Made in 1942 during WWII by Universal for the U.S. Government and the War Production Board, KEEPING FIT features actors Robert Stack, Broderick Crawford, Andy Devine, Anne Gwynne, Irene Hervey, Lon Chaney Jr. and Dick Foran in a propaganda movie directed by Directed by Arthur Lubin, written by Paul Huston and produeced by Will Cowan. The film was intended to be shown to war workers and, apparently, the wives of war workers who would be tasked with keeping them well fed and “in shape”. The plot of the movie centers around an aircraft factory worker, who passes out at his job due to lack of sleep and poor nutrition (he had a donut and coffee for breakfast). Stack goes to see a doctor who scolds him for his poor habits, and this message is repeated at the 2:30 mark in a speech given by the factory foreman. (All the while, another employee is busy eating a gigantic lollipop! Yes, this ain’t too subtle a movie.)
At 4:26, the job of the working mother and housewife is seen, with a wife scampering to feed her husband. At 4:45, she is in tears because her husband refused to eat the food she prepared — too many starches. This food is not a balanced diet (explains an older woman) because it lacks vegetables —
A guest speaker talks about nutrition and talks about how to make a well balanced, nutritious meal in minutes that leaves a hungry man satisfied. This includes milk, tomatoes, vegetables, salads — fresh fruits.
At 7:50, exercise is emphasized including baseball, table tennis, bowling, swimming, and more. At 8:00, archery is shown with people shooting targets consisting of cartoons of Tojo, Mussolini and Hitler.
At 8:30, the lazy SOB who was eating a lollipop earlier is shown finally getting some exercise pitching horse shoes. He finally reforms himself and vows to get physically fit.
Get proper rest, get up on time, go to your doctor once a year, keep clean, get good nutrition, drink lots of water, and play a bit each day — that’s the advice of this film which is still relevant today.
Arthur Lubin (July 25, 1898 – May 12, 1995) was an American film director and producer who directed several Abbott & Costello films and created the TV series Mister Ed. A prominent director for Universal Pictures in the 1950s, he is perhaps best known today as the man who gave Clint Eastwood his first contract in film.
We encourage viewers to add comments and, especially, to provide additional information about our videos by adding a comment! See something interesting? Tell people what it is and what they can see by writing something for example: “01:00:12:00 — President Roosevelt is seen meeting with Winston Churchill at the Quebec Conference.”
This film is part of the Periscope Film LLC archive, one of the largest historic military, transportation, and aviation stock footage collections in the USA. Entirely film backed, this material is available for licensing in 24p HD, 2k and 4k. For more information visit http://www.PeriscopeFilm.com
