“Spic and Span” follows Lindsay, a young girl who demonstrates how to practice good personal hygiene. Illustrated concepts include: wiping ones shoes on a doormat before entering a home, putting soiled clothes in a laundry hamper, and scrubbing ones neck and ears to “pass inspection.”, “Spic and Span” was produced under the Palo Alto Children's Theatre production company, “Children's Productions.” The founder of the Children's Theatre, Hazel Glaister Robertson, noted that she set out to create educational and narrative films for children because the “motion picture industry cannot, because of box office, make films for child audiences without adding adult overtones” (The San Francisco News; Aug. 7, 1945). Film shipping boxes found in our archives suggest that these films were rented and shipped nationally., Archival research has found that scenes were shot at 1654 Portola Avenue in Palo Alto, the former home of Children's Theatre photographer, Anita Fowler.
Type
moving image
Format
Print Sound Color 16mm film
Form/Genre
Educational Films Children's films Social guidance films
Extent
1 Reel of 1
Identifier
81 cpa_000020
Language
English
Subject
Hygiene Baths Hand washing
Place
Portola Avenue (Palo Alto, Calif.)
Provenance
Palo Alto City Library California Revealed is supported by the U.S. Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act, administered in California by the State Librarian.
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