[1941 VISIT TO FLORIDA AQUATIC GALA AT MIAMI BILTMORE HOTEL]

Genres: amateur film, home movie

Year Published: 1941

Description: Dating to 1941, this extraordinary Kodachrome 16mm silent home movie was shot by an unknown filmmaker. It shows a visit to Florida including the famed Biltmore Hotel Miami Coral Gables (aka Miami Biltmore Hotel) and footage of one of the aquatic galas. As many as 3,000 people would come out on a Sunday afternoon to watch the synchronized swimmers, acrobatic performers, bathing beauties, and even alligator wrestlers. Based on the kind of performances shown in the film, one suspects members of the Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus, which wintered in Sarasota, were also involved. Film begins at the Biltmore with ballet folklorico (:20) and then shows spectacular dives made from a swinging bar (1:26). At (2:27) synchronized swimmers are shown in the pool. At (2:43) a fashion show with musical accompaniment. At (4:11) a wire walker traverses the sky above the pool, followed by other acrobatics performers. At (5:40), shots from Miami's A.S. Beck Shoes storefront windows, with a mannequin surrounded by women's shoes. At (6:14) shots of fireworks and a boat illuminated with decorative lights. At (7:03) docks are shown with what appears to be a Coast Guard cutter and the USS Benson (DD-421). This was the lead ship of her class of destroyers, commissioned on 25 July 1940. Various shots of the ship follow including a rare shot of African American sailors and crew at (7:38). (Note: most likely these are either mess attendants, officers' cooks, or stewards owing to the segregation of the Navy at this time frame.) At (8:20) a shot of the Ormar building, possibly condominiums or a hotel. At (8:50) a sign advertising the Silver Springs Seminole Indian Village, followed by images shot through the floor of a glass bottom boat. At (9:34) a woman poses atop a bull, probably at the Silver Springs attraction. At (9:56) large residential houses in the Eastern USA with snow on the ground. At (9:59), back to the Biltmore for more entertainment, including formal dancing by a glamorous couple, a parade of bathing beauties (11:12), ballet folklorico (12:03) Mexican hat dance, an incredible acrobatic show put on by leotard-clad beauties (14:30), and more diving. At (17:32) a birthday party for a woman named Linda, who shows off her birthday cake. At (18:37) a steam locomotive rumbles by, possibly New Haven Railroad steam engine number 821, engine type 4-6-0. At (19:05) a diesel locomotive E unit, possibly the Atlantic Coast Line #501, which ran between New York City and Miami. The 501 is an EMC E3 diesel locomotive built in November 1939 for the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad. At (19:17) a shot of a 1941 Buick Roadmaster pulling a trailer. At (20:42) a Chrysler sedan is seen in a ditch after an auto accident. At (21:32) the ore carrier William J. Olcutt is seen, part of the Great Lakes Fleet. At (21:56) firemen fight a fire in the roof of a Victorian house. At (22:11) the home's furnishings are seen on the sidewalk.

Complete Record: Dating to 1941, this extraordinary Kodachrome 16mm silent home movie was shot by an unknown filmmaker. It shows a visit to Florida including the famed Biltmore Hotel Miami Coral Gables (aka Miami Biltmore Hotel) and footage of one of the aquatic galas. As many as 3,000 people would come out on a Sunday afternoon to watch the synchronized swimmers, acrobatic performers, bathing beauties, and even alligator wrestlers. Based on the kind of performances shown in the film, one suspects members of the Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus, which wintered in Sarasota, were also involved. Film begins at the Biltmore with ballet folklorico (:20) and then shows spectacular dives made from a swinging bar (1:26). At (2:27) synchronized swimmers are shown in the pool. At (2:43) a fashion show with musical accompaniment. At (4:11) a wire walker traverses the sky above the pool, followed by other acrobatics performers. At (5:40), shots from Miami's A.S. Beck Shoes storefront windows, with a mannequin surrounded by women's shoes. At (6:14) shots of fireworks and a boat illuminated with decorative lights. At (7:03) docks are shown with what appears to be a Coast Guard cutter and the USS Benson (DD-421). This was the lead ship of her class of destroyers, commissioned on 25 July 1940. Various shots of the ship follow including a rare shot of African American sailors and crew at (7:38). (Note: most likely these are either mess attendants, officers' cooks, or stewards owing to the segregation of the Navy at this time frame.) At (8:20) a shot of the Ormar building, possibly condominiums or a hotel. At (8:50) a sign advertising the Silver Springs Seminole Indian Village, followed by images shot through the floor of a glass bottom boat. At (9:34) a woman poses atop a bull, probably at the Silver Springs attraction. At (9:56) large residential houses in the Eastern USA with snow on the ground. At (9:59), back to the Biltmore for more entertainment, including formal dancing by a glamorous couple, a parade of bathing beauties (11:12), ballet folklorico (12:03) Mexican hat dance, an incredible acrobatic show put on by leotard-clad beauties (14:30), and more diving. At (17:32) a birthday party for a woman named Linda, who shows off her birthday cake. At (18:37) a steam locomotive rumbles by, possibly New Haven Railroad steam engine number 821, engine type 4-6-0. At (19:05) a diesel locomotive E unit, possibly the Atlantic Coast Line #501, which ran between New York City and Miami. The 501 is an EMC E3 diesel locomotive built in November 1939 for the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad. At (19:17) a shot of a 1941 Buick Roadmaster pulling a trailer. At (20:42) a Chrysler sedan is seen in a ditch after an auto accident. At (21:32) the ore carrier William J. Olcutt is seen, part of the Great Lakes Fleet. At (21:56) firemen fight a fire in the roof of a Victorian house. At (22:11) the home's furnishings are seen on the sidewalk.