Edward M. Newman (1870–1953) was a film producer of many documentary film shorts released by Warner Brothers and edited at Vitaphone studios in Brooklyn, New York in the 1930s. These were mostly of the travelogue genre. He was born in Cleveland, Ohio on March 16, 1870. His parents were Hungarian immigrants. He died in Los Angeles, California on April 16, 1953.
Overview Around 1930, the major studios in Hollywood discovered that travel shorts running under 11 minutes were among the cheapest to produce as "filler" on the theatrical program. The number of "faraway adventures" made for eager Depression Era audiences, who seldom traveled far from home, rapidly increased at this time. (Films of this type had been around for decades.) Only one cameraman was needed, sometimes with a few assistants, along with one editor, sometimes a studio orchestra and usually a narrator. Much of the material could be shot silent and dubbed over later, although Fox Movietone News included on-location sound recordings with many of their "Magic Carpet" series.
Compared to the competition (which included Fox, Amadee J. Van Beuren "Vagabond Adventures" for RKO Pictures, Universal Pictures "Going Places", Columbia Pictures "Rambling Reporter", Educational Pictures "Treasure Chest" and other series and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Burton Holmes and James A. Fitzpatrick "Traveltalks"), the Warner-Newman travelogues were well-produced and often featured locales not covered in other series. One additional novelty was that the series name changed with each "season" (lasting September through August/September of the next year), spotlighting a specific theme such as U.S. history (as seen by famous sites) and "musical journeys". This enabled the theater exhibitors to offer attendees something different and new each year.
Ira Genet collaborated as director and writer with many of these. Key editor was Bert Frank, who also worked on many other Vitaphone shorts, including some documentaries that assembled old silent film footage. Leo Donnelly was a key narrator in the earlier shorts, also handling Ripley's Believe It or Not! for Warner-Vitaphone.
When rival FitzPatrick with MGM started shooting in full Technicolor, Warner was already spending a fortune on their other two-reel musical and comedy shorts in color. As a result of this (along with various technical difficulties), the Newman series continued to be released in black and white until 1936, then opted for the more economical Cinecolor. Trade reviews tended to unfavorably compare them with the MGM Traveltalks, which boasted the full rainbow effect. Yet they continued to be praised for their expert commentary and interesting subject matter. In 1938, the so-called "Colortours" were regrouped as the Vitaphone Color Parade, moving on to multi-subject topics backed by Mechanix Illustrated.
Earlier career Prior to joining Warner-Vitaphone, E.M. Newman had roughly two decades of documentary film making experience. Unfortunately, like other pioneering "globe trotters", he was only fleetingly discussed in the periodicals of the times and is largely ignored by modern film historians. Like the more famous Burton Holmes, he was active on the travelogue lecture circuit (both with films and still photographs).
Educational Pictures, known today for its 1920s and '30s comedy films and as a distributor of animated cartoons more than its many documentaries, utilized him for a series of nature films and travelogues released in 1918, including some "scenics" of the Philippines, Japan and Mexico. Approximately thirty were produced.Motion Picture News, January 19, 1918Film Daily, August 18 & August 21, 1918 His interest in shooting wildlife with a camera never dimmed, since many of Warner's travelogues of the 1930s showcased such footage. (Examples include Animals of the Amazon and Slackers and Workers of the Jungle, while Berlin Today featured police dogs in training and Dear Old London covered the zoo in detail). In 1922, he tackled a 7,000 mile tour of Africa and, according to Film Daily, over 30,000 feet of footage (handled with just two assistants), including "two hundred different tribes of natives and all possible species of wild animals".Film Daily, "Back with Jungle Films", September 20, 1922
World War I saw him as a film correspondent and, according to Film Daily (August 21, 1918), "He has been with the American troops from their transports to the front. He was with them in Alsace, on the Piave and the Asiae-o Plateau. He witnessed the shelling of Paris and the raids on London. Mr. Newman's material includes all the work of the American forces, from the building of miles of railroads to the enormous bakeries. He still suffers from the effect of a gas attack, which laid him up for several weeks, and robbed him of his voice."
For the next 22 "seasons", he was on the lecture circuit and made a number of visits to the Brooklyn Institute of Arts and Sciences covering such locales as the Virgin IslandsKristin L. Hoganson, Consumers' Imperium: The Global Production of American Domesticity, 1865-1920, 2007 University of North Carolina, p.327The Bulletin of the Brooklyn Institute of Arts and Sciences Volume 23, September 18, 1920 and, for his second travelogue presented at Carnegie Hall, a tour of Damascus and Syria.New York Times, November 29, 1920 In 1924, he was working alongside Burton Holmes gathering material in Europe.Film Daily, "After New Material", March 3, 1924 A few months before releasing his first Warner travelogues, he had another successful Carnegie Hall presentation covering Italy with G. J. Marfleet and color work by Dorothy Rankin.Film Daily, November 26, 1930
Listing of films A full list of the travelogues released between 1931 and 1938 are as follows (with review dates by Film Daily and copyright dates when release dates are not available):
Traveltalks Burnet Hershey is sometimes credited on these:
TitleRelease, copyright or review dateLocation or subjectA Trip to Tibet © March 19, 1931 TibetScenic of Algiers April 12, 1931 (Film Daily review) featuring the "Paris of North Africa", Algiers Animals of the Amazon May 1931 Brazil wildlife including sloths, giant anteaters, river dolphins and monkeysDown the Blue Danube June 28, 1931 (Film Daily review) Vienna, Austria & Germany Little Journeys to Great Masters August 1, 1931 Rome & Florence Southern India October 11, 1931 (Film Daily review) The Road to Mandalay November 1, 1931 (Film Daily review) Burma Mediterranean By-ways December 6, 1931 (Film Daily review) Morocco, Sardinia, Malta & Pompeii (Italy) Java January 2, 1932 (Film Daily review) Singapore, Colombo & Java Northern India March 20, 1932 (Film Daily review) includes Agra regionOberammergau, Land of the Passion Play April 3, 1932 covers the 1930 performance in Bavaria (Germany)Soviet Russia May 15, 1932 (Film Daily review) features Saint Petersburg When in Rome June 11, 1932 (Film Daily review) Rome A South American Journey (South American Journeys) June 25, 1932 (Film Daily review) Brazil & Argentina included Paris Glimpses July 9, 1932 (Film Daily review) Includes the Eiffel Tower & Champs-Élysées Dancing Around the World August 24, 1932 (Film Daily review) Spain, Sweden, Italy (cameo by Douglas Fairbanks visiting), the Zulu people & Java Dear Old London August 26, 1932 (Film Daily review) features London Zoo
World Adventures Primary narrator was Leo Donnelly.
TitleRelease, copyright or review dateLocationBerlin Today August 31, 1932 (Film Daily review) features police dog training in BerlinBeauty Spots of the World September 17, 1932 (Film Daily review) Blue Grotto (Capri), Amalfi, the Acropolis of Athens, various spots in Japan & India Transportation of the World © September 21, 1932 Wonder Spots of the World October 3, 1932 (Film Daily review) includes Victoria Falls in Zambia, Pisa (Italy), Egypt including the Great Sphinx of Giza & the Taj MahalAn Oriental Cocktail October 10, 1932 (© September 29) Hawaii (brief stop), mostly JapanCurious Customs of the World © October 17, 1932 Includes Parsi customs in India, spirit killing in Bali, dances in Korea & HawaiiSeeing Samoa October 18, 1932 (Film Daily review) From Bethlehem to Jerusalem © November 26, 1932 High Spots of the Far East © February 6, 1933 Pearl River (China), Siam & Egypt Strange Ceremonies of the World © March 31, 1933 Japan, Hawaii Main Streets © April 12, 1933 New York City, Paris, Venice & othersWorkers of the World May 6, 1933 fishing in Ireland, Sulu harvesting, native American craftsCostumes of the World © July 24, 1933 Top of the World © September 15, 1933 Iceland
Musical World Journeys TitleRelease, copyright or review dateLocationExploring the Pacific September 23, 1933 Cocos Islands, Galapagos & Tahiti Samoan Memories © October 25, 1933 SamoaThe Cannibal Isles (In the Cannibal Island) © February 28, 1934 Fiji & other parts Italy, the New and the Old © March 2, 1934 Venice Spanish America © March 2, 1934 Cuba, Mexico, Panama & other partsJerusalem, the Holy City © March 15, 1934Heart of Paris © March 24, 1934 Slackers and Workers of the Jungle © July 16, 1934 Ceylon elephants & Malayan monkeysThe East Indies © July 23, 1934 IndonesiaPicturesque Siam © July 25, 1934 Dark Africa © August 2, 1934 Ethiopia & Gulf of Aden A Visit to the South Seas © October 4, 1934Central America © October 5, 1934
See America First Mostly narrated by John B. Kennedy, these United States locational travelogues were distributed in a more chronological order (based on historical periods) after their initial releases. The first three were shown in Washington D.C. at a special screening.
TitleRelease or review dateSubjectPilgrim Days August 28, 1934Boston Tea Party August 28, 1934 where the Revolutionary War beganDixieland August 28, 1934 tour of the pre-Civil War southHail Columbia © November 22, 1934 covers terrain of Louisiana PurchaseRemember the Alamo © January 2, 1935 Texas tourThe Blue and the Gray March 2, 1935 profiles site of the Civil War (United States), along with veterans on parade (newsreel footage)Westward Bound April 13, 1935The Trail of the 49ers © April 22, 1935 mostly CaliforniaRemember the Maine May 4, 1935 covers Spanish–American WarThe Yanks are Coming June 1, 1935 vintage footage of World War IBoom Days June 23, 1935 vintage footage from the last decadeThe Mormon Trail © July 6, 1935 Forward Together July 13, 1935 saluting the last few years and President Roosevelt
Our Own U.S. TitleNarratorRelease or review dateSubjectsCurious Industries Harry Von Zell September 7, 1935 scrap iron collecting, oil drilling, goats & frog farming, clam & turtle fishing.Playgrounds James Wallington October 5, 1935 Virginia Beach, Coney Island, Palm Springs, Florida, Lake Placid (New York), Lake MarancookCamera Hunting Paul Douglas October 18, 1935 (Film Daily review) critter footage: beavers, trained ducks, cat & monkey team, alligatorsNature's Handiwork David Ross November 29, 1935 Yellowstone, Grand Canyon, Yosemite & other national parks.Odd Occupations Ken Roberts November 27, 1935 includes sponge diving in Tarpon Springs, Florida, turtle hunting, shoe-making in Pensacola, Florida & sulphur miningSteel and Stone Milton Cross January 25, 1936 history of bridge constructionA Day's Journey Harlan Reed February 22, 1936 San Francisco, New Orleans and other citiesWe Eat to Live Howard Claney April 9, 1936 (Film Daily review) NYC Fulton Fish Market, Chicago's stockyards, Florida citrusVacation Spots Don Wilson April 18, 1936 Includes Key West, Saratoga Springs, New York, Bar Harbor, Maine & Hot Springs National Park. Parts in Cinecolor.Harbor Lights H. V. Kaltenborn March 21, 1936 Ellis Island, Seattle, San Francisco, Savannah, Georgia & Galveston, TexasIrons in the Fire John S. Young June 13, 1936 Can You Imagine? Ray Saunders July 13, 1936 Milwaukee Zoo, lion wrestling, Provincetown, Massachusetts town cryer, etc.For Sports' Sake Brooke Temple August 5, 1936 includes mule baseball