Space Race Films 1957-1965

Synopsis

14 films, including advertisements, newsreels, depicting the struggle between the US and the USSR to achieve supremacy in space

Language

English

Country

United States

Year of release

2006

Year of production

1957-1965

Subjects

History; Media studies; Technology

Keywords

Cold War; history of technology; newsreel films; Soviet Union; space exploration; space technology; United States of America

Distribution Formats

Type

DVD

Format

Region 0

Price

$9.99

Availability

Sale

Duration/Size

75 minutes

Year

2006

Sections

Title

V-8 & Cheerios Free Moon Rocket Kit TV Offer

Synopsis

A Redstone rocket launches into an ad with two boys who eat Cheerios, drink V-8 juice and play with a plastic moon rocket toy that drops two men on to a fanciful map of the moon. The toy was available in exchange for one V-8 label plus 1 box top from either Cheerios, Kix or Frosty O’s General Mills cereals.

Duration

1 mins

Title

Universal Newsreel October 7th 1957: New Moon - Reds Launch First Space Satellite

Synopsis

An animation depicting the means by which the Soviet Union was able to place into orbit the first man made object, the satellite Sputnik I.

Duration

1 mins

Title

Universal Newsreel December 22nd 1958: Atlas in Orbit - Radios Ike’s Message of Peace to the World

Synopsis

An example of newsreel propaganda praising the sophistication of America’s most powerful launch vehicle and celebrating the historic first of broadcasting a voice message from space to the world. This achievement was made more significant by the fact that this Christmas message of President Eisenhower was transmitted from earth to the Project SCORE satellite built into orbiting Atlas and then rebroadcast from Atlas/SCORE to the people of the earth further on in its orbit, originating the process known as "store and forward" which is still in use today and marking SCORE as the world’s first communications satellite.

Duration

4 mins

Title

Big Bounce, The

Synopsis

The story of Echo, history’s second communications satellite, which consisted of a huge balloon placed into orbit and off of which were bounced radio signals aimed at from earth, which technique ultimately resulted in Echo’s helping place the very first satellite telephone call.

Duration

14 mins

Title

Universal Newsreel April 6th 1961: News in Brief - Russia

Synopsis

The USSR releases films of space flights with dog, rat and mice passengers in craft launched to high altitude (not into orbit) and returned safely to the earth.

Duration

1 mins

Title

Universal Newsreel April 13th 1961: Cosmos Pioneer - Soviets orbit Man in Space

Synopsis

President Kennedy responds to the great Soviet achievement of putting the first man into space with comments during a press conference.

Duration

1 mins

Title

Universal Newsreel May 8th 1961: As World Watched - Spaceman hailed after US Triumph

Synopsis

America’s first man in space Alan Shepard is honoured with a medal from President Kennedy awarded in a White House rose garden ceremony, and is then paraded up Pennsylvania Avenue.

Duration

2 mins

Title

Universal Newsreel August 7th 1961: Cosmonaut - Russian Orbits Globe 17 Times

Synopsis

Gherman Titov, at a time when America had only launched two suborbital manned flights, stunned the world with his orbiting the earth 17 times in his Vostok 2 spacecraft.

Duration

1 mins

Title

Universal Newsreel November 30th 1961: Chimp in Space

Synopsis

Eager to ensure that the Mercury-Atlas system was capable of safely sending a man into space, the chimpanzee Enos was sent into orbit to test the system first, and his success cleared the way for Astronaut John Glenn’s orbital flight.

Duration

2 mins

Title

Universal Newsreel July 12th 1962: A Day in History - Telstar Brings World Closer

Synopsis

The world’s first commercial "comsat" (communications satellite) is sent into orbit, transmits the first television picture to and from space, and becomes the vanguard of many other such telstars which enabled continuous global telephone, data, television and other communications.

Duration

3 mins

Title

Universal News July 23rd 1962: Kennedy on Telstar - Europe sees News Conference

Synopsis

President Kennedty proudly comments upon the achievements of the first commercial communications satellite as part of a press conference broadcast from the Telstar satellite to Europe.

Duration

1 mins

Title

Universal News September 13th 1962: Kennedy Tour - Calls for U.S. Lead in Space

Synopsis

President Kennedy takes a trip to see chief rocket scientist Werner von Braun in Huntsville, Alabama and the Mercury spacecraft, then visits Cape Canaveral, Houston Texas and Rice University where he delivers his famous "We Choose To Go To The Moon" speech, inspects the Gemini spacecraft at the Manned Spacecraft Center in Houston, then visits the St Louis plant of McDonnell Aerospace.

Duration

1 mins

Title

Universal News May 12th 1965: Space Policeman - Pegasus Measures Action of Meteoroids

Synopsis

The Saturn I rocket launches Pegasus II into high altitude orbit to determine if meteoroids could pose a threat to astronauts travelling through deep space.

Duration

1 mins

Title

Highlights 1965: A Progress Report

Synopsis

A survey of the high points of American space achievements during a period when space programme firsts were coming rapidly as the space race continued to accelerate in tempo. Colour footage details many satellites, technological achievements, launch systems, aerial photography, weather surveillance, manned programme recovery, animations, artists renderings, charts, the Ranger series lunar mapping probes, etc.

Duration

40 mins

Distributor

Name

MediaOutlet.com

Email

service@prosperohouse.com

Web

http://www.mediaoutlet.com/ External site opens in new window

Address

PO Box 1432
Bayonne
NJ 07002
USA

Notes

Specialises in US archival moving image and sound material, particularly vintage radio and public service films and broadcasts that have been digitally restored. Formerly known as Earthstation.com. Sale on multi-region DVD or CD.