Prelinger Archives

481–528 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 Round and Round (Widgets) 1939 · Cartoon · 5 min · Subtitles Highly simplified explanation of free-enterprise economics that fails to mention the idea of profit. Internet Archive Law and Social Controls 1949 · Short · 9 min · Subtitles Uses the story of teens trying to extend the hours of their "Teen Canteen" as a vehicle for explaining customs, moral codes, and laws. Internet Archive Old Chinese Proverb: One Picture Is Worth Ten Thousand Words, An 1946 · Short · 22 min · Subtitles A tour through the Jerry Fairbanks studios in Hollywood, showing the production of animation, TV films, industrial and advertising films. Internet Archive Show 'Em the Road (Part II) 1954 · Short · 12 min · Subtitles Southern California teenagers join the Mobilgas "Safety and Economy" competition, driving from the Los Angeles area to the Inland Empire, the desert, to Las… Internet Archive Arranging The Tea Table Short · 5 min · Subtitles Explains the reasoning behind attractive and correct tea-table arranging. One of the satellite films that accompanied Let's Give a Tea. See also Arranging a… Internet Archive Airport America 1954 · Short · 13 min · Subtitles Advocates increased airport construction, especially in rural America. Describes the centrality of general aviation to the U.S. economy. With many images of… Internet Archive Holiday from Rules? 1959 · Short · 10 min · Subtitles "Lord of the Flies" from an adult's point of view, starring four willful and confused children. Internet Archive What Makes a Fine Watch Fine? 1947 · Short · 19 min · Subtitles History and practice of precision watchmaking at the Hamilton factory in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. Internet Archive [Panama Canal] 1912 · Film · Subtitles Narration describes the construction of and history behind the Panama Canal. Footage primarily of trains, construction machinery and workers. Includes Gatun… Internet Archive 1964 New York World's Fair Report 1961 · Short · 25 min · Subtitles Preparation, planning and construction for the Fair, under the imperious direction of Robert Moses. Internet Archive [Chevrolet Sales Convention Musical] 1954 · Short · 15 min · Subtitles Rare record of song-and-dance at a Chevrolet sales convention, designed to motivate the sales force. Internet Archive News Magazine of the Screen: Atomic Energy 1950 · Short · 21 min · Subtitles Compilation of 1950s newsreel stories on atomic weapons testing, civil defense and nuclear energy. Internet Archive Beginning Responsibility: Taking Care of Things 1951 · Short · 9 min · Subtitles Instructs children how to care for toys, clothing and other property; to have a definite place to keep belongings, and how to store and handle possessions… Internet Archive Cheerios/V-8 1960 · Commercial · 1 min · Subtitles Cereal commercial targeted at children of the space age. Internet Archive American Frontier 1953 · Film · Subtitles Title Card: "American Frontier" and opening credits superimposed over U.S. map. Film describes events taking place after discovery of oil in Williston Basin,… Internet Archive Roads to Romance: Coral Gables 1950 · Short · 3 min · Subtitles Travelogue, made for theatrical showing, promoting tourism in Coral Gables, Florida. Shows colorful parrots, the University of Miami, and a visit to the beach. Internet Archive Understanding Your Ideals 1950 · Short · 14 min · Subtitles A high school boy primarily concerned with automobiles, dates, and parties learns from his father's example that ideals are really based on honesty,… Internet Archive Germany: A Family of the Industrial Ruhr 1958 · Short · 16 min · Subtitles Examines the varied activities in the life of an average working man's family in a German industrial city after World War II. Internet Archive Office Courtesy: Meeting the Public 1952 · Short · 10 min · Subtitles Assisted by an instructive dream, a secretary learns how to be more personable and thus render her job more enjoyable. Internet Archive Make Mine Freedom 1948 · Film · Subtitles The end of World War II did not bring peace at home. Nuclear anxiety, anti-Communism and international political realignments fueled the Cold War and turned… Internet Archive Angry Boy (Part II) 1950 · Short · 13 min · Subtitles Alexander Hammid's sensitive narrative of how a pre-adolescent boy is helped by a psychiatrist to come to terms with his feelings. Internet Archive #Bfl O {ggGX = STwWcfl x 2s4 (Calvin Workshop) 1963 · Short · 6 min · Subtitles Spoofy look at the motion-picture production process, made to encourage discussion among filmmakers. Internet Archive Coney Island 1940 · Short · 9 min · Subtitles The great amusement zone in its heyday. Internet Archive Tuberculosis (Third Edition) 1955 · Short · 10 min · Subtitles Causes of treatment of tubercular infection, and tuberculosis as a social phenomenon. Internet Archive Psychogenic Disease in Infancy 1952 · Short · 19 min · Subtitles Illustrates a series of psychogenic diseases and attempts to relate them to the infants' relationships with their mothers. Internet Archive English Children: Life in the City 1949 · Short · 10 min · Subtitles Typical events in the daily life of an English urban family just after World War II. Internet Archive Aluminum on the March (Part II) 1956 · Cartoon · 13 min · Subtitles How aluminum contributes to everyday living and national defense: appliances, packaging, airplanes, etc. With great stop-motion animation and excellent… Internet Archive Color Harmony for Your Home 1956 · Short · 20 min · Subtitles The Colorizer system of paint matching and mixing, with a tribute to the role color consciousness plays in everyday life and modern design. Internet Archive [Pan American Clipper] 1935 · Commercial · 3 min · Subtitles Scenes of Pan American's China Clippers flying in and around San Francisco Bay, including through the incomplete towers of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge. Internet Archive Command Performance 1942 · Short · 18 min · Subtitles How shellac records were produced and manufactured. Internet Archive Dynamic American City, The (Part I) 1956 · Short · 14 min · Subtitles Advocates urban redevelopment and renewal, 1950s-style. Supports many planning strategies which are criticized today: the destruction of "blighted"… Internet Archive On Guard! The Story of SAGE 1956 · Short · 12 min · Subtitles Innovations in computer technology as weapons in the Cold War. Internet Archive Movietone News: "The Star-Spangled Banner" (Version II) 1944 · Newsreel · 1 min · Subtitles Patriotic montage of scenes accompanying performance of U.S. national anthem as sung by Merrill Miller. Internet Archive [Lincoln Highway Dedication] 1915 · Short · 1 min · Subtitles Dedication of the western terminus of the Lincoln Highway (old U.S. 30), the legendary transcontinental route, in Lincoln Park, San Francisco. Internet Archive Diesel Story, The 1952 · Film · Subtitles The history of the Diesel engine, from the Pre-Dioesel engines of the late 1800s (Hot Bulb, Steam, Gas and Gasoline) to Rudolph Diesel and recreated 1890s… Internet Archive [Dream Hospital] 1950 · Newsreel · 1 min · Subtitles Scenes at the brand-new, $2 million Kaiser Hospital somewhere in California. Newsreel story. Internet Archive Town, The 1945 · Short · 10 min · Subtitles Shows life during wartime in an American town (Madison, Indiana). Directed by Josef von Sternberg. Internet Archive Banks And Credits 1948 · Educational · Subtitles Coronet Instructional Films (a division of Esquire Inc.) presents Banks and Credit. Educational collaborator James Harvey Dodd, PhD., Professor of Economics… Internet Archive You and Your Bicycle 1948 · Short · 8 min · Subtitles "You and Your Bicycle" is a 1948 short film that offers practical guidance on bicycle safety and maintenance, emphasizing the importance of proper riding… Internet Archive Developing Self-Reliance 1951 · Short · 10 min · Subtitles Social guidance film showing how necessary self-reliance is to all successful endeavors and happiness. Internet Archive American Women: Partners in Research 1960 · Short · 12 min · Subtitles Describes the market research undertaken by Corning Glass Works prior to marketing a coffeemaker. Internet Archive To Market, To Market (Part I) 1942 · Short · 19 min · Subtitles Proliferation of outdoor advertising billboards through Chicago and the methods of analyzing potential advertising sites. This part explains the strategy… Internet Archive American Engineer (Part III) 1956 · Short · 6 min · Subtitles Tribute to engineers and their role in improving American life through technology. Internet Archive Yankee Story, The 1956 · Film · Subtitles Promotional film for the Yankee network, a network of radio stations in New England with excellent shots of radio production and radio broadcasting.… Internet Archive Color Keying in Art and Living 1950 · Short · 9 min · Subtitles How color relationships and coordination are applied to art, hair styling, eyes, complexion, dress and home decoration. Narrator: James A. Brill. Educational… Internet Archive [San Francisco: V-J Day] 1945 · Home movie · 13 min · Subtitles Riotous celebrations in San Francisco and Redwood City, California as soldiers, sailors and civilians celebrate the end of World War II. Internet Archive How Do You Do? 1946 · Short · 13 min · Subtitles Trains teenagers to act according to the rules of proper social etiquette. Promotes proper behavior as a means of gaining social poise and self-assurance.… Internet Archive Journalism 1940 · Short · 10 min · Subtitles Shows writing and editing jobs for newspapers and magazines in the deep analog era.