Prelinger Archives

1,057–1,104 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 Telegram for America 1956 · Short · 19 min · Subtitles History, technology and 1950s-era practice of the telegraphy business. Internet Archive Boulder Dam Film · Subtitles Government-sponsored film about the building of the Boulder dam. Internet Archive Robinson Crusoe C 1927 · Film · Subtitles Silent film version of Daniel Defoe's novel Robinson Crusoe, directed and produced (and starring) M.A. Wetherell. In three parts. Internet Archive Who Shall Reap? 1969 · Film · Subtitles Insects or humans? Weeds, diseases, and other pestilence that confound farmers and threaten the worlds food supply. Shotlist CU fossilized insect CU… Internet Archive Roads To Romance Film · Subtitles Travelogue, made for theatrical showing and commissioned by Cheverolet, promoting tourism by car in several areas, including Oak Creek Canyon in Arizona, San… Internet Archive Incredible Machine, The 1968 · Film · Subtitles Informs viewer of the experimental advances in audiovisual communications techniques Bell Telephone Laboratories' researchers are experimenting with: computer… Internet Archive Home Economics Story, The 1951 · Film · Subtitles This idealized story of four years in the life of Kay, Jean, Helen, and Louise evokes the lost world of Iowa State's Home Economics Division in the fifties.… Internet Archive Library Organization 1951 · Film · Subtitles "Explains the card cataloguing and the Dewey Decimal systems in use in a library and shows how detailed understanding of library organization assists in… Internet Archive Coveted East Indies, The 1938 · Film · Subtitles PA-0681 (Reel 1) shotlist: VS Dutch Batavia, Java 1940s; women washing clothes in river 03:03:30:27 Street signs pointing toward: Batavia, Serang, Tangerang,… Internet Archive San Francisco Earthquake Aftermath, Part 6 1906 · Short · 3 min · Subtitles Riding down Market Street to inspect the destruction. Internet Archive In Our Hands, Part 2: What We Have 1950 · Short · 13 min · Subtitles Strengths of the American free enterprise system and how it meets the needs of its citizens. Internet Archive Patty Learns to Stop, Look and Listen 1947 · Short · 16 min · Subtitles Patty Garman carelessly runs onto a crowded highway and is hit by a car. The details of her treatment and recovery are shown. Produced and Photographed by… Internet Archive To The Fair (Pt 2) 1965 · Film · Subtitles Provides a trip to the New York World's Fair of 1965, showing the various activities at the fair. Internet Archive [Largest Radio Transmitter Is Dedicated] 1950 · Newsreel · Subtitles U.S. Navy opens 1 megawatt transmitter in Cascade Mountains of Washington, known as 'Radio Jim Creek.' Newsreel story. Internet Archive Look at Capitalism, A 1955 · Film · Subtitles Defines capitalism and shows that the keystone in American capitalism is the principle of ownership of the means of production and distribution. Internet Archive Gifts of the Sun 1946 · Short · 17 min · Subtitles Beautiful Kodachrome film showing how California dried fruit is grown, harvested, processed, sorted, weighed, and packed. With alluring imagery of apricots,… Internet Archive War Within a War, A 1965 · Film · Subtitles Vietnam-era film about the battle for the hearts and minds of the Vietnamese. "In the final victory, it will not be who holds the ground, but who holds the… Internet Archive American Road, The (Part I) 1953 · Short · 17 min · Subtitles Shows development of transportation in the United States during the first half of the 20th century, emphasizing growth of automobile industry, roads and… Internet Archive American Maker 1960 · Film · Subtitles Relates how Americans build, from youth throughout life, by using their ingenuity not only in technological advancement but in everyday efforts by everyone.… Internet Archive [Dead Fair] 1940 · Newsreel · 1 min · Subtitles Treasure Island, in San Francisco Bay, shown after the closure of the Golden Gate International Exposition. Internet Archive Greater Goal: Human Dividends from American Industry, The 1953 · Film · Subtitles The Greater Goal pulls out all the stops and repeats the extravagant view of business to which we, as seasoned ephemeral film spectators, have become well… Internet Archive Why Not Live? Short · 10 min · Subtitles Dramatic and shocking safety film set in the dangerous landscape and roadscape of 1930s America. Internet Archive Magic Bond, The (Part I) 1955 · Short · 14 min · Subtitles The Veterans of Foreign Wars as a fraternal and social organization, with emphasis on their projects that benefit community life and cohesion. Directed by… Internet Archive Big Train, The 1950 · Film · Subtitles Internet Archive [Guide Dogs for the Blind] 1950 · Newsreel · 1 min · Subtitles Visit to Guide Dogs for the Blind, San Rafael, California: a school for training seeing-eye dogs to assist blind people. Newsreel story. Internet Archive Steel: A Symphony of Industry 1936 · Short · 17 min · Subtitles Dramatic presentation of steel production. Internet Archive [Television commercials: Toothpaste, hair care, deodorant] 1960 · Commercial · Subtitles B/W 1) 00:02:85 A husband helps his wife remove from the car an "antique" chair that she just purchased. He jokes that it looks like a dentist chair, which… Internet Archive Food for America (Part I) 1941 · Short · 22 min · Subtitles This Kodachrome film is a travelogue of epic length in which the camera rarely leaves the factory floor. Mrs. Harwood, a lady of a certain social position,… Internet Archive Dropout, The 1962 · Film · Subtitles A warning to would-be slackers, The Dropout shows the loneliness and frustration that develop in Robert, who drops out of school and tries to find a job… Internet Archive Golden Harvest...Fifty Years of Calpak Progress 1950 · Short · 18 min · Subtitles History of a company involved in the California canning industry, with excellent footage of agribusiness and cannery operations dating back to the turn of the… Internet Archive Fashion Horizons 1940 · Film · Subtitles Combines airplane trips and fashion. Heavy on the fashion. • 42:93- 1:04:38 Still shot of a shiny silver airplane floating in the sky above the clouds—the… Internet Archive Speaking of Rubber (Part I) 1951 · Short · 13 min · Subtitles Narrated by a retired "rubber man," this classic industrial film shows the uses and manufacturing of rubber products. With excellent images of making boots,… Internet Archive Work Pays America 1937 · Film · Subtitles Sings the praises of the WPA. Contents. Activities of the Works Progress Administration (now Work Projects Administration), and work being done on various… Internet Archive Don't Talk to Strangers 1950 · Talk · 13 min · Subtitles Dramatized film warning children of the dangers of strangers. Internet Archive Damaging Effects of the Atomic Bomb Compared to Conventional Bombs, The 1954 · Film · Subtitles rolls Picture A and B no audio track Made by the military picture showing exactly what the title says in great detail. Juxtaposes animation of convention and… Internet Archive Looking Ahead Through Rohm & Haas Plexiglas 1947 · Film · Subtitles Used during the war for bomber noses and other enclosures on every type of Army and Navy plane, Plexiglas became known as "aviation's standard transparent… Internet Archive Age 13 (Part II) Short · 15 min · Subtitles The inner life of an "at-risk" teenager, told in an idiosyncratic and often surreal manner. A key film by Sid Davis, who is beginning to emerge as one of the… Internet Archive Broken Appointment (Part I) 1955 · Short · 14 min · Subtitles Story of a young public health nurse who comes to realize the importance of psychology in her work. This humanistic film was made by a team of famous… Internet Archive Good Health Practices (Part 1) 1953 · Film · Subtitles Judy and Jim enjoy everyday living because they keep healthy. Includes good health practices related to eating, going to the toilet, cleanliness, rest, and… Internet Archive Look at Communism, A 1955 · Film · Subtitles This lesson warns its viewers to resist Communism after explaining how it is actively trying to destroy all Capitalist nations, succeeding through the… Internet Archive Robinson Crusoe B 1927 · Film · Subtitles Silent film version of Daniel Defoe's novel Robinson Crusoe, directed and produced (and starring) M.A. Wetherell. In three parts. Internet Archive News Magazine of the Screen, The (Vol. 4, Issue 3) 1953 · Film · Subtitles 0:25:00 - PROBLEMS OF THE FREE WORLD Aerial of Trieste, Italy / Marshal Tito of Yugoslavia looks through binoculars as soldiers invade / flag goes up pole and… Internet Archive 12 1980 · Film · Subtitles Driving POVs, westbound along I-80. Shots to be logged. Includes Holding's Little America sign, daytime. Jackson Hole, Wyoming Henry Charles shooting film… Internet Archive Communications and Our Town 1947 · Short · 9 min · Subtitles A telephone technician explains to two young boys how different types of communication foster links and interdependence between people. Internet Archive Story of a Forest Ranger, The 1954 · Short · 27 min · Subtitles The work of a forest ranger: forest management, maintenance, fire suppression; an excellent firefighting sequence. Internet Archive Lucky Strike Means Fine Tobacco 1950 · Short · 9 min · Subtitles A musical short illustrating how Lucky Strike chooses and processes tobacco. Features Frank Sinatra, Kay Kaiser and more. Internet Archive New Stars in Stereo: Newsmakers in Sound for 1960 1959 · Film · Subtitles 12:26:01:26 VS Three men working in advertising office for RCA. RCA sign visible leaned up against wall next to lamp in back of room, and ceramic RCA dog… Internet Archive Tomorrow's Drivers 1954 · Short · 10 min · Subtitles Socialization through driver education begins at a tender age in Phoenix.