Winter Warmers: How Chaplin did it?

Lots of talk in the news regarding fuel poverty. One would like to say this is nothing new. As Charlie Chaplin shows there are lots of ways to keep warm over the cold winter months. Got a bog cooker/oven? Keep close to it and spend time in the kitchen, no need to turn on the central heating. Did he really need his Kane sat down?.

 

I have always been a fan of silent movies, more so the Marx brothers but some of the first ones I watched were of Charlie Chaplin. Never realized until recently he was British. I guess that's another fine export from out shores. Remarkable photo of him stripped of his movie attire and makeup. This was taken from 1916.

Kes: Too Yorkshire to make it good

For those that don't know, Kes was a film set in South Yorkshire. It was pretty good, reading the history of the film its amusing how the broad Yorkshire accents put off most people from bothering to watch it.

One of the all time classic scenes from the film was with Brian Glover. a PE teacher educating the boys on the finer arts of footy! Hilarious how its so close to the truth in so many schools at the time. Man Utd top and' all.  Our hero goes in goals and has a reet time of it I tell thee.

 A lot of the film is centered around the relationship of a troubled boy and his kestrel to escape the crappy world he finds himself in.

The school scenes are funny even today, punishment in those days revolved around long sticks and fear!

Ken Loach really has done some brilliant films over the years, a master of his craft. The grim reality of Barnsley in the 60s was excellently portrayed in Kes, just not sure the world was ready for it then.

The American Civil War: The ruins of Richmond, 1865.

Just one of the many Matthew Brady photos of the civil war. This one interested me because it looked like a scene from a bombing more associated with ww2 than the civil war. It is nice to see the cannon balls are all neatly stacked and remain in place to use if and when needed.

WW1 Propaganda Poster: Make 'um feel guilty!

I have seen a lot of Propaganda posters while doing this blog, this one made me chuckle. How to make the average man who has not enlisted yet feel guilty! 

Great stuff. Are you satisfied with what you are doing? as apposed to traveling for months to get shot at in some awful hell hole in Europe.  Are you happy walking the streets seeing men in Uniforms? What are the consequences of staying at home? 

Canada played a big part in the War and I guess in no small part to posters like this.

WW1: Planes in battle

 Standard German Hannover CL which seems to have had a slight problem landing. One thing I did notice looking at photos of planes used on all sides in WW1 that most were tiny! Barely room for a gunner and pilot.

It seems really hard to find an actual photo of planes taking part in a battle. Most of them showed crashed, burnt out or simple static grounded planes with men posing next to them. Here I assume is an unaltered photo a perfect example of planes used in trench battles. Can you image 3-4 planes machine gun or small bombs pounding your trench just as the other sides soldiers where making a charge?

Jack Johnson: Boxing History

Jack Johnson was an American boxer in the early 1900's.

A pretty amazing story of how Johnson become the most famous African American on Earth! The above photo was taken from his fight in Cuba vs Jess Willard in 1915. Just lasting the 26 rounds, Johnson won virtually every round up until his knockout and defeat in the 26th. Jess was hailed as the "Great white hope".

Unable to find boxing opponents after beating Jeffries (dubbed the fight of the century and resulting riots across the country) he turned to racing cars.

Ken Burns made a fantastic documentary "Unforgivable blackness. The rise and fall of Jack Johnson" which is well worth a watch. How times have changed? right.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G-y7bdeRDLI

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CQqpjYGPUwQ

WW1: Trench digging Training.

When we think of Soldiers training we think of men running their bayonets into dummies and shouting alot. Crucial in WW1 though was trenches! Soldiers would find themselves in them for months on end, both serving as protection and living quarters. Here we see a training camp where the chaps (wot wot) are learning how to build the perfect trench. Not sure its 100% realistic, not as much mud as in the real battlefield trenches and look how clean they all look.

WW1 Propaganda poster: Sportsmen are enlisting!

I have a lot of Propaganda posters on this site, most of them from WW1 and WW2 but today was the first time I have ever seen this one (mild excitement)! It makes sense really, if players from great sporting teams can enlist then the government were keen to tell you about it. 

I have read about whole football teams from the early 1900's just vanishing when all of the brave men enlisted for WW1. No wonder it was around this time that to keep sport going in the country they created lots of women's football teams that sadly disappeared when the War finished.

WW1: Third battle of Ypres

Taking up shells by motor-driven light railway during the phase known as the Battle of Langemarck, near Elverdinghe, 19 August 1917.

This photo gives us today a sense of what happened in the Great War and how different it was from today. Look at the car come train giving the necessary method to transport to take supplies to the front, it cannot be going fast as the man at the back seems to be leaning against it, maybe keeping the shells on or just needing a something to lean on while walking. He must have drawn the short straw as the other soldiers are sat on it.  The background looks rather plush, so it must be a little distance away from the muddy fields, woods, that we associate with Ypres.

Are we downhearted?: 1916

Two disabled soldiers on the grounds of the 4th London General Hospital. Lots to love about this photo, the chair looks like a wooden house chair converted into a wheelchair, well used and comfy. Both of the soldiers look rather happy, pipe in hand the other donning his hat. Happy days indeed.

MGM screen credits: 1928

The beginning of the Hollywood era: the filming of the MGM screen credits, 1928. A really interesting photo of movie history here, we all know the famous lion roar on the credits of so many old movies. Look how deadpan the camera and sound men are, professional to the end.

Reichserntedankfest Nazi rally: 1937

Found this reading one of my favorite forums a few days ago. What gets me is the scale of the rally! How many people were there that day? I think the only thing we have today that can begin to recreate this are the rallies in North Korea. You can find plenty of similar Nazi rally photos from around the same time and equally impressive gatherings.

WW1 Train through Flanders

WW1 and a train carrying British troops through the battlefield in the Flanders region of France. Many a famous battle was fought in this area in WW1. A typical scene of total destruction of buildings, landscape and any life shown here. The train does seem rather basic, standing room only and not cover from the constant rain.

WW1 Celebrations: 100 years on. Scots New Year & the end!

Next year (2014) will be the 100 year anniversary of WW1. I believe alot of events will be taking place across the globe for this particular event. 

The Black Watch (Scottish soldiers) celebrating New Year. Like most things in WW1 we have mud in this photo, lots and lots of it. I am not sure but it looks like a camp of some sort, most probably a little off the front line. They seemed rather happy, maybe there was a ceasefire that day!

1918: Crowds outside Buckingham Palace, London, celebrate the Armistice. The end of the War, huge numbers of people across the country joined parties and gatherings.

U.S. 27th Infantry Division; end of World War I. We can often forget that the War was in fact a global event. American troops here marching through New York to mark the end of the War.

Those were true movie stars: 1930-40s

 

 Carole Lombard was a rather unique movie star, at her peak she was one, if not the highest paid actress around. Earning over $500k a year in the 1930's!  Movie stars in those days really did earn their way, making several movies a year was the norm.

 She died at a young age in a plane crash, helping raise money for the WW2.

Apart from the obvious Gone with the Wind film blockbuster, Vivien was a rather well established actress for a number of years. An English rose, with looks to die for, much to the film makers glee! 

 A colourful life, marriages, breakdowns and an international star all rolled into one.

I do enjoy watching the old movies, the actors in the films seem so integral to them those days. The credits at the start having their names in huge letters, camera panning on their faces for what seems an age.