A Welcome to Britain, 1943

hmm you making progress I hope so sir would be alright where the generals if we took that close up not all right with You general love I mean all fine family that's right the boy last and I get it there he said yeah I roll them all right with the generals say a few words to the camera wait a minute this is war when we have won it there'll be time for speeches that's your job isn't it yes sir let the soldier make their speeches but what what what'll I say I suggest you tell your men something about our people and the factories and the pubs on the farm the people they'll meet and be with telling about their problems big problems little problems let's put it to the theater into it but all you've got in it that's the way you win victories on the battlefield put yourself in it well you know I'm just the guy to show you around inland sure I know all about it why shouldn't I I've been here three weeks well first thing I think we ought to take a look at is an English pub yeah let's get away from these docks cuz I know a little country pub it's just the sort of a place you fellas may see come on you we'll get to that later let's go inside come on oh wait before we go in let me tell you a little about an English pub it's not like a saloon it's more like a club club for men and women who happened a great deal of money and who don't drink for the sake of drinking but for the company now these pubs are open for a couple of hours in middle of the day and then again in the early evening and men and women after their day's work and they work long and hard hours come in for a bitter a mile oh that's beer to you and incidentally the beer isn't cold in England no they don't like it cold and they have many I see so if you like beer you better like it warm what sad difference between bitter and mild I don't know I don't know one's bitter in one's mild I better find out for yourself anyway these same people have been coming into the same pub for many years and their grandfathers and their great-grandfather's came in before this particular pub for instance was founded about the time that our country was founded so well come on take a look there yeah you see I'll give you general idea over there there's a father in a sailor son they play quiet games like shelf hey Tony requires patience right there Athene son just short the loser buys the next drink maybe this game isn't over yet but the old man will win he always does and here they all gather ladies two wise mother er that's a nice job a port do you're good thanks yogi Tilly ever Fidel so all very sedate like I said it's a solid club now they're always one or two old philosophers who come in and silently consider the ways of the world I guess they reach tremendous conclusions but they keep these to themselves and always there is the inevitable dart game no pub is without one you'll be playing it too it's very relaxing after a day in the field but whatever they are doing whether it's smoking a pipe or reading the House of Commons debate like this fella until they finish doing what they're doing they like to be left alone get a load of this what you fellas could do with a pair of good ol American dice that's a girl's game well England Here I am let's look like an interesting corner hiya babe what you doing tonight ah watching what are you having oh really I have tomato I love a slug a woman does this stuff any good how it's supposed to be I got a million on them honey that's bad don't throw your money around like that don't fool around with those scotchman that tough baby when he is a chambermaid I never cracked a putt we ought to get rid of that fella he makes it tough for the rest of us what a character what are these things for good conduct how do you like to over here yank where your wife right I don't like it hoes though well you see back home every morning I have steak for breakfast and there's six on the family and every morning we all are steak for breakfast you don't blame me do you know - I don't believe you well I gotta be going as a cab waiting outside you know we got to hire them by the knife while sandy take care of yourself and keep your skirts Queen yes I better blow I done there sure had to get rid of that soldier was too bad an example well let's try our luck Amy ciao good evening sorry I'm late oh girl even Eddie wait in there sauron bill bosses whoa whoa let's go ball me out what's the old say I may have a better please thanks Oh half-pints all right Thank You step Joe much sim and a halfie mmm shilling I'll bring your change thank you oh thank you sir thank you and you were like oh hang off what an American cigarette save just give him time they'll come your way well that's that Monza beer to was Bharat the pleasureville KY verb purely fun gonna have you I don't my thanks oh good okay cause bring a game for that joke this is your this I is good Dawson got Padma come on don't know in a weaver I'll just lay ups around 20 fill the other day we like a game in a mood how about give it that Jack the truth well I don't know this scoring bear i watch it one that's a good idea Bonnie hey our four-year oh good middle get up it'll be up one yak step up here and Artie poor mnemonic are right take a good in like been achieve this man I like baseball I just like baseball give your muscles me alone no not very long what about you mom just bought myself doctor offer Sicily huh in other places oh I we're done cat Crete el alamein that's when we started to go in the right direction forward Wady halfa mike Mayock camilli old New York say mommy see how it has me New York yeah meet the one like my smell comes from new your honey do Tim magic cousin Jim thought of on New York's he come from Brown play baseball oh no very sticky well then I probably know my bought a lot of chicken I know someone in New York too I just a mess in there it's tough trip now it's not honest too bad these days City drink I've got one I'll buy you one how about that oh thank you okay with me fine hey Scotty jr. pal have a drink hi if it's on the leash Linda can you account now what did I get you going I'd like whiskey no ready for you did do it give that's two scotch and Holliday and inside a couple of points men over here if you buy them drinks they'll insist on buying them right back so you want to watch and not offer them expensive drinks they can't afford a return and look you know we're not trying to show you the perfect way to behave in a pub we're only trying to point out that some of these people are a little more reserved than some of us so if you if you take it easy a little bit just at the beginning give him a little time but I'm finish what they're doing you'll make some damn good friend now maybe if you play your cards right you'll be invited to suffer like I won now among their precious possession are pieces of bombs that nearly did the man they take a kind of grim pride in holding on to them you Azen Incendia his two kids are away their families are pretty generally broken up the son is a rear gunner in a Lancaster bomber he's done 21 raids the daughters in the wife third from the left these are proud people they don't like to tell you the things they're short of by table part Ginelli impossible to replace in their food which is so severely rational so that when a visitor comes they're apt to place on the table what's got to last them all the week interesting fishing yeah there's a lovely real get you well with it this rationing is something that you ought to know about you know how it is back home or was your host looked on it as a compliment the more you ate well here you have to watch out because things are so short all right you know it when you come up to the table and it's especially tough when one or two people live alone like Bill and his wife so here's a little lesson for you on how not to behave when invited out to supper in a British home don't grab a handful of tomatoes they're rare luxuries go easy with the meat they each only get 25 cents worth a week you can eat it all in one gulp but don't and butter go slow with the butter very slow two ounces a week plus eight ounces of margarine is the lot green vegetables aren't so bad and all the potatoes you want [ __ ] is mighty scarce and T two ounces per person per week is all they get they can't have it as often as they want and sugar each person gets eight ounces a week they've almost given up having it in our team jams and preserves four ounces a week so this is a particularly horrible example you're seeing but you get the idea it isn't that they are starving it's just that they have very little to give to other people remember they won't tell you these things now that was the wrong thing to do where's cool it is to be all right if I went with you know it's got a plane is that what Cosmo lost yeah is that a mosquito good you want some candy right there yeah Elias ration in England all right let's go oh okay wait what do you want me to sit John good morning children now this morning as you see we are going to do a little geography never do say David David who who's that yeah who's our chair move mister our outs go change you're gone to the wall oh I see there's old school - hey guys well that is mr. chips you see he's come out of retirement to teach these children and all over England the older men to come back to their professions in order to release the younger men of the service now I just want to see how much you can remember from last time now what's the lien of the country just north of this boundary line right right and west of this line Africa not very good any other office while right and what's the name of this piece I expect you're right but I can't hear a word you're denying right now there you have the United Kingdom and what's the capital of Scotland did it ask Oh whoo all right didn't got it Edinburgh heads back and the capital of Northern Ireland verify all right artists your turn will come quite right though and the capital of whale Aberystwyth you are right now what's this river that I'm going to put in now thank you and this please hear thunder now just up the river bout here is a place you know where I went to school Cambridge no Oxford Oxford on the Thames Cambridge is somewhere up there now a doodle children that from north to south the United Kingdom is six hundred mile and from east to west at its widest point it's only 300 now that's a very small country children you know that in America one state alone Texas for example is twice as big it's only 80 miles from London to the French coast only 210 miles from London to Paris and 578 miles from London to Berlin which is somewhere over here now does anybody want to ask any questions oh please sir I'm sorry David who owns Southern Ireland well it's the Irish Free State good heavens young man aren't you in the wrong class yeah you see I have orders to tell I sold here's something about the geography of England just come up here again excuse me who is your name really mr. chips no no they think I'm like some pseudo better golf character No I've got to be going now I have some other things to do of course you well goodbye children ah ride a bus and goodbye mr. chips goodbye my boy and good luck to you all or pardon me mister how do you do sir could you tell me could you tell me how can get the station yes sir straight down the road by a book from Twitter into the lamp and you can't miss it oh thank you very much there's a lot of planes around here all the time aren't there yesterday what do you do have maneuvers I suppose though it's a very old house isn't yeah it's two three hundred years old he lived there all your line not yet hahaha well thank you very much you like to come in have a cup of tea well I I'd like that game I think I'll take a rain check on that if it's all right I'll come another time you understand what boys can you tell me the next train to Chiron Chester well pirate current conscious spell it will see you all right way you got it written I sell a look-see ir en si at Easter sisters your sister Suzie airman its time this side change it ready thank you very much nice weather how we get used to this get him yeah cold a little cold have a cup of tea with a oh thank you very much we have an American cigarette oh thank you very much thank you I got I'll bring it right back weather iron chest systems cest Shah was wherever you go tea so the English drink tea to three times day that ring it like we're doing coke Spackman States the British cause of refreshing your journey really necessary Oh Here I am see how you see open if you're not open to thinking oh there it is every get those things right mother bye man goodbye it's been very nice meeting you brother Matt you sure funny you should come from learning you too isn't it have you come to my Bermuda news come to my home and have a cup of tea with me both of you thank you it will die and good luck about that bye bye well why God well I think I'll get some cigarettes I'm short too well I'll get some good now look men you read that conversation that's not unusual here it's a sort of thing that happens quite a lot now let's be frank about it there are colored soldiers as well as white here and there are less social restrictions in this country that's what you heard an English woman asking a colored boy to tea she was polite about and he was polite about it now look that might not happen at home but the the point is we're not at home and the point is to if we bring a lot of prejudices here what are we gonna do about him well I pretty gentleman said he knew who that is that's General Lee head of the services applies you know that he's got a lot of Colored Troops under him and they're doing a big job over here and I happen to know that generally comes from Kansas and that his family fought for the Confederacy let's go and see what he says about it so we were wondering how the general felt about him and Mees America has promised the Negro real citizenship and a fair chance to make the best of himself when the army needs Americans to fight for the country it takes [ __ ] along with whites everyone's treated the same when it comes to dying and so the army wouldn't be true to America if it didn't try to live up to the promises about an equal chance you mean that we have to get over our prejudices you don't get over a Fred Jesus that easily there's no use pretending we're different than what we are but we can try to live up to our American promises I'd go further and say we can't do less and still feel ourselves Patriots we have promised to respect each other all of us that's one of the reasons that makes our world worth fighting for but you're all together in this small country with the same surroundings same amount of pay to spend the same sort of places to spend it and we're all here as soldiers everything we do we do as American soldiers not Negroes and white men rich or poor but as American soldiers it's not a bad time is it to learn to respect each other both ways you you'll get in trouble driving on the wrong side of the street as if I didn't know they drive on the left-hand side of the street in London now how much is it my good man three not much on the clocks it greenwall astray notice he's made three and nine point I see now where is our three and nine point switches are three and nine points here we haven't run a three not many coins if you haven't got a plastic not it what's that that's all for cram that's half a crowd which is the whole crowd yeah well we we don't use him now so the ball made you cut the move yeah but how do I get three and nine how do I get three and nine out of here well if you order that one and that one and you can include that one if you're feeling generous liar oh well you rushed me over the wall where slide away Bob verges Mary sight for sore G eyes how do you feel pretty well look what spam has done for you I wonder why I haven't seen you in pictures or is this really the reason yes that's all men you remember Bob Hope you saw in those Bing Crosby picture I love the ha ha ha is still so funny goodbye but Oh Bob but saw you last week I saw in that picture the road to Morocco you saw Road to Morocco how about that was that journey really necessary Oh glad I stopped by god I'll see you hey Bob what happen another I'm Kate him yet jab me hit will give them an trying to figure this out I'm trying to explain to these men yeah the difference in our money and their money you have a trouble with you and I haven't rules I'll help you come here let me see this now if you could just turn right a pod you can see this train today I will stand by fellows talk to each other for a second I look at Burgess here's the idea there's a lot of stuff over here you got understand princes this kid here that's at roughly you know threatening threepence thruppence is that right province that's right goodbye buddy I like how much do you want for six now or gone up since yellow there have in a few minutes but look you've got a lot of stuff here you'll never need again you see that stuff that's heavy it'll make your lopsided don't fool around with that see there's the thing there that's two and six that's a half a crown you know you know the shilling is I know they're killing yeah would you I see now look here this thing here is that you're gonna need a little stuff what is it how much is it five and three honest I keep going there there is some others I just got that folding let me see that this is a 10 shilling note here yeah this is a pound that's very handy have you got any other kind of money what do you well I just got it your own laundry or something no I just got this I got these uh oh oh these they're very valuable for a lot of uses you can use these but look wanna go concentrate all this money get it all together like that Burgess see what let me have it all wrapped up like that and there you've got the whole thing just like that say how much is it right now engine stops whoa I'll take care of it I'll little all pile up I'll take the old babe ah ah what's that what about the money but verges I explained all that now chin up well you mean chin are prevents drooling goodbye old boy all right / and there's the big question way to go on your 24-hour passes or your furloughs if you get any special services section on the Red Cross will help you figure that out can you places of interest to visit tell you where to stay or if you have any money tucked away right little short of petrol ah that old black magic and what life for life what a war so so some trenches huh now you'll notice and I wear my dog tags at all times and what's way your dog tanks at all times battle no service isn't what history as me in its spell come in all there you are about time I must say no I tell you what I want you to do I want you to throw my ball I like a tepid then I want you to press my uniform what's those creases free and then shine my shoes don't bring a back to see your face in that clear Hey look no not breakfast mmm tell you what I want I want to keep heard hit by the way are you the bustle of the valise over made I'm amazed Oh Saji get going be going you talking about it listen I'm very busy I'm making a picture I got orders I don't know what you got but it says here that private aj1 on to table anywhere there's a lot of numbers of stuff then you'll proceed without delay on or apart and this is about from here to where you wanted get going now let's get going on your wager I haven't told it to make a good impression to lift need at all time but in that coat come on let's go I'm told how long it takes for mail to get here at first sometimes it takes six or eight weeks well they aren't look fellows don't get the idea that the folks at home are writing the mail catch up with it all come at once you're ready yeah I'm all set bye I'm talking about security don't tell anyone where you are what you're doing I haven't told them that at all setting a good example look I am told that they're not here for a good time that they're here for a java works right and so are you come on what's all the rush there's a mistake somewhere so do they wait a minute I haven't told him yet about the difference in pay you know what Tommy only gets $15 a month you guys are lucky but nobody and I get going you're impeding the war you're mine I haven't told them you they can't do this hey hey hey Sarge I haven't told them I am told them yet about I haven't told them yet where I am told you guys get a viola name I can't finish the picture that's up to you you

Channel: US National Archives

Views: 345,245

Keywords: US National Archives, NARA

Id: SyYSBBE1DFw

Length: 38min 3sec (2283 seconds)

Published: Wed Feb 05 2014