Cine 16 this Thursday: Ben Franklin, besides electrified kites.

Heyyyyyyyyyyyy kids! It's that time again!

This Thursday, June 15, is the next Cine16 showing. As always, it's FREE.

This month's theme is Ben Franklin's Busy Life, which is a cornucopia of films directly or tangentially related to Ben Franklin. This month, we've got dazzling footage of a 1960s power plant, an almost unbearably wholesome fireman doing his chores but not fighting fires, and children playing in the great outdoors while a gentle voice reads poetry about the weather.

My personal favorite film this month is Library World. Young Brian thinks he's too cool to follow his friend Stephanie into the library, but that all stops when a library employee rolls up in a hot rod, goes inside, and starts cleaning civil war era guns for a library display! Where did the library worker find out about hot rods and guns? Why, BOOKS, of course!

Where, when, etc:
Cine16
Thursday, June 15 * Films start at 7pm
@ The Missouri History Museum (Lindell at DeBalivere, two blocks from the Forest Park Metrolink stop)

&fyi, the Museum leaves their cafe open during the showing, so snacks, booze, and POPCORN are available!

And for more information about who we are, check out our website.
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For the very curious, here is the full listing of this month's films:

ciné16 – June 2006

BEN FRANKLIN’S BUSY LIFE

Benjamin Franklin
17 minutes
1949
From humble beginnings as a printer's apprentice in Boston, we follow Franklin as he seeks a new life in Philadelphia and beyond. Not only did he serve his country during the critical period surrounding the
Revolution, but also studied electricity, served as the first Postmaster General, created the public library, and organized the first fire department. Though he signed his name as merely B. Franklin, printer, we find that he was far more: inventor, scientist,
statesman, and diplomat.

Electricity – From Power Plant to Home
11 minutes
1960s
How does power to your TV or washing machine from the plant? Follow its generation and flow, from the simple electromagnet, to the turbine, to the substation, along the power lines, and into our movie projector!

Weatherman – A Scientist
11 minutes
Dir. Art Evans
This film stresses the importance of the weatherman’s job in society, while asserting at points that weather is dramatic and exciting. We see how he gathers information on his own region using a litany of tools, and how he incorporates information from other regions to produce a forecast.

Whatever the Weather
9 minutes
1970s?
Four children run and play in different kinds of weather, as the calm voice of a narrator recites sweet, simple poetry celebrating different kinds of weather.

Story of a Book
11 minutes
1960s?
Children’s author H.C. Holling narrates the process of writing a book by explaining how he and his wife wrote the book Pagoo. He shows us inspiration, research, writing and illustrating, laying out the book, and the printing process.

The Man Who Made Spinning Tops – Why People Have Special Jobs
7 minutes
1970
Dir. Steven Clark
A prehistoric inventor creates the world’s first spinning top for his son. Other children ask him to make tops for them, but only when their fathers agree to provide him something in exchange can he make the time to do so. We learn in a basic way why each person does a certain job in society, rather than each person having to do everything for himself.

Day with Fireman Bill
11 minutes
1958
Bill is training to become a fireman. He demonstrates many of the tasks of his daily life, speaking with equal pride about learning to operate a hose and learning to have good housekeeping skills at the station. This film does not feature any footage of fire whatsoever.

Pony Express
10 minutes
Even people named after Ben Franklin made great contributions to American society. Benjamin Franklin Ficklin (No relation) helped found the Pony Express in 1860, in order to connect the new state of California with the existing union out east. With careful reenactments, this film shows how the Pony Express worked and what kind of equipment they used.

Library World
16 minutes
1978
Dir. Ronald B. Underwood
Brian is reluctant to follow his friend Stephanie into the library, until a man drives up in a race car and walks inside. He follows the man to ask about the race car, and it turns out the man works at the library. The library worker explains to Brian and Stephanie how the library works. Each time he opens a book, exciting, kinetic stock footage plays on the topic of that book.