American Museum of Natural History
Organization
Found in 134 Collections and/or Records:
The Bapende of the Belgian Congo
Collection
Identifier: Film Collection no. 62
Scope and Contents
Harry L. Shapiro, anthropologist, is introduced as the expert on the topic and addresses the subject of acculturation in relation to the traditional culture and to the benefits of modern medicine. Shapiro narrates the footage on the Bapende (i.e. Pende) people in the Belgian Congo (now Zaire) excerpted from the filmmaker Andř Couvin's film Bongolo. Native costumes and dances used during a boy's initiation ceremony, black magic demonstrations, and other unique aspects of the culture are...
Dates:
1954
The Bayeux tapestry
Collection
Identifier: Film Collection no. 142
Scope and Contents
The Bayeaux Tapestry is the subject of this broadcast which traces the history of Hastings back to the Norman victory over the Anglo-Saxons in 1066 A.D. in what is believed to be the formation of the English-speaking people. The history of the battles between the Normans and the Anglo-Saxons is chroni cled in the Bayeaux Tapestry. The 210-foot long embroidered tapestry records the story of the battle which occurred on October 14, 1066. Music of the period dramatically accompanies the action...
Dates:
1956
The body ; Oil well #3
Collection
Identifier: Film Collection no. 117
Scope and Contents
SEGMENT 1: The Body. The first segment of this broadcast illustrates how the body works by means of a large machine full of tracks and a small train moving over the human body to portray various systems. For example, doors open and close in the digestive and circulatory systems and realistic sounds are heard. Henry Morgan, an actor, assists Evelyn Shaw, research associate of the AMNH, in her scientific explanation of the body's functions. Film sequences are provided by the Ortho Pharmacy...
Dates:
1955
The Central Asiatic Expeditions : Mongols
Collection
Identifier: Film Collection no. 149
Scope and Contents
China and Mongolia, 1921-1930. The first sequence concentrates on daily life in a Mongol camp near Tsagan Nor (or White Lake). The camp is a complex of Mongolian tents (yurts) with men, sheep, and dogs milling about; yaks pull heavy logs; and a camel is being trained. The film moves to Urga (now Ulan Bator) where Khalka women with elaborate headresses are seen; a Mongol affected with gigantism enters the city and is photographed with Roy Chapman Andrews. The film then shifts back to the...
Dates:
1922-1925
The Chavantes of Mato Grosso ; Field work, snakes ; Meshie
Collection
Identifier: Film Collection no. 38
Scope and Contents
SEGMENT 1: The Chavantes of Mato Grosso. Edward Moffat Weyer, editor of Natural History magazine and the first non-Indian to visit the Chavante (i.e. Shavante) Indians, presents rare photographic images and observations of the Chavantes who live in the Xingu River region of Brazil. Weyer also discusses his visit to the Kamaiura Indians of Mato Grosso. SEGMENT 2: Field Work: Snakes. Robert Northshield, host, observes Charles M. Bogert, chairman of the Department of Amphibians and Reptiles at...
Dates:
1953
The first anniversary show
Collection
Identifier: Film Collection no. 70
Scope and Contents
The first anniversary celebration of the Adventure series brought participation of more than twenty scientists from the American Museum of Natural History. Taken from kinescopes, the program rebroadcasts highlights of programs aired during the series' first year. Listed below are the dates, subject matter and scientists involved in the segments. 12/13/53 Annapurna: Maurice Herzog. 2/14/54 Origin of the Earth: Harvard University film. 12/20/53 History of Life #2: Catharine E. Barry, Thomas...
Dates:
1954
The golden age of whaling
Collection
Identifier: Film Collection no. 144
Scope and Contents
The last voyage of the Charles Morgan, an old whaling ship out of Mystic, Connecticut, is the topic of discussion for the program. Edouard Stackpole, curator of the Mystic Seaport Whaling Museum, traces the ship's final journey in 1921 to the south seas where viewers see sailors facing tropical storms and a frightening "Nantucket sleighride" on a whale that is eventually harpooned. The program reviews the history of whaling in America and the importance of the industry in the eighteenth and...
Dates:
1956
The Hopi Indians ; Balance of nature
Collection
Identifier: Film Collection no. 69
Scope and Contents
SEGMENT 1: The Hopi Indians. This documentary deals with the culture and acculturation of the Hopi who live in virtual isolation from the white man's world on a group of mesas 100 miles northeast of Phoenix, Arizona. The program was prepared with the cooperation of Oliver La Farge, President of the Association of American Indian Affairs and renowned novelist. The deep religious and intellectual beliefs of the Hopi have brought a unique form of government which has been called "beneficial...
Dates:
1954
The romance of the soil
Collection
Identifier: Film Collection no. 47
Scope and Contents
An in-depth presentation of the physical and chemical properties of soil and man's dependence on it is made by Richard H. Pough, chairman of the AMNH Department of Conservation and Plant Ecology. One segment of the program shows plant growth through time-lapse photography, with unusual views of underground roots drinking up water from the surrounding earth. This film was made by Irving Milgate and co-produced by the National Film Board of Canada and the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The...
Dates:
1953
The sea hunters
Collection
Identifier: Film Collection no. 65
Scope and Contents
This remote broadcast from the Gilgo Beach Marine Laboratory of the AMNH, surveys the techniques of marine hunters. Eugenie Clark, research associate for the museum's Department of Animal Behavior, narrates two films: an underwater sequence that shows a struggle between a moray eel and an octopus and another which includes both a polar bear hunting a seal, and a native spear fisherman battling a shark off the coast of Haiti.
Dates:
1954
American Museum of Natural History
Museum Archives at the Gottesman Research Library
200 Central Park West
New York, NY 10024-5192