States

Somethings never change.

Campaign finance spending soared in the 1960s. The cost of the 1968 presidential campaign was $300 million — almost double that of 1964. With Republican coffers in 1971 comfortably filled while the Democrats were some $9 million in debt, the Democratic-controlled Congress considered proposals to provide public financing. But President Richard Nixon threatened a veto. Eventually, they compromised on some public financing of presidential elections starting in 1976. Since then, loopholes in the laws have permitted almost unlimited political spending far in excess of the government's contributions and of all previous campaigns. In the year 2000 campaign, more than $300 million had already been spent on political ads alone before the end of September. This cycle is set up to be the most expensive in history.