Glimpses of California

Among all the US states, California is one of the most powerful and influential. It possesses the strongest non-national economy on Earth, has a huge tech industry, and many of the world's most recognizable companies and industries are located here. Even back when this short was made, california was the place to be if you wanted to accomplish your dreams of making a ton of money or getting big in the motion picture industry. Fitzpatrick starts by saying Spanish settlers came to what is today california in search of gold, but they never located it. Due to its climate, growing flowers is easier in california more than most other states, and it's not unusual to see residential houses with huge lawns comprised of what seems like hundreds of flowers all densely grown together. California's state flower is the poppy, and the state has an extensive and advanced network of trams and railway lines for the transportation of pedestrians and supplies. To outsiders, one of california's most famous attractions is without a doubt Hollywood, the undisputed center of film. While that may be the case, most of the major studios are in the surrounding areas and not in the district itself. Many movies that later become world famous for decades have their premieres at Grauman's Chinese Theater in LA. We also see the outdoor dining scene, which has a lot of tables that are Paris-inspired. California also has a huge fruit industry, and around half the fruit in America originates from here. Finally, we visit Forest Lawn Memorial Park, which is a cemetary in Glendale that contains a massive, 30 foot wide stain glass reimagining of Leonardo da Vinci's masterpiece, The Last Supper. This version is backlit by natural light, the intensity of which is controlled by shutters, ensuring that it looks even more amazing when the surrounding area is dark. This concludes Fitzpatrick's look at 1940s california. While it says this short was made after the war, I feel like it was done during it since it was risky to travel outside america at the time. I don't think they would have focused so much on american states if there wasn't a global war going on. Even today, california is the most populous state and is a prime example of how crucial geographical location is. Because it's extremely big, has basically every type of climate and biome imaginable, more money than it knows what to do with, and probably the overall nicest weather on earth, it's not hard to see why california was basically destined for greatness as soon as it was discovered. I am kind of disappointed there's no mention of the Golden Gate Bridge but I'm sure there's other parts of this series that show it.

TravelTalks is going Hollywood. First, they're on the coast and on the roads. The wild flowers are a nice touch especially to highlight the color film. That must be a big idea for this episode. The rest is a tour of Hollywood landmarks. Some of which are still around but some are long gone. The big missing icon is the Hollywood sign. It's in disrepair at this time and I think it's in the far background in one scene. One would hope for a movie star to pop up or even for a fleeting glimpse. Doesn't he have any friends in the movie business? I'm half joking although going religious for the last part doesn't seem to fit Hollyweird.

This is one of the dullest of the James A. FitzPatrick Travel series and that's saying something, since most of them are nothing to shout about. We learn something in the opening narrative about why Spanish settlers came to California after Columbus--in search of gold that they never found.

We get shots of California wildflowers surrounding a highway, a long, winding train reminds us that California has a great network of railways, and see a field of poppies with the information that The Poppy is the state flower.

A few more images of flowers accompanies the remark that California's fertile soil and sunny climate is why they're so abundant all over the state.

We get a quick glimpse of monuments when we get to downtown Los Angeles and Hollywood--namely, CBS, NBC, Grauman's Chinese theater, and the busy Farmer's Market with outdoor tables for dining, big shopping center and post office.

The short closes with a view of Forest Lawn Memorial Park, a "restful place for the dead" and an interesting glimpse of a stained glass recreation of "The Last Supper," by which time the viewer is probably looking for a restful place to rest.

James A. Fitzpatrick sends the Technicolor cameras under the supervision of John Boyle out the doors of the studio to far-distant California to take pictures of flowers and Grauman's Chinese Theater, on the grounds, presumably, that no one in the movie audience has ever seen their like before.

This was likely shot during the War, when travel overseas was dangerous. Already the Traveltalks series were heading over to Blighty, so this was used to break up the sequence.

The copy of this travelogue -- so to speak -- that plays on Turner Classic Movies is of variable quality; the print is clearer towards the end.

Glimpses of California (1946)

** 1/2 (out of 4)

Another entry in the long running MGM series TravelTalks with James A. FitzPatrick. This time out we take a look at California and learn why Spanish settlers wanted to come there after Columbus reached the country. Also on hand are various sites, which centered around the famous gold rush. We also see some wide ranging railways, flowers and other sites. This is pretty middle ground in regards to the series but it does manage to have some great eye candy, which is brought out even more by the nice print shown on Turner Classic Movies. The movie shows us some nice scenery and FitzPatrick's narration is always good.