1 min 13 sec

Taken from the home movie From England to the USA: Menzies Wartime Tour (c1941)

Original title classification not rated – this clip chosen to be PG

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Availability of the complete title

Please note: this clip is silent

Curator’s clip description

This clip from a home movie filmed by Australian Prime Minister, Sir Robert Menzies, begins with a view of the White House through the windscreen of the prime minister’s car. It then cuts to a baseball match being played in the field opposite the White House. A wide shot shows the Supreme Courts followed by the Lincoln Memorial and the Washington Monument.

Curator’s notes

This clip is shot like a typical holiday-maker’s travelogue. It captures Sir Robert Menzies outside the White House in Washington.

Sir Robert edited the home movie on his return and added intertitles to indicate what building or monument we were about to see. One can imagine the prime minister returning to his home at the Lodge and holding a home movie screening night for friends and family.

Elizabeth Taggart-Speers, curator

australian screen