Newsreel titled 'West Pointers get a touch of real army life' shows cadets in a march past at Fort Benning,Georgia. Cadets being given a practical experience in handling automatic rifles. They also study military tactics.
A sailor monitors instruments and makes adjustments at main control panel in engine room of U.S. Navy Destroyer Escort, USS Charles E. Brannon (DE-446), in Seattle,Washington. Above decks, a sailor lookout peers through a pair of binoculars. Back in the engine room, the ship's power indicator shifts from "stop," to 1/3 backing power and then back to "stop," again.
Opening scenes show formations of World War 2 Japanese Mitsubishi G3M bombers in flight. Slate reads: "Pearl Harbor December 7,1941." U.S. B-17 bombers are parked on an airfield. Ships and facilities are seen at the Pearl Harbor Naval station in Hawaii. Views of Japanese Mitsubishi G3M bombers flying in formation above clouds. Explosions and fire destroying aircraft and facilities at the Ford Island Naval Air Station. The USS Arizona burning and filling the air with heavy black smoke as she lists and sinks from bombing. Subsequent views of the destruction wrought by the bombing.
U.S. troops of the 506th Infantry, 101st Airborne Division in Cambodia, during the Vietnam War. Several soldiers are seen in wooded area. One talks over a PR-25 radio from a tree line at the edge of large open field. Another soldier slings an M-60 machine gun over his shoulder. Then, carrying their gear, the soldiers walk across the open field toward an area where a camp is being set up. In the distance, a UH-1 Huey helicopter sits with engine running and rotor blades turnng. The soldiers enter the tree line where others are assembling with their gear and supplies, next to the open field. The soldier carrying the M-60 machine gun, waves to the camera. Closeup of some soldiers who have pitched a couple of tents and are opening boxes of supplies. A change of scene shows several troops escorting a captured North Vietnamese army (NVA) soldier, whose hands are tied behind him, to a UH-1 helicopter with engine running. The Huey is next seen taking off with the prisoner aboard. Closeup of black NVA cap, left behind,in the mud. (Note: Within a few days, these troops distinguished themselves in combat with North Vietnamese Army troops. One, in particular, Leslie H. Sabo, Jr. Specialist Fourth Class, of Company B, 3d Battalion, heroically sacrificed his life, in combat on May 10, 1970, and was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor.)
The Philippines are established as an independent nation. Crowds of Filipinos gathered at Rizal Park (Luneta Park) in Manila on the July 4, 1946. View of Independence Grandstand (a temporary structure built in front of the Rizal Monument) with American flag and Philippine flags on tall flag poles.. View looking down on General Douglas MacArthur at a podium, speaking into microphones. Camera pans over various segments of the audience. A map shows the Philippine Islands in context of its neighbors in the Pacific Ocean. Camera pans closeup across faces of many Filipinos gathered at the independence event. View of the Jones Bridge over the Pasig River in downtown Manila. Heacock’s Department Store on the Escolta. The Legislative Building. (later the National Museum of the Philippines). Ocean going ships in a harbor. Cargo being offloaded from a ship onto smaller boat. An industrial complex with eight tall smoke stacks emitting smoke. Steel and petroleum plants. Filipino workers in an assembly plant. The Legislative building with people coming and going. Air raid sirens sounding and people running in streets of Manila at onset of Japanese invasion of the Philippines in December, 1941, at start of World War 2, in the Pacific. People running across the Jones Bridge, seeking shelter. Others boarding a bus. Smoke rising from Japanese bombing. Glimpse of Japanese tanks entering Manila during attack and invasion. Japanese infantry climbing a hill. Bodies of persons killed during the Japanese invasion. Glimpse of Japanese troops occupying Corregidor. U.S. General Wainwright negotiating the surrender of Corregidor with Japanese General Homma. View of an American warship firing during the U.S. campaign to defeat the Japanese on islands in the Pacific. An American landing ship carrying U.S. troops who storm ashore. General Douglas MacArthur striding ashore with a retinue of officers, at Leyte, Philippines, on October 20, 1944. as he keeps his promise to return to the Philippines. Views, back again, to MacArthur speaking at the Independence Day ceremony in Manila on July 4, 1946. Also seen at the ceremony are: U.S. Senator Millard Tydings, (co-sponsor of the 1934 Tydings–McDuffie Act, which provided independence to the Philippines after a 10-year transition under a limited autonomy), and Paul V. McNutt, U.S. High Commissioner of the Philippines, who read President Truman's proclamation of Philippine Independence to the assembly. Camera pans over the gathering which includes many U.S. Service personnel in uniform. The oath of office is administered to the elected President of the Philippines, Manuel Roxas. At the conclusion, the American flag is lowered by Paul McNutt, as President Roxas raises that of the Republic of the Philippines. A celebratory parade in Manila includes a float with signs reading: "Let's Produce and Rebuild," among other things. Other floats represent "Mountain Province," and "The City of Manila," "The University of the Philippines," and "The Division of City Schools." One float, sponsored by the Chamber of Commerce, contains a huge replica machine gear, and models of an aircraft and a ship. It's message is about turning the gear that helps make the nation great. American and Filipino soldiers march, carrying their respective national flags. A white-helmeted military band plays for the marchers. Final scene shows large loose formation of military aircraft in flight very high above the Independence Grandstand, at Rizal Park.
John Fitzgerald Kennedy arrives at White House with his wife Jacueline Lee Bouvier Kennedy. He is met by outgoing president Eisenhower at White House. After a brief talk John F Kennedy leaves the White House for the trip to Capitol Hill with outgoing president Eisenhower. They arrive at Capitol Building and make their way to the East Portico inaugural stand. Marian Anderson sings the National Anthem.
CRITICALPAST.COM: About Us | Contact Us | FAQs - How to Order | License Agreement | My Account | My Lightboxes | Shopping Cart | Advanced Search | Featured Collections | Website Terms & Conditions | Privacy Policy ©2026 CriticalPast LLC.
License Agreement |
Terms & Conditions |
Privacy Policy
©2026 CriticalPast LLC.