Uranium Prospecting is a documentary promoting the everyday fortunes that may be made hunting for the rare element uranium-235. The film shows the methods of amateurs, hobbyists, and vacationing families who manage to supplement their income and explore the great outdoors at the same time.
The opening titles of the film have a distinct Mid-Century look with glowing animated letters that zoom in over a globe. Following dramatic music the viewer is introduced to uranium as unrefined particulate. Shots follow which show tools for detecting radioactivity including a scintillator (0:44), and skirt the outside of a nuclear power plant (0:58). A scale holding two ounces of uranium-235 is compared to a speeding train carrying 800 carloads of coal. With the narrator’s pronouncement that “luck favors the amateur,” a scene opens of a family hunting for uranium together (1:45). An outdoorsman loads the trunk of his car with prospecting equipment, giving friendly looks to his female partner. Pamphlets from the Atomic Energy Commission and the U.S. Geological Survey are shown (2:23), along with a tagged sample to be sent in for assay. Compensation for ore and claims and transport are discussed, trucks hauling ore are shown (3:05). A woman hugs her dog in joy while her husband shakes hands over a deal (3:29). An older man in a hunting jacket kneels down to hoist a rock in consideration and then stands by his mailbox, happy at the delivery of a scintillator. Shots of the man unwrapping the raygun-like device and putting it to use are set to suspenseful music (4:17). “A grandmother in Arizona remembered some petrified trees,” intones the narrator, shots of petrified wood and rising gauges follow. A load-in to a helicopter and takeoff are shown (5:24). The film briefly looks into a neighborhood club of prospecting enthusiasts. Details on how to correctly stake and maintain a claim are explained and shown.
The last sections of the film mostly consist of staged scenes intended to seem candid. A family takes a picnic break from prospecting, goofing around with an apple and sandwiches. Three men working at a garage examine a scintillator and cross their fingers for a uranium hunting vacation (8:27). A secretary on lunch break peruses catalogs and a Mining Record newspaper (8:56). She and her boyfriend go out on a prospecting date, the narrator cornily mentioning the potential profitability of “merging their assets” (9:45). Various people are shown prospecting in scenic locations. An old man with a dowsing rod is shown illustrating the wrong way to hunt for uranium (10:26), a bookish youngster with proper gear is shown in contrast. Brief animation shows a globe covered in glowing pockets signifying undiscovered uranium ore (10:47). A family is shown prospecting and then suddenly at poolside, yet another “Cinderella story” (11:18). As the camera closes in on a man with a splashy shirt “John Q. Public is making our country rich with uranium.” End titles fade in over a globe. Directed by Tom McGowan, narrated by Truman Bradley.
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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
