To Be Alive! (1964)

To Be Alive! (1964) Sponsor: S.C. Johnson & Son. Production Co.: Francis Thompson Productions. Directors: Francis Thompson, Alexander Hammid. Writers: Francis Thompson, Edward Field. Music: Gene Forrell. Transfer Note: Scanned and assembled from three 35mm prints held by the Library of Congress. Running Time: 18 minutes. Film made by the home cleaning products manufacturer for screening at the 1964–65 New York World’s Fair. To Be Alive! shows the marvels of everyday life, reminding viewers that people everywhere “need never lose [their] sense of wonder and joy.” It was filmed in New York, Arizona, Nigeria, and Italy. Note: Shot simultaneously by three cameras, this “triptych” film was shown on three adjacent 18-foot screens and featured a multitude of images. The original version ran 40 minutes but was cut to 18 minutes for the fair screening. Robert Alden reported that it was seen by more than 5 million visitors and proved to be one of the fair’s most popular attractions. To Be Alive! won an Academy Award for Best Documentary Short Subject in 1965 and was later shown in the United Nations Pavilion at the 1967 Montreal World’s Fair. Resources: Bosley Crowther, “Moving Forward,” New York Times, May 10, 1964, X1; Philip K. Scheuer, “Half-Film, Half-Live Illusion is All Rage,” Los Angeles Times, July 3, 1964, d4; Robert Alden, “Fair Negotiating to Make ’65 Film,” New York Times, Aug. 17, 1964, 22; Alastair Reid, To Be Alive! From the Film Produced by Francis Thompson, Inc. for Johnson Wax (New York: Macmillan, 1966).