DESTINATION UNLIMITED

Year Published: 1960

Description: This Cold War era cartoon "Destination Unlimited" was produced by John Sutherland (:10) in association with Film Counselors Inc. (:12). In 1945, Sutherland opened John Sutherland Productions and began pumping out animated films for general use as well as targeted propaganda films. The Cold War era was a highly prolific period for Sutherland as his work caught the eye of Walt Disney. Most of the films delivers a heavy handed pro-industrial message. Films were financed by major corporate entities such as the American Petroleum Industry in order to shape public opinion. This is the second feature created by John Sutherland following the highly successful ‘Destination Earth’ film released in 1956. It features the alien clan under the guidance of a leader called Ogg who has Stalin-like qualities. Leadership of the Ogg people is portrayed as egotistical and fallible. It opens as Ogg the Great's (:51) voice booms over a loudspeaker addressing his fellow green aliens about a rally at Ogg memorial stadium. Bouncing yellow headed aliens cart a banner welcoming Colonel Cosmic past the Ogg Mart Grocery Store and the Ogg Cafe (1:04). Posters of Ogg’s face appear near the Ogg Memorial Stadium (1:31). The mean green authoritarian leader looks over his subjects (1:57); he employs a screen to illicit responses from the dead pan crowd. He introduces Colonel Cosmic (2:27). Cosmic informs the crowd his trip was made possible by ‘Ogg power’ (2:54). An exhausted servant runs on a rat wheel symbolizing the proletariat (3:00). The servant is stabbed with a needle producing higher speeds (3:00). Here they insinuate communistic governments rely heavily on the back breaking labor of the proletariat. They refer to the first film known as ‘Destination Earth’ (3:07). Tiny aliens hurriedly hammer at new space crafts for exploration symbolizing the US versus Soviet Russia space race (3:50). He buzzes for the US (4:31) and crash lands. The alien leaders are depicted as being in awe of the US automobile (5:18) and petroleum industry. He assumes the vehicles only belong to elites (6:02) insinuating a lack of access to vehicles to the common people of their planet (in other words communistic societies). He locates a gas station (6:18) to learn and understand the petroleum industry. They show the process of oil drilling (7:39) via cartoon including exploratory drilling (7:57). Free enterprise is detailed; how competing companies develop and discover new sources of oil; for example (8:34). Oil is traced to the refinery (9:00). Other products produced by petroleum are discussed (9:19). This leads to the idea of increasing higher standards of living. As the United States exited the Second World War and continued to grow as a major influencer and super power into the Cold War Era, American culture and society became increasingly more so materialistic. The alien leader attempts to smuggle out his discovered secrets (10:56). Upon return, he crash lands (11:27). He informs the people of Mars, oil is the secret product which is enhanced through competition (11:49). The leader rejects the idea of competition (12:11). Martian oil exporters set t work (12:22).Cosmic and Ogg have a row (12:49) as Cosmic is now smitten by the idea of competition in economy (12:49). The film concludes (13:10) promoting the idea energy and competition leads to unlimited progress. The film was produced by the American Petroleum Industry (13:17). 

Transcription

foreign [Music] thank you [Music] attention attention is this your beloved leader of the exponent there will be a special giant toy rally for days and of Memorial Stadium honoring that in traffic space Explorer Colonel Horseman hear the furnace first word is returned from the planet Earth you are all commandered under other invited to attend [Music] [Applause] thank you [Applause] please please thank you for this unsolicited testimonials and no by special permission of the commander-in-chief me here is Mars first space Explorer colonel courseman foreign I can't tell you how happy I am to see your smiling faces once more first let me say that this trip was made possible only by our dauntless chief of the Magnificent introducer of as a power which runs most of our industry an inventor of odd speed which doubles the original Odd power a short time ago the master was having trouble with the state limousine he had of course developed the unexplosive charge but it was inclined to get a little out of hand just slightly and of course there was always the problem of friction Parts rubbing together heating up and causing all sorts of trouble [Applause] but but our our leader was undaunted he immediately ordered our first expedition into space to bring back the secret of how other planets got their state limousines to run smoothly the target was picked with Haynes taking scientific accuracy [Music] [Applause] destination Earth you all know with what eagerness I volunteered for the mission and with what confidence I took off I took careful bearings and set out for my goals it seemed no time till I was approaching a country of Earth called uh the United States of America I set her down like a feather [Music] watch all the wreckage naturally I protected government property by making the saucer invisible here after the chickens mom and though the natives showed great interest in me I decided to make myself invisible too seeing moving lights in the distance I headed for them what phenomenal luck I had landed close to what seemed to be an endless procession of State limousines they moved quickly and yet with fantastic smoothness I just had to get a closer look at one of those Earth mobiles [Applause] just as I thought not only smooth and efficient but powerful as well I watched them for hours Great enemy they were superb I just couldn't help comparing them with ours if you call that a comparison surely these vehicles must be the property of the highest officials I was wrong it seems that almost everybody in this country has one of those uh they call them automobiles they use them for transportation for business for pleasure they use them for all sorts of things I found that these vehicles gather at places called service stations where they are fed lubricated that's how they beat friction and given the finest care the source of their nourishment was something called petroleum a power source like that must be a highly prized state secret I had to find out about it [Music] perhaps the secret lay within this government archives building it was heavily guarded but casting discretion to the winds I walked boldly inside their code was remarkably easy to break they merely substituted the word oil for petroleum and I soon got hold of a veritable mind of classified information I began to assimilate the material I soon found out that though petroleum products are easily found anywhere petroleum itself is a very elusive substance experts have to search for it constantly in all the most likely and unlikely places with all kinds of scientific devices when they figure they found a good spot they drill a hole in the ground called an oil well for almost all oil lies far beneath the surface of the Earth these Wells go down thousands of feet and cost a lot of money to drill but that's no guarantee that they're going to find oil matter of fact an exploratory drilling only one well in nine finds any oil at all only one in 44 recovers enough oil to pay for itself and only one in almost a thousand makes a major discovery pretty big odds yet America's proved reserves the oil supply is still underground have kept increasing steadily I couldn't imagine how this ever increasing supply of oil was achieved until I found out that there's not just one but thousands of oil companies all competing with each other to discover and develop new sources of oil for Believe It or Not In The USA anyone who is willing to risk it can drill for oil but oil Discovery is only part of the story once they get oil out of the ground it has to be moved through pipelines on ships or in tank cars to Fantastic processing plants called refineries crude oil goes in and great Jupiter the things that come out gasoline for example the most efficient mobile power source on Earth that was the stuff that powered all those cars and trucks and asphalt which makes smooth durable roads it seems that oil not only runs cars it even gives them something to run on another oil product is the diesel fuel which runs giant trains Across the Nation in Winter fuel oil made from petroleum brings warmth and comfort to millions of homes and still other fuels help defend America's Shores and skies from refineries also come the lubricating oils and greases that keep the wheels turning in America but that still isn't all crude oil like everything else is made up of billions of tiny molecules and using the magic of research oil companies compete with each other in taking the petroleum molecule apart and rearranging it into well you name it Fabrics toothbrushes tires insecticides Cosmetics weed killers a whole galaxy of things to make a better life on Earth and you know it isn't just oil companies that try to outdo each other competing for the customers dollar the same story is true of almost every successful business Enterprise in America the result a higher standard of living in the USA than in any other country on the whole planet [Music] last the secret was mine and now to get proof of my Discovery smuggled past the Border guards in spite of my infinite precautions one of them became suspicious and gave the alarm [Applause] [Music] [Applause] farewells of the natives ringing in my ears I took off once again for Mars my Landing was a little bumpy but I saved my precious cargo yes I brought the secrets back with me and here they are the big secret is of course oil which has brought a better life to all the people in the USA but the key to making oil work for everybody is competition fellow martians I thank you very interesting what's that uh what does it uh competition not our kind of thing at all why competition is downright on March oh boy thank you [Music] look at them you know what this means Cosmic you bet I do odd it means that you are through so why don't you get lost yes the real secret is not only a great source of energy but also the freedom to make it work for everybody and if you have both of these things any goal is possible it's destination Unlimited [Music]


1 user has this film:
Periscope Film


No related films.