U-Matic

Damon Keith/Nick Hood[sic]

U-Matic S tape containing footage shot at Mayor Coleman A. Young's 70th birthday party at the Detroit Institute of Arts on May 21, 1988. The footage features Mayor Young, Governor James Blanchard, and Judge Damon Keith interacting with other guests at the event, followed by recordings of birthday messages for the mayor from Judge Keith, and Representative Morris Hood, Jr.

The tape opens with silent footage of Mayor Coleman A. Young, Governor James Blanchard, and Judge Damon Keith clad in tuxedos, standing side by side in the Woodward Avenue lobby of the Detroit Institute of Arts. Audio begins with a series of close-up of Mayor Young talking to off-camera people. Several similar shots follow, first of Blanchard, then of Keith. Crowd noises mask the exchanges.

After a cut, the camera rolls from across a crowd of Blanchard speaking on the occasion of the mayor's 70th birthday. He jokes that Mayor Young has found the fountain of youth in a sauna on Belle Isle.

Following another cut, Judge Keith addresses the camera with a birthday message for the mayor in three takes.

Finally, Morris Hood, Jr., records a message for the mayor in one take.

The recordings are on 3M UCA-30S U-Matic S tape with a handwritten title directly on its shell. The tape is housed within a black plastic latching case with no cover label.