My brother Mark recently digitized a reel of 16mm film that my Mom had found. It was in bad shape--had eroded and discolored over the years, and was very fragile.
But when he got it somewhat cleaned up, it turned out to be a film that my Dad had made the summer he and Mom started dating, in 1950. According to Mom, Dad was taking some kind of an "education A/V" course, and had to shoot and edit a short film.
This is the result. I call it "Mom & Dad Go on a Date," and it's impossibly sweet.
(It's a silent film, so don't worry that you're missing something sound-wise.)
Readers familiar with West Virginia University might recognize the setting: Women's Hall, now Stalnaker Hall. It's one of the most visible buildings on campus, situated at the very top of the hill above the academic buildings. And yes, those million flights of stairs are still there, too. And I'm sure anyone running up those stairs probably stops running at about exactly the same point my dad does in this film!
3 comments:
What a lovely and sweet artifact of your parents' courtship! How nice to have it restored, and I actually love what the little defects do for the sensibility of the piece. Thanks for sharing it. (You look so like your mother, by the way!)
I love it. A sweet anecdote. And it makes me want to do the same: digitize mom and dad's film archives.
This is priceless, Rosemary. Absolutely priceless. Thanks for sharing it. I wish I had footage like that of my parents.
And WOW, do you look like your mom!
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