FAMILY OF CRAFTSMEN

[Music] [Applause] [Music] to millions of Americans whether they manufacture the nation's steel its airplanes it ships or automobiles the quitting whistle signals the end to a day of work and forecast the approach of evening and the coming of night [Music] when America's industrial giants are at rest the physical investment is all that remains to suggest the immense productivity of our nation but industrial strength depends not on buildings and machinery so much is on the talents and energies of human beings to know these American workers is to catch the spirit of American industry on an ordinary day thousands of them work in this automobile plant in South Bend Indiana among them are many families for instance in body assembly we come across the name Volk on the RS for Rudy in the drafting department works his brother Joseph Vulcan jr. the book on in final assembly is William s known as bill and finally in the paint department during the day you'll find the head of the family Joseph Bo Khan senior what kind of people make up this family of American workers let's find out by starting with Joseph Volk on senior [Music] on 95 acres of good Indiana farmland out on Western Avenue four miles from the South Bend city line lives Joe bulk on top to his family pop came to America from a European farm in his early teens he worked and saved and bought this place about 25 years ago dividing it among three sons and four daughters as they got married now he and his wife have 12 grandchildren with more on the way [Music] Mambo con 62 is a woman of talent she runs an efficient comfortable household and excels a needlework making dresses draperies slipcovers and embroidering the family linen as well [Music] behind pops garden is the land he gave to his oldest son Joe bulk on jr. Joe jr. inherited his father's love of the soil is well equipped 10 acre nursery is a full-time hobby during the hours when he isn't making automobiles [Music] Joe's sister Mary oldest of the book on girls is the mother of the youngest of the clan like most of the Bo cons Mary and her family live on a section of her father's farm down the road Mary's husband Cass was a radio man in the Navy in the evenings and on weekends he services the family's dozen odd radio sets and studies electronics [Music] Rudy Bo Khan's hobby is different from those of the other men as a boy he used to trap muskrats now he raises another valuable fur bearing animal mink mrs. Rudy and her sisters-in-law have found mink scarves under the Christmas tree presents which too many women are great luxuries [Music] the third book on brother bill has installed a machine shop in his garage he spends just about all his free time working on a half-dozen pet projects you can always be sure that one or more of his mechanically minded Bo con nephews is on hand to help uncle bill bills also an amateur movie producer with his own camera and a projection machine the workshop is such an attraction for the youngsters but when one of them is missing say around lunchtime it's not hard to figure out where he can be found next door to Bill's garage is the home of his sister Irene and her husband who works at the plant too they first met when Irene was a stenographer in the personnel department now in typical bulk on fashion they are the parents of a growing family and find it necessary to make the unfinished attic into an extra bedroom Velma Balkans husband is the only close book on relative who isn't in the business of making automobiles he runs a service station and his steadiest customers of course are his wife's family Lillian is the youngest volcon sister her recent marriage brought a new Joe into a family we've already had three Joe's new Joe works in the truck plant for busy mothers with household chores twelve active kids can be and are quite a problem Bill's wife Mary helps control the situation by seeing that the children get an hour's rest after lunch [Music] as with the kids pop too has a siesta this Saturday Lillian has called a special meeting of the Marianne Club named after Marian an the wives of two of the brothers who founded the Studebaker corporation over a century ago the girls will discuss the century of style musical show which their club is putting on to help celebrate the company's hundredth birthday party [Music] when a bunch of women get so serious a man can always figure out an important job for himself elsewhere for some time now pop has been helping bill with his new house so of the other boys house raisin a tradition in New England is also a tradition in this family of Studebaker craftsman out here in Indiana [Music] Sunday morning with the Bo cons almost everything is a family project this particular Sunday there's a feeling of excitement in the air it's pop 63rd birthday and though he's reached the age when birthdays are no longer of much interest to him that doesn't go for mom or the rest of a family plans are afoot for later in the day that pop doesn't know about [Music] [Music] the motorcade gets underway on the dot as usual the six book on automobiles sedately cruising at 25 and evenly spaced in line are a familiar Sunday morning sight out on Western Avenue [Music] back home one of the mothers having been to an earlier church service takes her turn as a family babysitter pop still doesn't suspect what's going on even when mom makes the unusual request that they drive all the way in town to see the new school before going home [Music] meanwhile there's plenty of activity at the house for when all the bull cons get together a meal becomes a banquet on the birthday menu will be some of the dishes pop likes best cooked according to mom's own recipes setting up for about 25 people is simply a matter of the usual bulk on cooperation with everything ready all that remains for the last minute is watchful waiting [Music] mom pitches in as usual the girls learned a long time ago that you just can't keep her out of the kitchen [Music] many years ago when pop first came to America and South Bend the chances are he might have dreamed of a scene like this never thinking that it would come true he had no way of knowing how rich the rewards of a free land could be probably no one will ever know what top thinks on such occasions except himself bill is the bull con historian and has made a film record of nearly every important event in the family by now the Vulcans are pretty well used to posing for pictures today the party doesn't end with dinner bill has arranged an extra added attraction last month when Lillian and new Joe were married the family cameraman was on hand now the pictures are ready for the world premiere [Music] hmm presenting Lillian volcon in she got her man 12 Oh John here we see our baby on her wedding day and this young person's pretty as a picture is the mother of the bride here's someone else hey Mary Jo how about a kiss thanks honey remember the Chow Wow from the way our guests put it away you'd think they didn't expect to eat for a week and that went for everybody except Lily and the bridegroom who was too excited from soup to nuts the whole party was wonderful as you can tell from this lineup of satisfied customers aren't we lucky and now here they are just before they went away something old something new something borrowed something blue we always said Marlene Dietrich's didn't have a thing I'm lily and so they lived happily ever after I know [Applause] Monday morning on schedule Rudy Bo Khan's car leaves Western Avenue and pulls up at his father's house promptly at 6:45 [Music] although there are seven cars and trucks in the family the Bo cons usually team up to drive to work [Music] five days a week from north south east and west the Balkans the McGowan's the Alan's the Lawson's and nearly 5,000 other family groups converge on South Bend and the immense factory more than 20,000 strong these men and women make up to Studebaker family al and Bill usually make the drive in 25 minutes flat Cass and Joe jr. arrived at the gates a few minutes later followed right after by Rudy and pop [Music] new machines efficient schedules and advanced techniques contribute to America's productive might but the quality of a product in the last analysis depends on the spirit of the people who make it on human being [Music] this automobile more than any other modern motorcar is the product of craftsman of sons and grandsons of nephews and brothers who by the thousands share family traditions and inherited skills the sum total of all this experience of talents and years combined is built into and gives distinction to every automobile that comes from this factory in a way the faux Khan family symbolizes the thousands of craftsmen whose product is the Studebaker new models appear on the drafting boards of men like Joe Jr and cats [Music] on the assembly line men like Bill apply to their jobs the skills and inventiveness they make use of in their workshops at home further down the line the Rudy Bo cons to their part on the front end and other stages of the assembly pop at his job on the automobile of today can remember the wagons and other vehicles he and many of the men still working with him helped to build years and years ago tonight's 100th anniversary show will turn time back even further than Popkin remember in the show Lillian volcon of the personnel department will be Miss 1952 [Music] [Music] hundreds of employees look forward to the show tonight or it is a community project many a South Bend charity will benefit from it to be their master of ceremonies the girls have asked Fred McFaul of the machine shop to lend them a hand the bow cons are but one of the many family groups in the audience who typify the people who make up the Studebaker family of families people like the eight wolf brothers total their time with a company and it comes to a hundred and twenty five years John flavor his son two daughters and two grandsons one of scores of family teams cm show pison his son Donald they work in the general officers along with many other father-son teams the Thorntons father Russell his sister five sons and the two grandsons he brought into the plane and Orville Smith his son and grandsons three generations working side-by-side here tonight also are grandfathered granddaughter fellow employees mother/daughter teams and brothers and sisters men and women joined together by the spirit of Studebaker [Music] backstage fred goes over his script for the last time with only seconds to go Lillian and the rest of the cast try to remain calm [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Music] [Music] 18:52 two brothers named Studebaker opened the blacksmith shop in South Bend Indiana 1871 mrs. O'Leary's cow burned down Chicago one year later fire struck the Studebaker brothers manufacturing company within two years the brothers had rebuilt their factory into the finest carriage and Wagon Works the world had yet seen [Music] [Applause] 1902 Studebaker celebrated its golden anniversary the company entered its second 50 years with the sale of its first horseless vehicle an electric second customer Thomas a Edison [Music] 19:20 Studebaker discontinued wagon making entirely to become exclusively a maker of automobiles and this year the company had introduced its popular family style big six [Applause] [Laughter] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] 1939 Studebaker entered the low price field with its stylish new champion 1952 [Music] Studebaker celebrated its 100th birthday the distinction of being the first car of its second 100 years Falls to its sleek 52 hardtop in these past few minutes we have seen a hundred years passed quickly by as a salute to our next hundred years let's all audience everybody join with the Studebaker glee club and male chorus in singing our song rollin along for a hundred years [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Music]