Don't know if it has been put up in here before, but just had to share it, how amazing, recently found, this colour 16mm vacation film at a garage sale in California! Oh the treasures!

Here is Melbourne, in colour, in 1940, and those cars! And not much congestion on them Melbourne roads! Enjoy 

Garfield. wrote on Nov 18^th, 2014 at 5:45pm:




Who knows, maybe this next rare one, taken by the same person, might show more, this time....Sydney in 1940.

Very interesting, thanks for posting that

That was awesome, thanks.

Only time I ever seen the Yarra river blue, I thought it has always been brown.

Dnarever wrote on Nov 19^th, 2014 at 8:27pm:


I wouldn't bet my life on it, but I think the "Blue" Yarra is merely reflecting a blue sky.
My older brother was a Cinephotographer and could explain the conditions under which this would occur, but he is no longer with us so I can't get the reasons.

I do know that the Yarra is a tidal river, and the heavier salt water flowing up the river runs under the lighter fresh water coming down from the Yarra Heights.

This heavier salt water churns up the silt from the bottom into the fresh water layer on the top; thus giving it a muddy appearance.

I spent a lot of time, as a kid, on the banks of the Yarra, '50s, (born in '45) and have never seen the river blue and doubt very much if it was in the 40s.

Hope I haven't burst any bubbles, Dna.....

ColdFact wrote on Nov 20^th, 2014 at 6:44pm:


I would say, it wasn't an amateur, more like someone that had pro film skills, maybe even a GI that is trained to take movies and go to war to document the account of it.
We see those movies of real war footage.

It is obviously someone that has an understanding of how buildings and gardens are, and maybe, with the onset of WW2, took many videos of 'how things were' before being destroyed?

I thought of your comments ColdFact, as I watched a doco last night about how the 1st WW came to be, it was on late and ended even later, but was fascinating.
There was films taken in colour during 1914, of life as it was, before the 1st WW, yes, in colour, now that's even earlier than 1940.
Would love to know more about the person that took these films...their life, background, skills, etc. And how this came to be, among things, stored in a garage, to be sold later at a 'garage sale'.....how things turn up where they do, almost sad really, but not really, it has gained it's fame, deservedly.

Thank goodness it wasn't all taken to the rubbish tip, as some people do with 'old stuff'.

Sophia wrote on Nov 18^th, 2014 at 10:10am:




Woooow, when australia was really AUSTRALIA.

Team Froggie wrote on Nov 21^st, 2014 at 12:28pm:


Just noticed this.  Yes we did stumble upon these strange editors and splicers in film school -- the ones we edited on were called  called Steenbecks.

What I'm suggesting is that probably some raw footage was discovered somewhere.  Obviously the music has been added by the new editor as the main title has been, and I'm suggesting that he put in further shaky titles to make them look like the original.  Could be wrong.