How to be a Man

VOLUME 1

HOW TO BE A MAN Instructions for Proper Male Behavior from Classroom Films of the 1940s -'70s.

From the AV/Geeks Film Library

For centuries, parents have struggled to usher their children through the magical, often treacherous, journey to adulthood. But in mid-century America, a new form of tutelage was engineered: the classroom film. Suddenly, the prickly issues of sexual development and juvenile delinquency could be addressed in tidy, ten-minute sermons disguised as dramas. To deal with the subtleties of behavior and the importance of fitting in, "social guidance" films were made on such topics as coping with failure (Planning For Success) and teasing (The Other Fellow's Feelings).

The films in this collection - curated and introduced by Skip Elsheimer, founder of the A/V Geeks educational film archive - sample some of the lessons that were routinely taught to boys. In them, one sees slices of Americana, discovers the world of educational cinema (with a language all its own), and gains an insight into the hopes and fears of the parents and educators who relied on the power of cinema to initiate, educate and indoctrinate the young.

• Fears of Children
  International Film Foundation
  1951 B&W 27 Min.
• Am I Trustworthy?
  Coronet 1950 B&W 10 Min.
• Act Your Age
  Coronet 1949 B&W 12 Min.
• The Other Fellow's Feelings
  Centron 1951 B&W 8 Min.
• Your Body During Adolescence
  McGraw-Hill 1954 B&W 11 Min.
• The Show-off
  Centron 1954 B&W 11 Min.
• Planning For Success
  Coronet 1950 B&W 10 Min.
• Moment of Decision
  Sid Davis Prods. 1961 Color 10 Min.
  Narrated by Timothy Farrell
• Car Theft
  Bray-Mar 1956 B&W 14 Min.
• Dance Little Children
  Centron 1961 Color 25 Min.
• The Decision Is Yours
  Calvin Productions 1970 Color 30 Min.
  

This collection was mastered from vintage 16mm prints circulated among schools and rescued, decades later, by collectors. The image and sound quality of these orphan films do not conform to Kino's usual standard.

Curated by Skip Elsheimer.
Produced for video by Bret Wood.