Medical Art

This reel consists of anatomical diagrams (with labels) of male abdominal organs, possibly to illustrate a hernia surgery or related procedure. The original leader is labeled: “Medical Art for Reproductions - used for animation.”; In 1936, Mervin W. LaRue Sr. established his own company, Mervin W. LaRue, Inc., which sold industrial movies and specialized in the production of medical motion pictures, scientific films and illustrations. Mervin Sr. had previously worked for Bell & Howell in Chicago, where he created what is believed to be the first all-sound medical motion picture: a film about insulin sponsored by Eli Lilly Co. After leaving Bell & Howell, Mervin Sr. continued to apply his technical expertise to innovate new tools for medical film production, including motion study, time-lapse photography, microscopy, and the application of animation to illustrate biological processes, such as seen here.