Prelinger Archives

193–240 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 Working Dollars 1957 · Film · Subtitles Many people, like Mr. Finchley, the hero of this film, may have wondered how to go about owning a share of American business, or about the new "pay-as-you-go"… Internet Archive A is for Atom 1953 · Film · Subtitles Presents in lay terms what an atom is, how energy is released from certain kinds of atoms, the peace-time uses of atomic energy and the by-products of nuclear… Internet Archive News Magazine of the Screen, The (1957) 1957 · Newsreel · 21 min · Subtitles Newsreel stories reformatted for classroom use. Includes: United Nations Condemns Russia; Carrier Landings by Mirror; Arctic Ice Cap Adventure; Hummingbird… Internet Archive Ingenuity in Action (Part II) 1958 · Short · 14 min · Subtitles Made for hot rod fans; explains how to prepare and enter a car show; also serves as an ethnographic account of the "nomadic tribe of hotrodders". Internet Archive Back of the Mike 1938 · Short · 9 min · Subtitles Insider's view of the 1930s radio studio showing the production of dramatic sound effects. Internet Archive Angry Boy (Part I) 1950 · Short · 17 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 Arteries of New York City 1941 · Short · 9 min · Subtitles Shows transportation corridors leading into and out of New York City, and efforts at transportation and infrastructure planning. Internet Archive Postwar Germany: 28 Months After V-E Day (Part I) 1947 · Home movie · 13 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 American Harvest (Part I) 1955 · Short · 13 min · Subtitles This institutional film was designed to promote Chevrolet's corporate citizenship rather than any specific model of automobile. While it forcefully… Internet Archive Alcohol Trigger Films for Junior High: The Party, The Mother, The Bride 1979 · Short · 8 min · Subtitles Three short dramatic, open-ended situations designed to provoke discussion in alcohol education programs. Includes "The Party," in which a new boy wants to… Internet Archive Give Yourself the Green Light 1954 · Short · 24 min · Subtitles Advocacy film produced to garner public support for the creation of the Interstate Highway System. Internet Archive Wheels of Progress 1950 · Short · 19 min · Subtitles Operations of the Rock Island Lines. Includes shots of high-speed "Rocket" freight trains; the operation of classification yards; and scenes of agricultural… Internet Archive Pearl Harbor (short version) 1942 · Short · 3 min · Subtitles Non-narrated agitprop film made as a quick response to the bombing of Pearl Harbor and the U.S. entry into World War II. Internet Archive Children Must Learn, The 1940 · Educational · 12 min · Subtitles Educating the children of Appalachia. Director: Willard Van Dyke. Script: Spencer Pollard. Photography: Bob Churchill. Narration: Myron McCormick. Editor:… Internet Archive Medical Aspects of Nuclear Radiation 1950 · Short · 20 min · Subtitles Attempt to argue away the dangers of nuclear radiation, with some excellent animation. Internet Archive Coach for Cinderella, A 1936 · Cartoon · 9 min · Subtitles Imaginative cartoon that breaks down the parts and features of a Chevrolet automobile into units that can be understood in terms of plant and animal life:… Internet Archive This Is Prelinger Archives 2001 · Short · 10 min · Subtitles Official Prelinger Archives corporate video, describing its contents and mission. With excerpts of many films in the collection and rare scenes shot inside… Internet Archive Highlights 1965: A Progress Report (Part I) 1965 · Short · 15 min · Subtitles 1965 NASA Progress Report, from the Office of Space Science and Application. Produced by Norwood Studios, Inc. for the National Aeronautics and Space… Internet Archive Behind Your Radio Dial: The Story of NBC 1947 · Short · 24 min · Subtitles Behind the scenes tour of NBC's radio and television broadcasting facilities at Rockefeller Center, New York City. Internet Archive I Want to Be a Secretary 1941 · Short · 15 min · Subtitles Follows a young woman through her clerical training and job search. Shows pre-World War II offices and office workers, primarily women. One of Coronet's… Internet Archive [Opium Destruction, San Francisco 1914] 1914 · Short · 2 min · Subtitles Government agents burn confiscated opium near unfinished San Francisco City Hall, and destroy other confiscated Chinese drugs. Internet Archive Inside Story of Modern Gasoline, The 1946 · Short · 22 min · Subtitles Combination animation/live-action film showing how gasoline is refined and used. With striking images of gas stations, auto travel, and automobiles. Internet Archive Atomic Alert (Elementary version) 1951 · Film · Subtitles Explains steps to take in case of an atomic bomb alert or a bombing without warning at school, in the open or at home. Gives simple explanation of nuclear… Internet Archive America's Distribution of Wealth 1955 · Short · 11 min · Subtitles Demonstrates the widespread ownership of America's basic wealth and the equitable distribution of national income. With Prof. Clifton L. Ganus of Harding… Internet Archive Atom Bomb [Joe Bonica's Movie of the Month] 1955 · Short · 7 min · Subtitles Early atomic weapons testing. Internet Archive [Amateur film: Bohemian Grove] 1938 · Home movie · 1 min · Subtitles Bohemian Club members relax and line up for a meal at the Bohemian Grove encampment. Internet Archive Going Places 1948 · Cartoon · 8 min · Subtitles Cold War cartoon defending the profit motive against anti-capitalist critics. Internet Archive Boy with a Knife 1956 · Short · 19 min · Subtitles Jerry, an "at-risk" young man, uses his knife as an "equalizer" to solve his frustrations stemming from his unhappy home, which is dominated by his… Internet Archive Aristocrats of Fashion 1930 · Film · Subtitles Fashions for sport and evening wear, all made from Bemberg rayon. Narration: Muriel Evans. Photography: William Steiner. Art Director: Alfred Pan(?). Sound… Internet Archive Traveltime: Freedomland 1963 · Short · 7 min · Subtitles The film showcases Freedomland, an entertainment park in the Bronx, New York, that recreates 200 years of American history. It features attractions that… Internet Archive [Amateur film: Dog Cart] 1947 · Home movie · Subtitles Two unhappy-looking dogs, sporting an American flag, pull a dog cart and its juvenile cargo. Internet Archive Look to Lockheed for Leadership (Part I) 1940 · Short · 15 min · Subtitles Innovations in aviation history and technology. Producer and director: Shirley Burden. Photography: Floyd Crosby, Al Wetzel. Internet Archive Door to Heaven, The 1941 · Short · 10 min · Subtitles Visionary representation of the actual door to heaven, explaining how it is necessary to take Jesus as one's savior in order to enter the kingdom of heaven. Internet Archive Typesetting: Linotype (Part I) 1960 · Short · 17 min · Subtitles How mechanical typesetting works. The film explores the intricate workings of mechanical typesetting machines, particularly the linotype and intertype… Internet Archive Story of a Star, The 1956 · Short · 8 min · Subtitles Chemistry gives birth to new synthetics benefitting women, in this case sheer stockings. Internet Archive Girls Beware 1961 · Film · Subtitles Like its precursor Name Unknown (1951), Girls Beware is a trilogy of tragedies brought about by teenage girls' attempts at independent behavior. The first, a… Internet Archive Man of Action 1955 · Cartoon · 13 min · Subtitles Animated plea for urban renewal connected with 1950s efforts to "redevelop" American city centers. Internet Archive RCA 16mm Sound Projector, The 1958 · Short · 5 min · Subtitles Invisible white-gloved hands demonstrate the operation of the RCA 16mm sound projector. The film showcases the RCA 16mm sound projector, highlighting its… Internet Archive Wastage of Human Resources 1947 · Short · 10 min · Subtitles How crippling disease, avoidable accidents, crime, war, old age, alcoholism and poor living conditions waste human lives and their potential. This film grew… Internet Archive Meet King Joe 1949 · Cartoon · 9 min · Subtitles Cold War cartoon aimed at American workers with the objective of convincing them of their good fortune. Internet Archive Family Life 1949 · Short · 9 min · Subtitles Impossible drama proving that proper management of schedules, responsibilities, privileges and finances leads to a happier home. Internet Archive We Learn About the Telephone I 1965 · Cartoon · 22 min · Subtitles A young man sketches a generic human (ÂMr. ManÂ) who takes us back through history to show us how humans developed a need to communicate and the devices to do… Internet Archive Subject: Narcotics 1951 · Short · 21 min · Subtitles Produced for police orientation and training, this film presents drug addiction not simply as a crime but as a deepseated social problem. With dramatized… Internet Archive Story of Television, The 1956 · Short · 14 min · Subtitles PLEASE NOTE: A more complete version with the full color sequence at the end is here. RCA's corporate history of pre-1956 developments in television. Internet Archive Signal 30 (Part II) 1959 · Short · 14 min · Subtitles Legendary "shock" driving safety film featuring numerous scenes of mutilated cars and injured/dead people and a voiceover lacking in compassion. Produced in… Internet Archive Palmour Street 1957 · Short · 22 min · Subtitles Everyday aspects of mental health in an African American community in Gainesville, Georgia. Internet Archive Communism 1952 · Short · 10 min · Subtitles Educational film on the Cold War conflict. Internet Archive Who's Boss? 1950 · Short · 15 min · Subtitles Husband and wife struggle to attain a balance of power in their marriage. This neorealist social guidance film was directed by Alexander Hammid.