Crucible Of Empire: The Spanish American War [VHS]

This is a well-made documentary with excellent footage, a complementary musical score, and a well-organized narrative that gives viewers a full portrait of a woman who, in 1960, went alone into the heart of Africa at the age of 26 and remained there for decades studying chimpanzees.

Louis Leakey chose Goodall's vocation for her. As his secretary she did not think she had the proper qualifications to study chimps, but he knew otherwise. He sent her to Gombe National Park in Tanzania. The details of Goodall's life given in this video describe not only why Goodall chose such an unusual life but how she has been able to do it, giving the viewer a reason to care about her and in turn about the chimps.

By observing the chimp societies for three decades, she discovered that they used tools, and though she originally thought they were more gentle than humans, she learned they had a dark side too. In 1975 four of her students were kidnapped by armed rebels from Zaire and were held for 10 weeks. Goodall was harshly criticized for caring more about her research than about her students. Confronting the controversy on film makes for fascinating dialogue as Goodall defends herself.

In Jane Goodall: My Life with the Chimpanzees, viewers will learn as much about this incredibly outspoken woman as about the chimps. Her crusade to save them in the wild (at the time of the filming there were only 160 chimps left in Gombe National Park) is extremely important, as is her campaign to improve the situations of chimps in zoos or in laboratories living in horrible conditions. A visit to the chimp cages in a U.S. lab is done with utmost taste but is still mind-blowing. With a smile and mimicking a chimp's hello, Goodall gently forces us all to question the ethics of animal testing. --Cristina Del Sesto

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Classic African American Culture Films DVD: 1930s - 1960s Black History, Culture, & People Films

This is a collection of seven black history films that all showcase a different angle of the African-American cultural experience. The dates of the films range from 1930-1967. Table Of Contents: (1) Palmour Street (1957) - This film stands apart from 99% of the educational film productions involving African-Americans in the mid-1950s because it portrays an African-American family that lives a normal life and the film itself lacks the typical racist narration and stereotypical scenarios - 23 minutes (2) We Work Again (1930s) - This WPA (Works Project Administration) film tries to convey that the New Deal is beneficial for African-Americans - 11 minutes (3) Farmer Henry Browne (1942) - This is a nice portrait of an African-American farmer in Georgia during WWII. Like other Americans assisting in the war effort domestically, Henry Browne uses productivity and hard work to support American troops - 11 minutes (4) Negro Colleges In Wartime (1944) - This short film about the training regiment of African American soldiers in WWII will strike up constructive educational dialogue about the racist treatment black American soldiers received during the WWII. Great video of African American military culture, including footage of the historic Muskogee airmen. - 9 minutes (5) With No One to Help Us (1967) - A group of welfare mothers in Newark form together to fight the overpricing of grocery items to welfare recipients. Amazing historical documentation of the projects of Newark around the 1960s - 19 minutes (6) The Plantation System In Southern Life (1950) - See how the centuries of African American slavery has effected Southern culture and life in the South. A rare and invaluable piece of black history - 10 minutes (7) Teddy (1971) - A social seminar film that picks the brain of Teddy, a politically conscious teenage African American male. Teddy talks about police brutality, war, the Watts community of L.A., The Black Panthers and "The System." - 17 minutes

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The Cold War: Fighting for American Freedom - The History of Anti Communism & Pro Capitalism Propaganda

Table of Contents:
(1) The Magic Bond (1955) - A rare Robert Altman directed film from his early days which is riddled with anti-communist propaganda and tells the story of how the Veterans of Foreign Wars helps to strengthen the community with various programs. - 17 minutes
(2) Don's Be A Sucker (1947) - Odd film that aims to strengthen the American community by explaining that fanaticism and hatred are detrimental to society and is only for "suckers." - 17 minutes
(3) Freedom To Learn (1954) - McCarthy style communist witch-hunt of a high school social studies teacher who feels its important to teach students all points of a subject. When she teaches about governments she includes information about communism in her lessons and is accused of teaching Communism to her students. - 26 minutes
(4) Griffith Park Demonstration (1933) - Scenes from the Demonstration in Los Angeles when 100 Americans died in a fire needlessly. Film is an excellent reminder of the beauty of free speech in America. - 2 minutes
(5) Despotism (1946) - Educational film explains the spectrum of power and political structures from democracy to despotism. - 10 minutes
(6) A Story of Enterprise (1955) - A growing frozen custard business is used as an example to explain mechanisms of capitalism. - 12 minutes
(7) Tragedy Or Hope (1971) - American self promotion propaganda film that explains what America has offered to the world, such as technology and cheap consumer goods. - 19 minutes
(8) What It Means To Be American (1971) - Explains that it is the duty of every American to understand how and what makes America the most desirable place to live in the world. - 22 minutes

Price: $19.99

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