YESTERDAY'S NEWSREEL - S 1926 ADMIRAL RICHARD BYRD FLIES OVER NORTH POLE

[Music] television highlights of the new book yesteryear [Music] it's May 9 1926 and Navy commander Richard evylyn bird is about to join pilot Floyd Bennett on an historic journey in giant poker they head for first flight over top of the world why to take off icy wastes of Arctic destination North Pole and return [Music] with ice floes far below bird takes old-fashioned sextant reading to chart his course and here our first motion pictures of the poll as taken during Birds Bowl played in 1926 first part of mission accomplished second half of flight is successful as Byrd and Bennett get warm welcome back to base and back in New York Byrd marches in triumphal parade with pilot Floyd Bennett in civvies beside him explorers mother joins notables in honoring America's hero and hears rare picture of the commander's charming life then in Richmond Virginia he's greeted by his equally famous brother as whole city turns out to pay homage to a hometown boy who made good this is when Harry Byrd is governor of Virginia six years before he's considered for presidency seven years before he becomes outstanding member of US Senate it's time of commander Byrd's invention of self inflating rubber raft which saved lives of thousands in the undreamed-of war to come with fliers no bill and acosta Bird shows rafts capacity and with plane builder Anthony Fokker inspects historic ship America injury is from recent crack-up it is 1927 and here he readies himself for second try at Ocean huh with him are burnt balsam no Ville and the Costa will join him on the flight Lindbergh did it just five weeks ago and now the pole conquerors heavily laden plane is going to take a stab at it [Music] first attempt ended in near disaster as plane nosed over on ground but this time crack up is in surf off coast of France Flyers had to swim to shore and plane is nearly picked apart by souvenir hunters but bird and his buddies have made perilous Atlantic hop and back home youth named Lindberg welcomes him as brother conqueror of what is then considered flying's most epic flight in 1927 Lindbergh and bird are Aviation's greatest names then in 1928 bird is given mascot for expedition to Antarctic and assault on world's southern pole it's smooth sailing to Ross barrier then plane takes him across world's southernmost continent and dangerous flight to pole this is November 29 1929 and here is the South Pole as it looked on that thrilling day back in America Herbert Hoover congratulates members of expedition as bird now promoted to Rear Admiral gives the president their names and in the years ahead Byrd is to make two more Antarctic trips still later serve his country in a world at war [Applause] in Senate office building Washington DC it's 21st of July 1917 as blindfolded Woodrow Wilson President of the United States draws number and national draft for army of First World War first number drawn is 258 and first men grafted into EF our tag for triptych am billboard in background advertises Norma Talmadge in current movie winter comes and gratis still march to cap there's merriment and horseplay along the way we're over here in seventeen war seemed like a lark but war it is just the same and pretty soon draftees are at the gates of camps and in the army now don't wearing civvies soldiers of 17 are drill and looks here as if some wives have come along port of embarkation 1917 heading for the Argonne Bello would chateau-thierry in the Marne troops of world war 1 set sail for France and two years in the trenches what no there was war ahead for this detachment of door boys Oh in Washington our chief executive is telling them that they must save the world for democracy it's 23 years later that Secretary of War Stimson draws number 158 in nation's first peacetime draft it's October 29th 1940 as American youth is drafted for service before threat of world war ii and this time war seems serious matter to men heading for uniform europe is already in flames as americans by thousands go through induction centres in every city in the land while regalia is put on suddenly now preparing for battle already since the horror had that one a to Salerno Normandy Brittany Mets and the five already closing and chorus groom that was to follow the dreadful atom bomb [Music] here's Fiorello Henry LaGuardia in 1934 years before he became unforgettable mayor of New York congressman in 1917 he resigned to command US Air Force on Italian Austrian front in first world war is here again congressman from 20th district of New York then comes fusion party and Fame actress Dorothy Dalton in 1920 set sail on vacation from stage her first theater appearance was in fourth Massachusetts September 5th 1910 in 1914 she went to Hollywood five years later she was back on Broadway greater star than ever humanitarian author warden hears Lewis he laws in 1930s just about time head of New York State's most famous penal institution was being hailed as author of 20,000 years in sing-sing laws started this warden at Sing Sing in nineteen five served 21 years [Music] it's 1928 and in California Sierra Madre Mountains scores of foresters and civilian volunteers fight fire that is destined to destroy 10,000 acres of forestland raging inferno threatens to get out of hand with a dove shifting winds and extended dry spell which is rendered forest ready fuel warnings are out to evacuate all village and country homes in surrounding area and here our last evacuees getting through on very limp of fiery forest [Music] it's September 25th 1930 and it's st. James Church in Philadelphia 24 year old Mary Altemus is about to become the bride of John Hay whitney jr notice what the really well-dressed women were wearing in 1930 that's mother of the bride wearing dazzling rope of pearls in wide-brimmed hat two-piece ensemble he admitted Harry Payne Whitney mr. and mrs. Joseph area here again notice the Rope of purl and here comes the bride she wears a crane long enough to be worthy of the Santa Fe his Robert Benchley best man with groom and among gushes is Fred Astaire they promise to love and cherish and said I do the 1930 wedding of the Whitby's is over and their honeymoon at his Virginia estate [Music] airlift 1919 variety it's July 27th 1919 as two women book passage with arrow limited $100 a ticket as flights between New York and Atlantic City are begun airline operators are just back from World War one at air taxi business is brand new thing there's no such luxury as commercial aviation or regularly scheduled flights these are many years away as these two pioneering women are away to Atlantic City in flimsy looking amphibian with pusher type engine on 78 minutes light average speed was 80 miles an hour [Music] if you counted toast hats instead of dollars you'd get rich at this Westchester party in the early 1920s purpose of social gathering is to raise a $50,000 hospital fund a lot of money in those days in bobbed hair and silk print is Ollie Irwin popular debutante over a day manager of festivities mrs. Marion Wilson where the crewneck great hostesses who scored biggest hit of the Robin Hood girls and here a hired hand as a shuffle steps so popular at the time making like the inhabitants of Sherwood Forest they represent Robin Hood girls aren't good archers but gathering raise the fifty thousand just the same [Music] setting swimming record greasing up at 158 Street New York June 19 1927 13 year-olds heightened felt winds hop into Hudson for fast lap of Albany to New York marathon record of slightly more than 57 hours has stood almost a year as iton Feld sisters over arm it toward the battery and end of lengthy swim when pulled out of River they've beaten mark nearly five hours and how they love being champ [Music]