Prelinger Archives

433–480 of 10,345 films, free to watch, from the world's open archives.

Where these films come from, and who sees what

Every film here plays from the archive that keeps it: the Internet Archive, Wikimedia Commons, the NASA Image and Video Library, the Library of Congress and Open Images (the Netherlands Institute for Sound and Vision). Nothing is copied to this site. Each film's page names its archive, links to its page there, and states its licence or status as the archive does.

Archive films carry no age ratings, so each is placed from the collections it sits in and the subjects the archive gives it, cautiously. Sexual content and nudity are left out altogether.

Little OnesFilms for young children by name: nursery rhymes, lullabies, preschool.
KidsCartoons and animation, children's and family films, and educational films, unless they deal with war, propaganda, crime, horror or drugs, or carry racial caricature.
TweensDocumentaries, science, nature and space, classic comedies, newsreels, commercials and lectures.
TeensEverything else, including anything we cannot tell about; war, crime, horror and westerns go no lower.
AdultSexual themes (such as the old "sex hygiene" films), gore, surgery, slaughter, atrocity footage.
Internet Archive Wheels of Progress 1927 · Short · 13 min · Subtitles Reviews the history of transportation in the U.S. and promotes the economic and social benefits of more and better public roads.. Internet Archive Ulcer at Work 1957 · Short · 28 min · Subtitles Excellent noir-type film about pressures facing a white-collar worker whose ulcer drives him to psychological extremes. "Ulcer at Work" portrays the struggles… Internet Archive Fun of Being Thoughtful, The 1950 · Short · 10 min · Subtitles Social guidance film for teenagers encouraging insight into the motives, tastes and desires of others. Internet Archive Hands 1944 · Short · 2 min · Subtitles Impressionistic film promoting total war mobilization, showing only human hands. Internet Archive As We Like It 1952 · Film · Subtitles Beer promotional film. "Sparkling, golden, pure, refreshing, a beverage as old as history." Summary: This film is a promotional defense of the American beer… Internet Archive Challenge of Ideas, The (Part II) 1961 · Short · 3 min · Subtitles John Wayne, Edward R. Murrow and others discuss the ideological battle between U.S. and Soviet Union. Internet Archive Right or Wrong? (Making Moral Decisions) 1951 · Short · 10 min · Subtitles Assessing the behavior of a juvenile delinquent who refuses to rat on his companions. Internet Archive Island of Yesterday: Sumatra, Dutch West Indies, The 1920 · Short · 9 min · Subtitles Goodyear's own film about its rubber plantations on the island of Sumatra, depicting Sumatra's culture in a highly patronizing and racist fashion. Internet Archive In Our Hands, Part 1: How We Got What We Have 1950 · Short · 20 min · Subtitles How economic progress comes from the accumulation of privately owned tools of production; demonstrates the need for tools by showing a young couple with their… Internet Archive Why Braceros? 1959 · Short · 18 min · Subtitles Produced to justify the bracero farm labor program to the general public, especially American citizens in California who felt threatened by the influx of… Internet Archive New Seven-Function Remote Control for Color 1959 · Short · 3 min · Subtitles Promotes an early version of the television remote control. We have the picture, but not the soundtrack of this film. Internet Archive South Dakota Saga (Part II) 1940 · Short · 16 min · Subtitles Gold mining and the life of gold miners in South Dakota, as seen by the mining company. Internet Archive Color Harmony 1938 · Film · Subtitles The human eye and its function in seeing colors separately and in combination. Color vision explained. 09:01:19:10 Great underwater shot of a swimming sea… Internet Archive Story of Television, The 1956 · Film · Subtitles Shows efforts of the Radio Corporation of America (RCA) in the creation, development and introduction of the all-electronic TV system; explains how science… Internet Archive Motivation and Reward in Learning 1948 · Short · 13 min · Subtitles Uses white rats to picture trial-and-error problem solving and to demonstrate the importance of motivation and reward in the learning process. Internet Archive San Francisco World's Fair (The News Parade) 1939 · Film · Subtitles PRESENTS 36 DIFFERENT NATIONS DISPLAYING EXHIBITS AT SAN FRANCISCO'S WORLD'S FAIR W/SPECIAL EMPHASIS ON JAPAN, AUSTRALIA, INDOCHINA, CHINA & THE HISTORIC… Internet Archive 1960 Kennedy-Nixon Debate (Part II) 1960 · Short · 14 min · Subtitles Part two of a kinescope of the John F Kennedy and Richard M Nixon presidential debate. Internet Archive Postwar Germany: 28 Months After V-E Day (Part IV) 1947 · Home movie · 10 min · Subtitles Investigation of German industrial production capabilities after the devastation of World War II. With striking images of destroyed German cities and… Internet Archive Open Road A 1951 · Film · Subtitles Educational film about how steel is used to make highways, including problems that occur with time and use. Internet Archive [Home Movies: Medicus collection: New York World's Fair, 1939-40] (Reel 4) 1939 · Home movie · Subtitles 06:00:39:28 - 06:51:56:07 color silent 1939 World's Fairs: New York, 1939-40; Amateur films. Detailed documentation of the "World of Tomorrow" in beautiful… Internet Archive Lost Landscapes of Detroit (Year 3, 2012) 2012 · Home movie · Subtitles The third annual Lost Landscapes of Detroit archival film compilation premiered on September 29, 2012 at Salt & Cedar Letterpress Gallery in Detroit's Eastern… Internet Archive Our Home Town: Levittown, Pa. 1954 · Short · 21 min · Subtitles Advertising film presenting landmarks, businesses and people of a well-known Philadelphia suburb, one of the planned communities built by William Levitt & Sons. Internet Archive Skyline New York 1956 · Film · Subtitles 01:01:46:21 CU 1950s father says “That’s a good even Steven proposition, Mother your daughter’s a born bargainer.” 01:01:52:04 CU 1950s mother with look of… Internet Archive Am I Trustworthy? 1950 · Short · 10 min · Subtitles How a child learns to return borrowed items, keep promises and fulfill assignments. Internet Archive [Soldier With Big Feet] 1950 · Newsreel · 1 min · Subtitles Soldier at Presidio of San Francisco wears size 16 AAA shoes; the army has none in stock in his size. Newsreel story. Internet Archive Autobiography of a Jeep 1943 · Short · 9 min · Subtitles Describes the designing of the Jeep to meet military needs of being compact, light weight and maneuverable over rough terrain. This film appears to be a… Internet Archive Fences and Gates 2026 · Film · Subtitles Takes a look at modern economics as it documents the efforts of a group of young musicians who are unable to achieve financial success. Presents basic… Internet Archive Vision in the Forest 1957 · Short · 5 min · Subtitles While country music singer Vaughn Monroe camps with his family in a beautiful forest, one of his daughters encounters a talking Smokey Bear in a clearing and… Internet Archive Mainline U.S.A. 1957 · Short · 18 min · Subtitles Importance of railroads in the U.S. economy, with many great running views of freight and passenger trains. Internet Archive How to Keep a Job 1949 · Short · 10 min · Subtitles What you need to do to stay employed: choose the right job, get along with colleagues, maintain positive attitude, etc. Internet Archive Sinclair at the World's Fair 1965 · Film · Subtitles Great color; comprehensive footage of 1964-65 New York World’s Fair. 17:12:10:07 Large sign in arch “Peace Through Understanding” with palatial Chinese… Internet Archive Visit to Santa, A 1963 · Film · Subtitles One of the cheapest Santa films ever produced. Shot in Pittsburgh, with blurry home movie footage of Santa parades (on one float he sticks out of a giant… Internet Archive Your Fire Department (Part I) 1949 · Short · 15 min · Subtitles Detailed treatment of the Los Angeles Fire Department, its equipment, personnel and activities. With excellent Kodachrome footage of firefighters at work,… Internet Archive Belo Horizonte 1949 · Short · 17 min · Subtitles Development of Brazil's planned city. Internet Archive Mullinaires, The 1953 · Short · 10 min · Subtitles A chorus of kitchen salesmen sings an inspirational song to rally the rest of the troops. Internet Archive [News Magazine of the Screen, December 1950] (Part I) 1950 · Newsreel · 14 min · Subtitles Newsreel stories reformatted for educational presentation, including the assassination attempt on President Harry S. Truman. Internet Archive In My Merry Oldsmobile 1932 · Cartoon · 6 min · Subtitles Surprisingly licentious advertising cartoon produced by the Fleischer brothers. Internet Archive Combat America (Part IV) 1945 · Short · 16 min · Subtitles Follows the Flying Fortress crews of the 351st Bombardment Group from the end of their training at a Colorado training field to actual combat over Germany. Internet Archive This is Coffee 1961 · Short · 11 min · Subtitles Loving tribute to America's favorite stimulant. Internet Archive Alchemist In Hollywood, The (Part II) 1940 · Short · 13 min · Subtitles Explains chemical processes used in the motion picture laboratory. Diagrams and demonstrations of exposure, photochemical reactions, development, and… Internet Archive Open Road B 1951 · Film · Subtitles Educational film about how steel is used to make highways, including problems that occur with time and use. Internet Archive Flying with Arthur Godfrey (Part II) 1953 · Commercial · 24 min · Subtitles TV host Arthur Godfrey takes controls of a passenger plane to demonstrate airline operations. Internet Archive Great Railroad at Work, A (Part I) 1942 · Short · 24 min · Subtitles Everything there is to know about the New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad. Internet Archive Facing Reality 1954 · Short · 11 min · Subtitles Surreal presentation of the common ways in which people escape from reality -- daydreaming, identification, suppression and malingering. Internet Archive Activity Group Therapy (Part I) 1950 · Short · 10 min · Subtitles Shows socially-maladjusted boys 10 to 11 years old being benefitted therapeutically by "acting out" their disturbances upon their environment and each other… Internet Archive Helping Johnny Remember 1956 · Short · 10 min · Subtitles Surreal social guidance film showing the problems of a boy rejected by other children because he is selfish, uncooperative and domineering. Internet Archive Behind the Freedom Curtain 1957 · Short · 17 min · Subtitles Sales film for voting machines, promoting them as engines of governmental efficiency and practical democracy. Internet Archive Highlights of the 1936 Olympics (Berlin) 1936 · Film · Subtitles Contents. Brief sketches of the important events of the 1936 Olympic games in Berlin. Opening scenes show Berlin's huge stadium in which the games were held.…