The Bell System Science Series ambient background
CinebyCineby
The Bell System Science Series backdrop

The Bell System Science Series

The Bell System Science Series

1956•Documentary
Similars

The Bell System Science Series consists of nine television specials made for the AT&T Corporation that were originally broadcast in color between 1956 and 1964. Marcel LaFollette has described them as "specials that combined clever story lines, sophisticated animation, veteran character actors, films of natural phenomena, interviews with scientists, and precise explanation of scientific and technical concepts — all in the pursuit of better public understanding of science.

StatusEnded
LanguageEN
First Air DateNov 19, 1956

Episodes

E155m

Our Mr. Sun

Our Mr. Sun examines the Sun and how it works, the Sun's profound influence on life on Earth, and the possibilities for harnessing sunlight for solar electricity; solar cells had been demonstrated at Bell Laboratories in 1954 during the development of the film. For the screenplay, Capra first contracted for treatments by two prominent authors, Aldous Huxley and Willy Ley. Ultimately, Capra wrote the screenplay himself, subject to approval by a scientific advisory board put together by N. W. Ayer. The principal scientific source used for the screenplay was the book Our Sun (1949) by Donald Menzel, who also consulted with Capra about the screenplay. Menzel opposed most of the religious elements of Capra's screenplay, but many were included in the version that was produced.

Nov 19, 1956

E254m

Hemo the Magnificent

Hemo the Magnificent is an examination of what the circulatory system is and how it works. It was written and directed by Frank Capra, and starred Frank C. Baxter as Dr. Research, Richard Carlson as the Fiction Writer, Mel Blanc as the squirrel, June Foray as the deer, and Marvin Miller as Hemo. This film was first broadcast on March 20, 1957 at 9 PM. This was a better hour for a family program than used for Our Mr. Sun, and the program had more viewers than those being broadcast on the two other major television networks

Mar 21, 1957

E355m

The Strange Case of the Cosmic Rays

The Strange Case of the Cosmic Rays is an examination of what cosmic rays are and how they work. It was written by Capra with Jonathan Latimer, a crime fiction novelist and screenwriter. As Gilbert describes it, the third and fourth films "repeated the formulas of his earlier work while ever searching for new contrivances for popularization as well as the best language to express his soft religious message" and that the script was essentially a reworking of ideas Capra had developed for a possible documentary about Robert A. Millikan.

Oct 26, 1957

E455m

The Unchained Goddess

The Unchained Goddess examines what weather is and how it works. It was the fourth and last film in the series that was produced by Frank Capra, who wrote the screenplay with Jonathan Latimer. Unlike the first three of the films, this film was directed by Richard Carlson, who also appears in the film.

Feb 13, 1958

Recommendations

Horizon
NOVA
How Do They Do It?
The World According to Jeff Goldblum
Top Gear
The New York Times Presents
History 101
Doctor Who Confidential
The Real History of Science Fiction
The Universe
Deadly Women
Prehistoric Planet
Biography
Mysteries at the Museum
30 for 30
America's Book of Secrets
Down to Earth with Zac Efron
Conversations with a Killer: The Jeffrey Dahmer Tapes
Through the Wormhole
Marvel's 616

Similars

The Age of A.I.
Stephen Hawking and the Theory of Everything
How We Invented The World
Tout s'explique
The Universe
Into the Universe with Stephen Hawking
Dinosaurs Inside & Out
Quanta Magazine
Mark Rober's Revengineers
All Watched Over by Machines of Loving Grace
Blue Planet II
From Handsaw to Scalpel
A la conquête de la Lune
Ufo - I casi italiani
Critter Fixers: Country Vets
Click
PBS Space Time
The Mars
What's Next? The Future with Bill Gates
AI Decoded