Actors portray 19th century folks riding bicycles, on an outing in the country. Woman on bicycle, country road, with men as well. As the road narrows, one of the cyclists falls. The party decide to turn back to the better road again. Scene shifts to Detroit, Michigan, where actor portrays Henry Ford working on his Quadricycle. He is depicted working on it at night in his home workshop. One night he pushes it out for a trial run, and drives it successfully on the neighborhood streets. A couple in an early American automobile being pulled along a dirt road by a horse. Two men driving an early car that stops unexpectedly. They open the hood to look for the problem.
New York City scenes, circa 1910. The new Pennsylvania Railroad Station, or Penn Station, on 7th Avenue, Manhattan, designed by McKim, Mead, and White. Pedestrians strolling on the sidewalks of 5th Avenue past stores and shops, as cars drive along with horse-drawn wagons, in the street. A man and woman conversing on a sidewalk are sprayed by water from a horse-drawn street cleaning truck. A 1903 Model A Ford automobile is demonstrated by actors dressed in fashions of the period. It drives to the door of a high society mansion, where a wealthy man and woman wait to see it. Its features are demonstrated, including a rear door and a side cranking feature, to protect one from being accidentally run over after starting. A 1903 Model A Ford drives past a farmer in his yard, while he grooms his horse.
The 1955 Chrysler Falcon, designed by Virgil Exner with bodywork by Ghia, is unveiled at an auto exhibition in New York. View of the exposed exhaust system attached to the car. A woman at the steering wheel operates the controls of the car. A man drives a 1955 Chrysler Falcon. The man operates the buttons in the car.
U.S. President John Calvin Coolidge in New York during his holidays. The President with a cigar in his mouth. Two dogs play in a garden . One of the dogs looks down from a boundary wall. Two women walk out of a building. A tennis court. Men play tennis and trees in the background. A field roller in the background.
U.S. President Calvin Coolidge at his vacation home in New York during his holidays. The President with his dog in a boat in a lake. Mountains in the background. The dogs of the President. The U.S. flag on the bow of the boat. A man and the President row the boat with oars in the lake and trees on either side of the lake. The President look at the trees. First Lady Grace Coolidge in another boat. She puts her hand in the water. A man rows the boat with oars. President Coolidge plays with his dog and the dog eats his food.
Film opens showing people assembled at a celebratory dinner, honoring French aviators, Captain Dieudonne Costes and Lieutenant Maurice Bellonte, who on September 1, 1930, flew their Breguet XIX aircraft,"Le Point d'Interrogation" (The Question Mark) non-stop from Paris to New York, and thence to Dallas Texas,landing at Love Field, Dallas, on September 4th,where they were greeted by 30,000 aviation enthusiasts. They are being honored by William Edward (Colonel) Easterwood, Jr., a Texas philanthropist and aviation enthusiast who had offered a $25,000 prize for the first one-stop flight from Paris to New York to Dallas,Texas. Colonel Easterwood delivers congratulatory remarks, and presents his check for the prize to the fliers. Closeup of the Easterwood check. Broadcast microphones are placed close to Colonel Easterwood and the fliers. Next, the fliers stand near the end of the event. Scene shifts completely to Costes and Bellonte with their aircraft, "The Question Mark, aboard a steamship, ready to sail back to France. Closup of the aircraft with large question mark painted on its side along with names of cities world-wide to which it had flown. Among these are: Hanoi; Calcutta; Karachi; Alepo; Athens; Rome; Paris; and New York. (Note: There is a display at the Frontiers of Flight Museum, Dallas Love Field, that includes the actual prize check as well as a panoramic picture of the "Question Mark" landing in Dallas, along with a plaque commemorating the event.)
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