The ‘US News Review’ films were produced by the Office of War Information (:10). This was a government organization created during WW2 that used media forms such as film, radio broadcasts, newspapers and others as a way to connect the battlefront to civilian communities. This is issue #3 and opens with the ‘Plywood Bomber’ also known as the de Havilland Mosquito (:24). It is seen being inspected by de Havilland officials (:29). The fuselage was constructed with two plywood skins and a softer wood was used for insulation (:36). Its wings were formed with large sheets of supple wood (:48). It is then seen filmed for the first time before taking a trail run (:58). The bomber was able to have four machine guns and four cannons mounted from it (1:27). A test pilot from de Havilland is seen checking controls prior to lift off and the actual lift off follows (1:40). A view from the nose of the craft as it lifted off the runway is given (1:44). It was able to hit speeds of up to 430 mph (1:55) and this segment concludes with its touchdown (2:33). The next segment is about New Guinea (2:52) and opens with a map pointed to Milne Bay which was an important UN harbor as the Allied forces had a base in Port Moresby (3:01). The goal was to keep the harbor from falling into Japanese forces’ hands which would prevent supplies getting to the base. Japan did attempt to land forces here however they were defeated (3:11). A span of supplies that were still able to make it to the base follows (3:23). Search parties are seen scanning the coast for enemy forces (3:30). Signs of a rapid retreat from the Japanese include a destroyed and abandoned landing barge (3:37), abandoned tanks in the jungle (4:03), a bullet hole rigged tanker truck (4:10), a discarded 37 millimeter field gun (4:13) and a bicycle which the Japanese used extensively during the campaign from Malaya to New Guinea (4:23). A close up of a bullet proof vest found (4:31) and the two toed shoes which Japanese snipers used to climb trees follow (4:49). The Australian Air Force Kittyhawk fighter squadron (5:04) gave air support to the ground troops during this battle (5:04). As the landing grounds were often damp and unusable, steel mats were brought in and became portable launch pads (5:20). The slogan back in the US during the war was ‘Fix It’ (5:38). As much of the US industry was dedicating itself to war production, many new home appliances couldn’t be bought (5:44). A sign follows inside of a store explaining the showroom had been closed due to government restrictions and the prohibition of the manufacturing of their products (5:46). As many stores and shelves were now empty (5:48) new and easy to install parts were becoming available (5:59). Cotton and wool were also war products and a turn to mending clothes began with stores opening up to support this (6:16). An electric plant that used to produce new goods is now seen as a general fix it store for general house hold equipment (6:43). Schools had begun to educate kids on how to help fix appliances at home (7:04) and adults began to go back to school to learn how to patch and mend (7:28). The first American attack on Italian soil, in the city of Naples follows (8:18). On December 4th, 1942 crews are seen loading into bomber planes and taking off from a field somewhere in North Africa (8:51). This attack was decided upon as the heavy industries of Italy had recently moved to Naples after being attacked by the RAF (9:42). Some of these planes were veterans and the stenciled-on stars and ships for every enemy plane shot down and every ship sunk (respectively) are pointed out on the plane’s fuselages (10:01). Footage of the 100,000 lbs. of bombs dropped follows (10:38). The next section includes a narrative of a man called Arthur Hocking who had recently received a Western Union telegraph (11:47) informing him that his son had been killed in action. He is an industry worker and sets to writing a letter to his friends insisting they work harder to help end the war so their sons won’t also be killed (12:25). The final segment is the US Coast Guard song which is called the Semper Paratus (15:08). It was created in 1928 and is the official song and march of the US Coast Guard. The film concludes with this song as the Coast Guard enacts trainings and exercises (19:02).

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