This weekend I received a 1968 Film & Record Library that I won on eBay
awhile ago. This thing is a great piece of history and funny to listen
to, too.
It's a training tool, basically, for teaching Chrysler mechanics about
the nw '68 Chryslers & Imperials. This was back in the days before CDs
or videotapes, remember. It's a series of filmstrips with regular 33
1/3 RPM records accompanying each filmstrip. Each filmstrip covers a
different system of the car: suspension, electrical, etc. The whole
thing comes in a cardboard box and is in near mint condition, though I
believe one record is missing.
What's really funny is listening to the records. The voice talent is
hysterical! I don't know where they found these guys, but you just
don't hear voices (or corny music) like these anymore. All the voices
sound like the guy who used to do commercials for Timex watches-- what
the heck was his name? John Cameron something-or-other? They also
sound a lot like the guys who used to narrate old car commercials--
perfect diction, a little stilted, somewhat flat & midwestern, and a
little patronizing-- just like Beaver's Dad in "Leave it to Beaver!"
On the filmstrips, which are black & white, you see a couple of
characters posing in ways to illustrate the conversation going on on the
record. (On the record, one of the voiceover guys does a different
voice for each character-- one of 'em sounds a little like Popeye.)
There's a little beep that tells you when to change "slides." There's
also a little cartoon character that I suppose is the all-knowing
narrator charactor.
I guess they would sit the mechanics in a room and show a filmstrip
while they played one of these records. Sort of reminds me of grade
school! It seems primitive now, I suppose, but this thing appears to
contain a lot of valuable info. Probably bored the socks off the techs
back then! (Probably why it looks so new-- never got any use!)
I have a turntable, now all I need is a filmstrip projector. Anybody
got one?
Mark
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