Ancient City Shaken by Greatest Quarry Explosion in History (Universal Newsreel, Aug 1932)

Description

The original release sheet reads: 1. VON GRONAU SAFE AT FINISH OF DARING HOP OVER NORTH ATLANTIC: CHICAGO, IL - The veteran German bird-man and his intrepid crew set their huge craft, the Greenland Whale, gently into the waters of Lake Michigan after flying over the top of the world, thus proving the excellence of the “Northeast Passage” as a short-cut between Europe and the Middle-west. Thousands crowd the shore-front to welcome the overseas fliers and hundreds of thousands cheer their triumphal progress to City Hall. Captain Wolfgang von Gronau’s third trans-oceanic flight marks an important mile-post in the development of practical continent-to-continent air traffic. 2. ANCIENT CITY SHAKEN BY GREATEST QUARRY EXPLOSION IN HISTORY: CARRARA, ITALY - An entire mountain-side of marble is dislodged by a ten-ton blast which took six months to prepare. 300,000 cubic meters of world-famed marble are made available for statuary, monuments and building purposes as a result of the concentrated dynamite charge. Villages for miles around feel the force of the record detonation, startling even in a land of earthquakes. Clouds of marble-dust blot out the sun as an aftermath of this spectacular community effort in the Apuan Alps, caused by an influx of sudden orders for the famous stone, indicating renewed activity in the construction industry. 3. ENDURANCE RECORDS BROKEN BY YOUTHFUL WAGON-PUSHING ACES: HACKENSACK, NJ - Not to be outdone by tree-sitters, dance marathoners and other long-distance experts, a group of Italian school-boys, in the midst of a push-mobile contest, already have hung up a new world’s title of more than 200 hours. A bear-case nailed on a plant and set on baby-buggy wheels is the vehicle in which they are riding to somewhat questionable fame. An hour at a time, day and night, while neighbors cheer, the boys take turnabout. Training headquarters and regular rub-downs give the venture a professional cast, although the young athletes vigorously deny any deviation from strictly amateur status quo. 4. INTERNED PEASANTS FLEE SIBERIAN REDS FOR PARAGUAY HAVEN: SHANGHAI, CHINA - Thousands of German Mennonite farmers and their families wait here for boats to Paraguay, on the last leg of an 18-year migration from the Volga River to a new land of promise. Fleeing from Soviet oppressors across the ice-bound Amur River in the dead of winter, they trekked across Manchuria to the coast. A religious sect opposed to war, they have been embroiled in the World War, the Russian revolution, and in the recent Manchurian and Chinese conflicts. And now, Paraguay, their long hoped-for resting place, is at odds with Bolivia. A queer succession of martial incidents in the lives of a peaceful people. 5. U.S. MAINTAINS LEAD IN 10th OLYMPIAD AS WORLD MARKS FALLS: LOS ANGELES, CA - The great International games provide one thrill after another. Cupped in the lap of the colorful and majestic amphitheater, the giants of modern sport surprise themselves and the entire globe as record after record goes overboard in new bursts of speed and unheard-of efforts of heart and muscle. Eddie Tolan, a veritable lunar eclipse, casts a dark shadow over a dozen or more countries as he breasts the tape, American title-holder par excellence, in the 100-meter dash. Ireland brings the huge stadium to its feet as Robert Tisdall triumphs in the 400-meter hurdles and Dr. Patrick O’Callaghan winds himself up and tosses the hammer 176 feet 11 and a fraction inches. Poland’s representatives astound the vast crowd when Janusz Kusocinski lopes in a winner in the grueling 10,000-meter run, and Stella Walsh speeds to glory in a break-neck finish of the women’s 100-meter dash. Mildred “Babe” Didrikson, America’s woman ace in field events, walks away with high honors in the woman’s javelin throw, and apologizes because her hand slipped. Leo Sexton rings up another ten-spot for the United States by heaving the shot to a new Olympic footage, and again the Stars and Stripes wave at the top of the staff as Ed Gordon leaps 25 feet plus in the broad jump. Canada’s prize athlete brings resounding cheers from the spectators as Duncan McNaughton soars to new Olympic heights in the high jump — 6 feet, 5 and 5/8 inches, and Great Britain has her hour of grandeur when Tom Hampson, the English university star, shows his iron nerve by winning the heart-breaking 800-meter run, even though he collapses at the finish. America’s fast mounting lead in the great skill contest takes another ten-point jump as Lillian Copeland hurls the discus 133 feet and 2 inches, besting the toss of her team-mate, Ruth Osborne, a one-minute heroine, by almost two feet. The greatest athletes in history, in their breath-taking moments of triumph, create a spectacle never before equaled in the realm of sport.

Collection

MCA/Universal Pictures Collection

Series

Motion Picture Releases of the Universal Newsreel Library