By David J. Glenn
Before going home to see “Father Knows Best,” “Leave It to Beaver,” or, in later years, color news footage of mangled soldiers in a place called Vietnam, those of us who were in school in the 1950s and ’60s would often watch — would have to watch — usually grainy, badly produced films on tooth brushing, using deodorant, staying away from the evil weed, or the differences between boys and girls.
If you think these 16mm films have crumbled into oblivion and remain only in the distant memories of baby boomers, take heart. You can re-experience “Soapy the Germ Fighter,” “Why Does Cathy Not eat Breakfast?” and 44 other such films — or see them for the very first time — as the American Museum of the Moving Image in Astoria presents “Social Engineering: Highlights from the A/V Geeks Educational Film Archive” weekends Sept. 22 through Sept. 30.
“These films strike a chord for baby boomers, who view them today with a combination of nostalgia, fascination, and irony,” said David Schwartz, AMMI’s chief curator of film.
The films are on loan from the A/V Geeks Educational Archive co-founded, maintained, and shown by Skip Elsheimer, a 34-year-old software designer who keeps more than 8,500 of these testaments to post-World War II America in his home in Raleigh, N.C.
“Moving and sorting thousands of dusty and sometimes rust-covered cans of film, it’s hard not to think like an archeologist — digging through the dirt hoping to find some cultural treasure or artifact,” said Elsheimer. “These films remind us of our teen anxieties, and our desire to be noticed while, somehow, not sticking out.”
For those unaccustomed to ’50s and ’60s lingo, the “A/V geek” was the student selected by teachers to operate the 16 mm projector from the “audio-visual room.” You didn’t have to be a geek to be an AV monitor, but most of the kids considered him — no one remembers any girls ever running the projectors — to be one. Maybe they were jealous.
The AMMI has grouped the films into eight categories:
Social Engineering — “While teaching us how to fit in and get along with others, these films come across as funny, awkward, and occasionally insulting,” the AMMI says. Titles include “Psychological Differences Between the Sexes” (1965) and “What To Do About Upset Feelings” (1964)
Huh? — “Why are these films so inadvertently weird and baffling?” Includes “Curious Habits of Man” (1972) and “Me Too?” (1969).
Clean Body, Clean Mind — “These films define ‘cleanliness.’” Includes “Let’s Be Clean and Neat” (1957) and “Personal Hygiene for Boys” (1971).
Oops! — “There’s no place to hide from danger.” Includes “Danger Is Your Companion” (1948) and “Shake Hands with Danger” (1980).
Cinema VD: Sin, Sex, and Sores — “Be forewarned that this program has some obligatory gross images.” Includes “VD Attack Plan” (1972) and “Know For Sure” (1941).
As the Office Turns — “Melodrama and madness in the office in the midst of an outright class war between management and the workers.” Includes “Your Job: Fitting In” (1968) and “The Trouble With Women” (1959).
Drugs, Drugs, Drugs — “See how the drug scare film actually may have introduced more kids to using drugs than the ‘evil pushers’ ever could.” Includes “Drugs Are Like That” (1970) and “Marijuana” (1968).
Could This Have Happened By Accident? — “Here’s a rare look at ‘science’ films by the Christian Moody Science Institute that snuck their way into our public school systems.” Includes “Biography of a Bee” (1965) and “Carnivorous Plants” (1955).
Call the AMMI at 718-784-0077 for showtimes.
Reach Qguide Editor David Glenn by e-mail at glenn@Timesledger.com or call 229-0300, Ext. 139.
