43784 BEHIND THE SCENES AT LIFE MAGAZINE 1958 PROMOTIONAL FILM "RIP ROARING DAY AT RIPPLE ROCK"
“Rip-Roaring Day at Ripple Rock” is a 1958 sponsored film about Life Magazine that provides exhaustive highlights of the company's many bureaus and distinct design aesthetic. The film presents “behind the scenes” examples to illustrate the interconnectedness of bureaus and the complicated process of documenting, editing, and publishing a story. These examples include Ripple Rock (a non-atomic Ripple Rock explosion at Vancouver Island, British Columbia), which is first discussed at mark 01:38, as we see the countless photos that cross desks in their New York City office. At mark 03:20, the viewer is taken to 1958 World’s Fair in Brussels, Belgium, and a discussion of the relationship between a reporter and a photographer while on assignment. Mark 04:10 takes us to the White House, and a photographer’s assignment to cover a Dwight D. Eisenhower presidential press conference. The film goes on to cover such Life Magazine assignments as aerial photography and images accompanying news stories and feature stories, including a parachute jump by the 101st Airborne division, shown at mark 07:05. (The shoot took a tragic turn when freak ground winds resulted in the death of five paratroopers and injuries sustained by 150 others). Other photoessays include a visit to the ruins of the ancient city of Tikal in Guatemala (beginning at mark 08:30), a visit to the island of Java (starting at mark 09:15) as “The River Kwai March - Colonel Bogey March” plays in the background, and a stop on Broadway as we see the likes of Jason Robards and Peter Ustinov starting at mark 10:30. Following a return to and more detailed coverage of Ripple Rock, we garner insight into what a photojournalist thinks of while on assignment before turning at mark 17:00 to a discussion of how Life retraced the Voyage of HMS Beagle and the work of naturalist Charles Darwin. With more coverage of photoshoots and magazine layouts, the film comes to a close at mark 27:30 with a team of photographers covering a demonstration by two belly-dancing sisters. <p><p>