Film, Motion Picture

Urban C2 139 1546 -2342, C2 139 2355 - 3114

Silent color 16mm film containing footage shot for "Detroit Means Business," of the Velvet Peanut Butter Company's factory, students at the A. Philip Randolph Vocational/Technical Center, the interior of the Renaissance Center, Washington Boulevard, a railroad yard, and stills of materials relating to the planning for the General Motors Detroit/Hamtramck Assembly plant.

The first segment of the reel contains footage form the Velvet Peanut Butter Company's factory. A machine is shown filling rows of jars, which are ferried along on a conveyor belt. Then the camera is positioned near the end of the line where the filled jars emerge with labels and lids.

The next segment is shot at the A. Philip Randolph Vocational/Technical Center on the northwest corner of West McNichols Road and Hubbell Avenue. It begins with a shot of the sign on the building's exterior. Then, inside students are filmed in a carpentry class.

Then, the camera moves to the interior of the Renaissance Center's atrium lobby. From escalators and balconies, the camera pans vertically and horizontally around the space.

Next, from the intersection of Grand River Avenue and Washington Boulevard, the camera pans along the side of the Trolley Plaza Apartments, and zooms out from its sign. The camera also rolls as trolley #5 of the Detroit Citizen's Railway passes in the foreground, heading south along Washington. The trolley's destination sign reads, "Renaissance Center."

Then, the roll features activities at a railyard. From both on the ground and aboard the trains, the camera gets shots of cars being decoupled, coal hopper cars, close-ups of the car's trucks, and a train engineer in a locomotive's cabin.

The final portion of the reel cenrium,ters on zooms in and out of an aerial photo showing the eventual footprint of the GM Detroit Hamtramck Assembly site. Much of the land is clear, although portions of Poletown still remain, especially along the northwest side of I-94. This segment also includes a brief glimpse of concept art for the plant on a desk adjacent to the aerial photo.

The film is wrapped on a plastic core and housed within a 35mm tin along with 2015.007.077. The tin is marked "Salt Roll 2 12417," and a loose label within the tin is marked "11/18/81 Urban Comm. Group City rolls 60+61, 9891 1 roll."