For a look into the Los Angeles of yester-year, head to the Central Library this weekend, where they’ll be dusting off some vintage newsreels and government promo videos made between 1926 and 1970. The screening will include reels from the L.A. city archive that have rarely, if ever, been seen by the general public before.
These films, originally made by the LAPD, the Department of Public Works and others, have only recently been restored and digitized. Experts from the City Historical Society will be on hand with a lecture to provide context for the footage. You’ll get to see what recruitment and training videos looked like for law enforcement and civil service agencies of the past and see how the city has changed over time.
The free event is organized by the Historical Society along with the History Department of the Richard J. Riordan Central Library and will be presented by the official city archivist, Michael Holland.
One of the oldest films is the 1926 Soldiers of Security, depicting a vacant lot Downtown before City Hall was constructed, according to Curbed Los Angeles. Other clips include aerial footage of Downtown taken at various points from the 1940s to 1960s and images of the old days of Little Tokyo. You’ll get to see Mayor Sam Yorty (known as “Shoot from the Lip Sam” and the “Maverick Mayor” because political nicknames were more fun back then) take the oath of office in 1961 and watch the 1960 World Champion Dodgers.
This is Los Angeles: Movies Made By and About the City takes place in the Mark Taper Auditorium of the Los Angeles Central Library on Sunday, October 2, from 2pm to 4pm. The event is free and while advance RSVP is encouraged, admittance is based on capacity.
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