David Glick's JDC mission to South America
EXT, Lima Peru. LS, camera pans a shanty town at the base of the Andes Mountains. VS of clear blue sky, clouds and mountains as seen from the window of an airplane, the plane's wing is visible in the FG. EXT, a city in the main plaza and on city streets. The cameraman concentrates on capturing images of the indigenous people in traditional dress with bundles, packages and even their children on their heads or backs. Men, women and children are featured. People in the BG of several shots wear contemporary Western style clothing, and look much more European. 01:26 La Paz and surroundings. The mountains seen from a high vantage point. MS, a local family (mother, father, and child) talk to a European-dressed woman. LS, four people walk down a road in a mountain village. CU, red flowers in bloom, MS, two ox drawn carts moved down a street in a local village. More CUs of flowers. 02:07 possibly Santa Cruz or Cochabamba, Bolivia LS, a high cement wall surrounds a Spanish-style villa, viewed from the road. A palm tree rises high above the walls of the villa. LS, the entrance to the villa, the gate is open, a man in the BG greets the cameraman. LS, road from the gate of the villa. MS, a man in a white suit holds two brilliantly hued parrots on his hand, posing outside the villa (his home?). The house has a Spanish tiled roof. EXT shot from the window of a building overlooking a busy city street, workers sweeping sand off the streets in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Modern skyscrapers are visible in the distance, cars move along. VS of the street, the beach, people walking along the beach, the waves hitting the shore, etc. Workers shovel sand into trucks and onto the beach. VS, architecture throughout the city, several ornate buildings and monuments, gardens, new construction of high rise buildings, the mountains along the shore, etc. LS of the statue of Christ with his hands outstretched atop Cordova Mountain. VS, the city of Rio, locals sunbathing, roads along the mountainside. More shots in the mountains, and views of hotel called the "Miami Colonia," possibly in Uruguay, as well as the street below, lined with palm trees and automobiles, shot from the window of a building adjacent to the hotel. 01:06:02 Scene shifts to Washington, DC. LS shot from inside a moving vehicle, of a line of trees and the tip of the Washington Monument visible above the tree line, LS of the US Capitol.
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Record last modified: 2023-11-07 12:04:28
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Also in David Glick Film Collection
This extraordinary collection of 16mm color footage chronicles the journeys of the American lawyer David Glick and his efforts to save thousands of German Jews from certain death through immigration to South America. While knowledge and paper records of such expeditions exist, this is the only motion picture footage pertaining to the relief and rescue missions. In 1939, Mr. Glick visited every country in South America on behalf of the JDC to survey the needs of the German and Austrian refugees who had settled there. He brought with him a 16mm camera to film his experiences with the new refugees in many of these countries. The films are a testament to the work that a private American citizen was carrying out on behalf of the Jews of Germany when the official U.S. government policy had yet to acknowledge the extent of Adolf Hitler’s plans to eradicate European Jewry.
David Glick's trip to Europe 1936/37
Film
Reims, France. CU of a man with a long beard, and loose fitting clothing, holding a pigeon in his hand and feeding it, another pigeon rests on his other arm. MLS of a street in the city, a street lamp hangs from the corner of a building, and a sign above a doorway reads: "Champignons". VS, of the neighborhood, a cat running along a ledge of a building, rows of houses, three women dressed in traditional costumes with white pointed hats, a street corner with a restaurant called "Restaurant Jeanne-D'Arc," men sitting in a bar raising a glass to the camera, the owners of the bar smile and wave to the camera from behind the bar, (most of this INT footage is very poorly lit, often figures looks like shadows). EXT, sign on awning on building reads "Roger Dallain" and features gilded statuary of horses' heads. LS, narrow alley-like street. Men using public urinals, men posing with long baguettes of bread, women filling their buckets at the water fountain along the street. VS, of the Reims Cathedral (Notre Dame de Reims), seen in CU and LS, CUs of the architectural details. 01:03:26:00: MLS of David Glick exiting the Cathedral, looking up towards the sky, his hat in his hand. He puts his hat back on and walks toward the camera. CU of an archway with engraving about Jeanne d'Arc. 01:03:57:00: LS of David Glick sitting down on a street corner, talking to the person operating the camera, he gets up and walks toward the camera. VS, outdoor food market. 01:04:20:29: Black and white footage ends. 01:04:21:00: Color footage begins: LA, MS, two women (one is David Glick's wife) stand on a balcony looking at geranium plants and down to the camera person below. Camera pans the large rustic style hotel, the snow capped mountains in the BG and the surrounding buildings. The sign above the hotel's main entrance, reads: "Hotel Riesse..." (The entire sign is not visible, it may be Riessen). David Glick's wife touring the village, drinking from a public water fountain, talking to locals in Bavarian dress on the dock of a lake, in front of a house, in front of a local shop, etc. VS, the locals going about their daily activities, plowing the fields, etc. Panoramic shots of the mountains and the river. Mrs. Glick having a meal on the hotel balcony. 01:06:30:15: Color footage ends. 01:06:30:16: Black and white footage begins. Location: France. In one shot Mrs. Glick is talking with a young man as they stand in front of a public fountain. In the next shot David Glick is posing with this same man. INT: and elderly woman sits in a chair near a window, and talks to the camera (very poorly lit). EXT. The elderly woman is helped down a set of stairs by two younger women. The camera follows them as they begin to walk down the street, toward the camera, the old woman smiles. EXT. HA shot looking down on Mr. and Mrs. Glick as they wave at the camera as their ferry boat pulls away from the dock. Camera pulls back to reveal the name of the ferry, the "French Line." VS, rooftop views of Paris. The Eiffel Tower is seen in LS. Street scenes in Paris, more shots of public urinals, black and white footage ends at 01:08:44:29.Color footage begins at 01:08:45:00. This was shot in Pittsburgh, PA. LS of a cathedral. Mrs. Glick exits the church, waving at the camera. VS of the cathedral. LS, David Glick on the lawn near a large building with ionic columns, he walks toward the camera. MCU of David Glick as he talks to the camera operator. Mrs. Glick sits on a park bench reading and smiling for the camera. VS of David and Mrs. Glick, as well as a younger boy at their home. They play and joke for the camera, dressed in their souvenir Bavarian costumes.
David Glick's trip to WWI battle sites in France in the late 1920s
Film
EXT, VS of unidentified town in France, in the vicinity of Verdun, France. Horses and carts pass by, townspeople move about the streets. Three Americans (David Glick, his wife, and an unidentified woman) standing in front of a monument and memorial to the fallen in World War I. The monument is in a town square, children are visible playing in the BG. It is difficult to make out the inscription on the monument due to the poorly shot footage, but the year inscribed on one of the stone pillars is "1918". Camera pans this pillar from top to bottom, a wreath lies at the foot of the monument. Another large horse drawn cart full of straw is led by a man through the streets of the town. More shot of the townspeople near the WWI memorial, the Americans talk to the locals, MCU of local children at the memorial. 01:01:17:05 David Glick appears on screen, he is speaking to his wife and some of the townspeople. There is also another American man featured, he is slender and has a mustache and he is talking in a very animated fashion while pointing out something on a photo that he is holding in his hand. The camera pans the monument again, and the words "Commemorative of the Heroic Deeds of the Third Division" VS along the river in this same town. LS, the four Americans entering a WWI cemetery with large iron gates, LS, panning the cemetery and row upon row of white crosses. MCU of the grave marker for "Giulio Quecchia". MS of the large memorial arch in the center of the cemetery with a wreath. VS, the town and countryside surrounding the cemetery, old Roman ruins in the region, mountains, fields, etc. WWI German tank that still lies in an open field, the tank is tipping over slightly and is covered with graffiti, CU of the graffiti. LS of a man riding a bicycle on a nearby road, German tank again from another angle, this time the German Army cross is visible on it. CU, two men in an unidentified town, they both have bandages on their face, most likely WWI veterans who are still suffering from their war wounds. The two men joke and rough house with each other, one has a bandage under his right eye, the other has a bandage wrapped around his forehead. MS, brick arched entrance to another WWI cemetery. MS, inside the cemetery, two workers laying stones, rows of crosses visible in the BG. MLS, a gardener tilling the soil near graves, CU, white cross grave markers, all the graves in this cemetery have flowers, camera pans the entire cemetery, more shots of the workers in the graveyard. Another scene in the countryside, the four American are looking at the ruins of a large stone structure that looks like it was once a bridge. CU of the lower supports of this structure, the two American women are peeking in, they seem tentative about going into the space. The camera cuts away to another view of the surrounding countryside and a large church or shrine off in the distance. MS, underneath the bridge, debris and objects are scattered about. More views of cemetery in France, French flag flying in the center of a large grassy field. MS, entrance to a church, pan of the church. This is the same building that was first visible in LS. Glick running up and down a rock formation in the French countryside. MS, Two men in WWI soldiers' uniforms sit at the entrance to what looks like the remains of an underground bunker built into the hillside. They talk to each other and to the camera. VS, more sightseeing in the northeastern French countryside. More pans of the cemetery.
David Glick's JDC mission to South America in the late 1930s
Film
Begins in color: A hydroplane is docked on the water in Trinidad. "Pan American Airlines" logo and lettering, crew members work on propellers and engine, walking along the wing, in the FG a young boy looks at the camera and watches the men on the "deck" of the plane. Several passengers board the plane, both men and women, all seem to be American or European. INT of plane: the cargo hold. MCU, camera pans interior of plane and passengers, some are working, writing notes on a tablet, others look out the window, and still others recline over several seats and go to sleep. EXT, MS, a young local boy stands looking at the camera, wearing only a shirt, no trousers. Pan left to another young boy also clothed only in a shirt, holding a sign on a wooden stick. The letters are not legible on the sign. The boys stand along a dirt road, the camera follows them as they turn and walk away. LS, the young boy with the sign stands on a dirt road in a residential area. Several houses look somewhat downtrodden. Local Trinidadian women, all wearing head scarves. VS, scenes of daily life on the streets of Trinidad, women carry bundles on their heads, children run about in the streets, cars, horse drawn carts and bicycles pass by. LS of a field where men and boys are playing soccer. 01:02:34 EXT, MS, good downtown and market scenes featuring the following shops: "Islamia S.A.Wahid & Co." selling silks, curios, art work, brassware and jewelry. "Shanghai Bazaar" owned by Moses Tzafaty, "Hindoo Bazaar", also visible are signs advertising photo processing services. INT, MS two of the men seen inside the Pan Am plane are sitting at a table talking (JDC representatives?). EXT, MS an Indian beggar in the market in Trinidad. LS, waterfall cascading from a hilltop, male and female bathers at the bottom. EXT, Venezuela. LS, several men in straw hats and women (a mix of locals and Europeans) mill about in the BG, in the FG there are piles of steamer trunks that belong to the German Jews who are immigrating to the country to escape Nazi persecution. Camera pans the area to reveal several more trunks and people. There is a kitchen set up outdoors, under a tent, women are washing pots and pans; a portly European Jewish? man walks about in shirt, bowtie, sunglasses and straw hat. He jokes with one of the younger local boys. The portly man is seen again, without his sunglasses, hat in hand and arm in arm with a woman, presumably his wife, they walk toward the camera smiling. Camera cuts to a Venezuelan Red Cross truck and some of the newly arrived female immigrants from Europe talking to the local women all wear brightly flowered dresses. VS, images of the city (presumably Caracas, but this has not been verified) and surrounding countryside. Bull fight in an outdoor arena, there are four matadors in the ring and a few different bulls; the camera captures much of the action in the ring and pans the crowd of spectators in the stands. 01:06:31 In black and white, most likely in the Andes in Columbia, Ecuador, or Peru (Glick traveled in all three of these countries for the JDC). MLS, a statue of the Virgin Mary on a rock, perched above the rapids of a river. CU of graffiti on a rock above the rapids reading: "Prefiera" which means "prefer" in Spanish. EXT, image of rail tracks shot from inside a funicular car going up a steep incline, another car passes going in the opposite direction. VS, locals in what seems to be Peru, the first shots are in the countryside, and then in the city. 08:30. Large cathedral in Ecuador, Iglesia La Compania. 01:08:44 In color, EXT, MS of a man and a teenage girl sitting on stone steps at the base of "La Mitad del Mundo" monument in Ecuador. They smile at the camera. He sits one step above her with his hands on her shoulders, she wears a large straw hat that looks like a sombrero. Camera pans the surrounding landscape: mountains, sand, cacti, etc. MS of David Glick sitting on the steps of the monument talking to the girl in a sombrero. MS, the teenage girl with her mother and father (they are German Jewish émigrés) in front of a large, impressive hacienda style house, they play with their three dogs. More shots of the garden and the home, the girl feeding pigeons on a terrace, a peacock walking past the camera, etc. The scene switches to a crowded city street shot from inside a moving vehicle (unsteadiness of image), probably a train station in Ecuador. Street is revealed to be across from the train depot, there are many local peasants (Andean), with all of their belongings. EXT, MS, train station and train tracks, the sign above the tracks is not entirely legible, but the location "Guamote" is legible. People in European and traditional dress wait with their luggage along the track. Guamote is still a bustling market town today. VS of a young boy carrying a sack of twigs on his back, and smiling for the camera, possibly in Bolivia. Another young boy in MCU smiles as he plays a wooden flute. Cut back to the first boy also playing a flute. EXT, HAS of street where a woman walks barefoot carrying her child in a papoose on her back. The woman and several other workers sort potatoes in the dirt, harvest potatoes in a field, in a village close to the Titicaca Sea, possibly Tiquina Bolivia. MS of two local fishermen by the side of the Titicaca Sea with a rickety wooden boat. 01:10:47 In black and white, a large plaza and the Cathedral of Lima in Peru. VS, establishing shots/travelogue shots of Lima and its architecture, avenues, people, daily activity, etc. Scenes of Inca Ruins - Huaca Pucllana in the countryside of Peru. Scenes shot from the window of a plane flying over the Andes, jerky images. 01:12:46 In color, mountainous landscape viewed from the ground. MS, David Glick in beige raincoat and gray fedora standing along a rocky shoreline of the Titicaca Sea in Bolivia. Images of locals in Tiquina, a village at the Titicaca Sea, working in fields. Bolivian people at the local market in La Paz, probably the San Pedro neighborhood. 01:13:49 Two of the men accompanying Glick on this JDC sponsored journey,(this footage is very washed out and overexposed) smoking cigars and talking to the cameraman - Moritz Hochschild is the man with a hat – profile. They are at the airport of La Paz El Alto, in BG is the Pan American Grace Airlines plane seen much earlier in this reel. The plane is parked in an open field/air strip. Images of the South Pacific Ocean, and rocky cliffs along the shoreline. Market scenes, women selling produce, mostly locals in the scene but there are some European-looking customers and sailors in uniform (unidentified country). VS, city streets, mule carts. Woman dressed in black, including head scarf, walks along the side of the road with her son, both carry bundles on their heads. This area is flat and very green, different from the rocky vistas seen earlier. A mule walks about the street unharnessed, an ox-drawn cart passes down the street, a woman rides atop a mule, also wearing black and a black headscarf. 15:00 The airport in Arequipa, Peru. This town is known for its mix of Spanish and Indian heritage. VS of mechanics working on the Pan American plane, the pilot can be seen getting off the plane in one shot. Flight from Arequipa over the snow-capped peaks of the Andes, Titicaca Sea, La Paz City, approaching the airport of La Paz El Alto. Back on the ground, llamas being herded through the street by a local woman. 16:39 La Paz Calacoto at the Humbold breach. Thatched roof house in valley. 16:47 Shots of valley, Valle de la Luna Rio Abajo in La Paz, Bolivia. locals walking along the streets of Andean town.17:02 Sopocachi in La Paz Bolivia.