Made for the home market by Castle Films, one of the 20th Century’s most successful 16mm and 8mm home movie companies, this newsreel recounts news events of 1954. It was released in 1955.
Opening titles: Castle Films News Parade of 1954 (:08-:15). Title: Truce in Korea. Korean troops march, U.S. troops leaving. U.S. soldiers return home to happy crowds. People hug, the return of loved ones. Title: Indo-China War and Peace. French fight in the jungles of French Indo-China aka Vietnam. Troops march, some injured. China asks for peace in Geneva. French Premiere and Britain’s Foreign Secretary step off a plane and shake hands with those awaiting their arrival in Geneva. Cease fire agreement signed by French and Vietnamese. People shake hands (:16-2:27). Title: Violence in Congress. Washington, D.C., Puerto Rican terrorists shoot in the halls of congress, five congressmen were hit. The injured were lead out into ambulances. Ambulances leave the scene. three men and one woman were arrested. Those responsible are shown. Their firearms are put on display. Title: Revolt in Guatemala. United Nations meeting. Guatemala is in upheaval, and backed by Russia, the United States isn’t pleased. U.S. Ambassador Lodge made strong comments towards the Soviets (2:28-3:38). Title: Pope Pius X Made Saint. A huge crowd at the Vatican for the elevation of a pope to sainthood. Pope Pius XII leads the way. Catholic service. Painting of Pope Pius X. Title: St. Lawrence Seaway Project Begins. Canadian Ambassador looks on as President Eisenhower signed historic legislation creating the way for the St. Lawrence Seaway. It will link Lake Ontario with the Gulf of St. Lawrence. Map of the Seaway Project. Explosions near a shore signal the start of the project. Poster for the St. Lawrence Power Project. A Royal Canadian Mountie and a United States Police Officer (3:39-4:49). Title: Fastest Mile of the Century. Vancouver, BC, a race for the fastest mile. Roger Bannister won by several yards over the world record-holder John Landy. Both runners finished under four minutes. Title: Year of the Hurricanes. High winds and heavy rain. Downed trees and power lines. Hurricanes Carol, Edna, and Hazel all smashed into the coasts of North America from the Carolinas to Canada. Damage is everywhere. Power lines snapped, high flood waters. Cars are underwater (4:50-6:09). First pictures of the “H” Bomb, the world’s most powerful bomb. Title: New Weapons for Defense. F-89 Scorpion planes. Rockets are fired from the Scorpion. Mid-air refueling. B-36 Bomber flies, drops bombs. Explosions seen below hitting the ground. Scorpion plane dives down in the sky. Planes fire at the ground, explosions on the ground. Bombs are dropped, huge fires erupt. Buildings explode (6:10-8:09). Title: Western Germany Joins West as Ally. Konrad Adenauer of Germany and John Foster Dulles of the United States are present. President Eisenhower shakes hands with a returning Dulles (8:10-8:37). End credits (8:38-8:42).
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
