Newsreel
Encyclopedia
A newsreel was a form of short documentary film
prevalent in the first half of the 20th century, regularly released in a public presentation place and containing filmed news
stories and items of topical interest. It was a source of news, current affairs and entertainment for millions of moviegoers until television supplanted its role in the 1950s. Newsreels are now considered significant historical documents, since they are often the only audiovisual record of historical and cultural events of those times.
Newsreels were typically featured as short subject
s preceding the main feature film into the 1960s. There were dedicated
newsreel theater
s in many major cities in the 1930s and 1940s and some large city cinemas also included a smaller theatrette where newsreels were screened continuously throughout the day.
of France
in 1908, this form of film was a staple of the typical North America
n, British
, and Commonwealth
countries (especially Canada
, Australia
, and New Zealand
), and throughout European cinema
programming schedule from the silent era
until the 1960s when television news broadcasting completely supplanted its role. Nonetheless some countries such as Spain and Cuba continued producing newsreels into the 1980s. The National Film and Sound Archive
in Australia holds the Cinesound Movietone
Australian Newsreel Collection, a comprehensive collection of 4,000 newsreel films and documentaries representing news stories covering all major events
The first official British news cinema
that only showed newsreels was the Daily Bioscope that opened in London
on 23 May 1909.
In 1929 William Fox
purchased a former Broadway theater called the Embassy (now a visitor center operated by the Times Square Alliance). He changed the format from a $2 show twice a day to a continuous 25 cent programme establishing the first newsreel theater in the USA. The idea was such a success that Fox and his backers announced they would start a chain of newsreel theaters across the USA. The newsreels were often accompanied by cartoons or short subjects.
In some countries, newsreels generally used music as a background for usually silent on-site film footage. In some countries, the narrator used humorous remarks for light-hearted or non-tragic stories. In the U.S., newsreel series included The March of Time
(1935–1951), Pathé News
(1910–1956), Paramount News
(1927–1957), Fox Movietone News (1928–1963), Hearst Metrotone News
(1914–1967), and Universal Newsreel
(1929–1967). Pathé News was distributed by RKO Radio Pictures from 1931 to 1947, and then by Warner Brothers from 1947 to 1956.
An example of a newsreel story is in the film Citizen Kane
(1941), which was prepared by RKO's actual newsreel staff. Citizen Kane includes a fictional newsreel "News on the March" that summarizes the life of title character Charles Foster Kane
while parodying The March of Time.
A 1978 Australian film, Newsfront
, is a drama about the newsreel business.
On February 16, 1948, NBC
launched a 10-minute television program called Camel Newsreel Theatre with John Cameron Swayze
that featured newsreels with Swayze doing voiceovers. Also in 1948, the DuMont Television Network
launched two short-lived newsreel series, Camera Headlines
and I.N.S. Telenews
, the latter in cooperation with Hearst's International News Service
.
On August 15, 1948, CBS started their evening TV news program Douglas Edwards and the News
. Later the NBC, CBS, and ABC
news shows all produced their own news film. Newsreel cinemas either closed or went to showing continuous programmes of cartoons and short subjects, such as the London Victoria Station News Cinema, later Cartoon Cinema that opened in 1933 and closed in 1981.
Newsreels died out because of competition from television news.
Documentary film
Documentary films constitute a broad category of nonfictional motion pictures intended to document some aspect of reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction or maintaining a historical record...
prevalent in the first half of the 20th century, regularly released in a public presentation place and containing filmed news
News
News is the communication of selected information on current events which is presented by print, broadcast, Internet, or word of mouth to a third party or mass audience.- Etymology :...
stories and items of topical interest. It was a source of news, current affairs and entertainment for millions of moviegoers until television supplanted its role in the 1950s. Newsreels are now considered significant historical documents, since they are often the only audiovisual record of historical and cultural events of those times.
Newsreels were typically featured as short subject
Short subject
A short film is any film not long enough to be considered a feature film. No consensus exists as to where that boundary is drawn: the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences defines a short film as "an original motion picture that has a running time of 40 minutes or less, including all...
s preceding the main feature film into the 1960s. There were dedicated
newsreel theater
News cinema
A news cinema is a cinema specialising in short films, shown in a continuous manner. However, despite its name, a news cinema does not necessarily show only cinematographical news .- Timeline :...
s in many major cities in the 1930s and 1940s and some large city cinemas also included a smaller theatrette where newsreels were screened continuously throughout the day.
History
Created by Pathé FrèresPathé
Pathé or Pathé Frères is the name of various French businesses founded and originally run by the Pathé Brothers of France.-History:...
of France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
in 1908, this form of film was a staple of the typical North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
n, British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, and Commonwealth
Commonwealth of Nations
The Commonwealth of Nations, normally referred to as the Commonwealth and formerly known as the British Commonwealth, is an intergovernmental organisation of fifty-four independent member states...
countries (especially Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, and New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
), and throughout European cinema
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
programming schedule from the silent era
Silent Movies
Silent Movies are 13 solo guitar compositions by Marc Ribot released September 28, 2010 on Pi Recordings.-Reception:The Allmusic review by Thom Jurek awarded the album 4 stars stating "For those interested in one of the more compelling and quietly provocative and graceful guitar records of 2010,...
until the 1960s when television news broadcasting completely supplanted its role. Nonetheless some countries such as Spain and Cuba continued producing newsreels into the 1980s. The National Film and Sound Archive
National Film and Sound Archive
The National Film and Sound Archive is Australia’s audiovisual archive, responsible for developing, preserving, maintaining, promoting and providing access to a national collection of audiovisual materials and related items...
in Australia holds the Cinesound Movietone
Movietone sound system
The Movietone sound system is a sound-on-film method of recording sound for motion pictures that guarantees synchronization between sound and picture. It achieves this by recording the sound as a variable-density optical track on the same strip of film that records the pictures...
Australian Newsreel Collection, a comprehensive collection of 4,000 newsreel films and documentaries representing news stories covering all major events
The first official British news cinema
News cinema
A news cinema is a cinema specialising in short films, shown in a continuous manner. However, despite its name, a news cinema does not necessarily show only cinematographical news .- Timeline :...
that only showed newsreels was the Daily Bioscope that opened in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
on 23 May 1909.
In 1929 William Fox
William Fox (producer)
William Fox born Fried Vilmos was a pioneering Hungarian American motion picture executive who founded the Fox Film Corporation in 1915 and the Fox West Coast Theatres chain in the 1920s...
purchased a former Broadway theater called the Embassy (now a visitor center operated by the Times Square Alliance). He changed the format from a $2 show twice a day to a continuous 25 cent programme establishing the first newsreel theater in the USA. The idea was such a success that Fox and his backers announced they would start a chain of newsreel theaters across the USA. The newsreels were often accompanied by cartoons or short subjects.
In some countries, newsreels generally used music as a background for usually silent on-site film footage. In some countries, the narrator used humorous remarks for light-hearted or non-tragic stories. In the U.S., newsreel series included The March of Time
The March of Time
The March of Time is a radio series, and companion newsreel series, that was broadcast on CBS from 1931 to 1945 and shown in movie theaters from 1935 to 1951. It was created by Time, Inc. executive Roy Edward Larsen, and was produced and written by Louis de Rochemont and his brother Richard de...
(1935–1951), Pathé News
Pathe News
Pathé Newsreels were produced from 1910 until the 1970s, when production of newsreels was in general stopped. Pathé News today is known as British Pathé and its archive of over 90,000 reels is fully digitised and online.-History:...
(1910–1956), Paramount News
Paramount News
Paramount News is the name on the newsreels produced by Paramount Pictures .-History:The Paramount Newsreel began operation in 1927 and distributed roughly two movie theater issues per week until their closing in 1957. Movie theaters across the country would run these issues, usually on 35mm...
(1927–1957), Fox Movietone News (1928–1963), Hearst Metrotone News
Hearst Metrotone News
Hearst Metrotone News was a newsreel series produced by the Hearst Corporation, founded by William Randolph Hearst.-History:...
(1914–1967), and Universal Newsreel
Universal Newsreel
Universal Newsreel was a series of 7- to 10-minute newsreels that were released twice a week between 1929 and 1967 by Universal Studios. A Universal publicity official, Sam B. Jacobson, was involved in originating and producing the newsreels...
(1929–1967). Pathé News was distributed by RKO Radio Pictures from 1931 to 1947, and then by Warner Brothers from 1947 to 1956.
An example of a newsreel story is in the film Citizen Kane
Citizen Kane
Citizen Kane is a 1941 American drama film, directed by and starring Orson Welles. Many critics consider it the greatest American film of all time, especially for its innovative cinematography, music and narrative structure. Citizen Kane was Welles' first feature film...
(1941), which was prepared by RKO's actual newsreel staff. Citizen Kane includes a fictional newsreel "News on the March" that summarizes the life of title character Charles Foster Kane
Charles Foster Kane
Charles Foster Kane is a fictional character and the subject of Orson Welles' 1941 film Citizen Kane. Welles played Kane , with Buddy Swan playing Kane as a child...
while parodying The March of Time.
A 1978 Australian film, Newsfront
Newsfront
Newsfront is a 1978 Australian drama film starring Bill Hunter, Wendy Hughes, and Bryan Brown, directed by Phillip Noyce. The screenplay is written by David Elfick, Bob Ellis, Philippe Mora, and Phillip Noyce. The original music score is composed by William Motzing...
, is a drama about the newsreel business.
On February 16, 1948, NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
launched a 10-minute television program called Camel Newsreel Theatre with John Cameron Swayze
John Cameron Swayze
John Cameron Swayze was a popular news commentator and game show panelist in the United States during the 1950s.- Early life :...
that featured newsreels with Swayze doing voiceovers. Also in 1948, the DuMont Television Network
DuMont Television Network
The DuMont Television Network, also known as the DuMont Network, DuMont, Du Mont, or Dumont was one of the world's pioneer commercial television networks, rivalling NBC for the distinction of being first overall. It began operation in the United States in 1946. It was owned by DuMont...
launched two short-lived newsreel series, Camera Headlines
Camera Headlines
Camera Headlines was an early American television series that aired from 1948 to 1949 on the DuMont Television Network.-Broadcast history:...
and I.N.S. Telenews
I.N.S. Telenews
I.N.S. Telenews was a news program aired on the now defunct DuMont Television Network from 1948 to 1949.-Broadcast history:Each episode was 15 minutes long, made by International News Service. It aired weekly, each Tuesday at 7:45 pm EST, immediatedly following Camera Headlines which aired Monday...
, the latter in cooperation with Hearst's International News Service
International News Service
International News Service was a U.S.-based news agency founded by newspaper publisher William Randolph Hearst in 1909.Established two years after the Scripps family founded the United Press Association, INS scrapped among the newswires...
.
On August 15, 1948, CBS started their evening TV news program Douglas Edwards and the News
Douglas Edwards
Douglas Edwards was America's first network news television anchor, anchoring CBS's first nightly news broadcast from 1948–1962, which was later to be titled CBS Evening News.-Early life and career:...
. Later the NBC, CBS, and ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
news shows all produced their own news film. Newsreel cinemas either closed or went to showing continuous programmes of cartoons and short subjects, such as the London Victoria Station News Cinema, later Cartoon Cinema that opened in 1933 and closed in 1981.
Newsreels died out because of competition from television news.
See also
- List of newsreels by country
- The March of TimeThe March of TimeThe March of Time is a radio series, and companion newsreel series, that was broadcast on CBS from 1931 to 1945 and shown in movie theaters from 1935 to 1951. It was created by Time, Inc. executive Roy Edward Larsen, and was produced and written by Louis de Rochemont and his brother Richard de...
newsreel series produced by Time-LifeTime-LifeTime–Life is a creator and direct marketer of books, music, video/DVD, and multimedia products. Its products are sold throughout North America, Europe, Australia, and Asia through television, print, retail, the Internet, telemarketing, and direct sales....
from 1935 to 1951 - Universal NewsreelUniversal NewsreelUniversal Newsreel was a series of 7- to 10-minute newsreels that were released twice a week between 1929 and 1967 by Universal Studios. A Universal publicity official, Sam B. Jacobson, was involved in originating and producing the newsreels...
newsreel series produced by Universal StudiosUniversal StudiosUniversal Pictures , a subsidiary of NBCUniversal, is one of the six major movie studios....
from 1929 to 1967 - Hearst Metrotone NewsHearst Metrotone NewsHearst Metrotone News was a newsreel series produced by the Hearst Corporation, founded by William Randolph Hearst.-History:...
newsreel series produced by Hearst CorporationHearst CorporationThe Hearst Corporation is an American media conglomerate based in the Hearst Tower, Manhattan in New York City, New York, United States. Founded by William Randolph Hearst as an owner of newspapers, the company's holdings now include a wide variety of media...
from 1914 to 1967 (distributed by Fox Film Corporation 1929-1934 and by MGM 1934-1967) - Fox Movietone News produced by Fox 1928 to 1963
- Paramount NewsParamount NewsParamount News is the name on the newsreels produced by Paramount Pictures .-History:The Paramount Newsreel began operation in 1927 and distributed roughly two movie theater issues per week until their closing in 1957. Movie theaters across the country would run these issues, usually on 35mm...
newsreel series produced by Paramount PicturesParamount PicturesParamount Pictures Corporation is an American film production and distribution company, located at 5555 Melrose Avenue in Hollywood. Founded in 1912 and currently owned by media conglomerate Viacom, it is America's oldest existing film studio; it is also the last major film studio still...
from 1927 to 1957 - Pathé NewsPathe NewsPathé Newsreels were produced from 1910 until the 1970s, when production of newsreels was in general stopped. Pathé News today is known as British Pathé and its archive of over 90,000 reels is fully digitised and online.-History:...
newsreel series produced by Pathé FilmPathéPathé or Pathé Frères is the name of various French businesses founded and originally run by the Pathé Brothers of France.-History:...
from 1910 to 1956 (later distributed by RKO Radio Pictures 1931-1947 and then Warner Brothers 1947-1956)
Further reading
- Baechlin, Peter and Maurice Muller-Strauss (Editors), Newsreels across the world, Paris: Unesco, 1952
- Barnouw, Erik, Documentary: a history of the non-fiction film, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1993 revised
- Clyde, Jeavons, Jane Mercer and Daniela Kirchner (Editors), "The story of the century!" An international newsfilm conference, London: BUFVCBUFVCThe British Universities Film & Video Council is a representative body promoting the production, study and use of moving image, sound and related media for learning and research...
, 1998 - Fielding, Raymond, The American newsreel 1911-1967, Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 1972
- Fielding, Raymond, The March of Time, 1935-1951, New York: Oxford University Press, 1978
- McKernan, Luke (Editor), Yesterday's news. The British Cinema Newsreel Reader, London: BUFVCBUFVCThe British Universities Film & Video Council is a representative body promoting the production, study and use of moving image, sound and related media for learning and research...
, 2002 - Smither, Roger and Wolfgang Klaue (Editors), Newsreels in film archives: a survey based on the FIAF symposium, Wiltshire: Flicks Books, 1996
- Vande Winkel, Roel, "Newsreel series: world overview", in: Aitken, Ian (Editor), Encyclopedia of the Documentary Film, New York - London: Routledge, 2006, pp. 985–991