Last Updated on: 5th June 2020, 06:48 am
The message here, I think, is that if you take care of your property, you might just have the luxury of dying more slowly should someone one day drop an atomic bomb on your neighbourhood.
Atomic tests at the Nevada Proving Grounds (later the Nevada Test Site) show effects on well-kept homes, homes filled with trash and combustibles, and homes painted with reflective white paint. Asserts that cleanliness is an essential part of civil defense preparedness and that it increased survivability. Selected for the 2002 National Film Registry of “artistically, culturally, and socially significant” films.
Producer: National Paint, Varnish and Lacquer Association
Sponsor: National Clean Up – Paint Up – Fix Up Bureau.
Produced with the cooperation of the Federal Civil Defense Administration.“The dingy house on the left. The dirty and littered house on the right. Or the clean, white house in the middle. It is your choice. The reward may be survival.”
Update: I completely forgot that I wrote about this all the way back in 2009. The video link in that post looks to be dead now, so I’ll call it a happy accident. I’ve gone ahead and deleted that post since it’s basically useless, but here’s what I wrote then.
Before You Start Ducking And Covering, Don’t Forget To Clean The House
I’ll bet you didn’t know that the best way to make sure that you’ve still got a house if ever an atomic explosion should hit your town is simply to make sure the place is tidy and has a fresh coat of paint. Well, if you take the National Paint, Varnish and Lacquer Association, National Clean Up-Paint Up-Fix Up Bureau and Federal Civil Defense Administration at their word and really, who wouldn’t, that’s all it takes.
I’m not sure exactly when this was produced, I’ve found conflicting information on it. The link above has it labelled 1945, but some quick research I did to find more information has it listed as being shot in 1954. But no matter when it was made, it’s truly amazing and I encourage you all to watch it as soon as possible. The reward just might be survival!
