Talking about. Making sense of us or the United States in this period of the 1970s and were going to use three handles. Were going to use vehicles. Were going to use film. And were going to use the crises of the 70s to weave this all together and somehow come up with some sort of an understanding about changes in identity during this tumultuous decade before i begin my cohost. Dr. Todd Uhlman Indiana and Rutgers Phd and an american Studies Professor he and i ended up writing an article in 2014 in Journal Papio Culture entitled stealing freedom which dealt with Film And Auto theft and i think the class read that as part of your assignment. And todd has done many other different kinds of studies during the past several years here at the university of dayton. And my colleague john heitmann, of course is a very well known historian of Automobile History and others. He wore a very famous book that won many awards. Im plugging it for him here. The automobile in american life very good read wonderful book john has won the most distinguished historian in the state of Ohio Award and he also won the award for best book this book here by the Pop Culture american Pop Culture association. And what was that 2017 john 2010 2010 goes way back when he goes way back. And so currently dr. Heitman is a Professor Emeritus and hes been kind enough to come here today to talk with me so that we can talk to you about the 1970s. And that book is a great present for your parents your father if hes interested in cars, so see me after class and ill try to sell you a bit more on that book. But anyway, this is what were going to talk about today. And we are going to have vehicles and what we might want to call automobility in at the center, or at least one of the big major handles of our talk today. I dont know how many of you know much about automotive history. I doubt many of you do. In 1990 some mit a scholars wrote a book called the machine that changed the world. And it was a machine that changed the world particularly in the twentieth century, but even to this day. When i start off my course on the automobile in american life. I always mention this notion of that the automobile was european by birth and that most of those early innovations were german and then to a degree promoted by the french but american by adoption. And no other country adopted the automobile as a technology and essentially made decisions personal decisions collective decisions to adopt and to use and embrace the automobile the way americans have i just im only going to read one thing from the book today, but its an important paragraph and i wanted to read it to give you a sense of the importance of the automobile to this story and to any twentieth century american history. It is difficult to overestimate the significance of the automobile to twentieth century american history. The automobile and its related infrastructure transformed everyday life as well as our basic values. From top to bottom in american society it created wealth and jobs. It played a crucial role in transforming americans from producers of a limited number of goods. Mostly farmers actually is what we were to Mass Production manufacturers and consumers living in a machine age. It influenced among other things the Nature And Structure of the communities. We live in how we define and Value Community and the architectural styles of our homes and other living spaces. Over the course of the twentieth century the car wetted our appetite for new things. Conveying status and personal attractiveness petroleumbased energy sources engaging Act Action movies, which were were going to talk about today. Primal Rock And Roll music and high fat fast food, which i will probably partake after this class is over. Its an industry that had its roots in the first decade of the twentieth century in the United States matured and really was stagnant by the 1960s particularly technologically stagnant the real new ideas in automotive technology came from Germany And Japan and this is a german vw not the beatles youre typically used to seeing from that era, but it was actually a new vehicle the dasher in 1974 introduced but the point is is the american Automobile Industry had lost a lot of steam creatively over the last few decades around the 60s and the 70s. Now with film films are kind of parallel to the Automobile Industry and its important in american society. Its a modern technology not invented by americans, although edison claimed to have invented it. The film was defined mostly by european made productions in the early part of the twentieth century as you guys have all learned in this class, but americans accepted film and adopted film to use Johns Phrase in a way that no other people did and thats why ive placed at the top of here the trick that altered reality. Its if cars were the machine that changed the world then film was a trick that altered reality because of course you guys know that film is a trick. Its not a moving thing. Its a bunch of still shots, which spun together makes people believe that theyre actually watching Something Shift and change. When in Fact Nothing is changing. So its a trick that can very much influence the imagination of the individual. And film in this sense like the automobile was about ready to change the world. Now the irony here, is that the Film Industry had been in decline since the end of World War ii . As you can see by the chart in the back here the number of people visiting going to see films had dramatically dropped in the postwar era and we had reached by the time we arrived at this juncture of the Class And Discussion the 1960s. We had fundamentally reached the the bottom. Of that well and so unlike automobiles and like automobiles. Film was taking people on a journey. But here the journey is not necessarily a place. Except perhaps a place in their imagination well that third. Leg or handle in our Lecture Today centers on crises. And its vehicles. Its film and its crises and its crises from this decade of the 60s and the 70s particularly beginning around 1968 and then going all the way through 1979 and one of those really great films from the 70s a film of nostalgia and remarkable cinematography is badlands from 1973. It was in the 70s and particularly we can pin it down to about the fall of and winter of 197374. That the remarkable Miracle Economy after World War ii and all the ruins that had taken place in europe as a result of the bombing and the war and the combat. Europe had recovered the west had recovered america had become and now the global power that it was and it was a country of enormous prosperity. But the postwar boom was pending. We were very wealthy in this country. In fact, theres a a historian for me able by the name of David Potter who wrote a book in the 50s called people of plenty. And we were people of plenty. But the Vietnam War and there were other matters as well that came to be all moved us to a point of reckoning beginning in 1973 related to that prosperity. And this war this moment . Really had brought about a fundamental change in american society that we all live with still today. Because the postwar era the period roughly from 1945 to 1970 was one that historians like to refer to as the era of Consensus And Weve talked about consensus this idea of consensus in the class. It was the belief that america stood for a very small set of things the future progress democracy. And that sense of consensus began to break down under the stressors that were about ready to talk about. And out of it emerge a fundamental sociopolitical landscape very different from the world of the postwar era. Well at the heart of the american economy was the automobile Automobile Industry. And it remains to some degree it still is at the heart of the american economy. When our economy declined beginning in 20082009 what picked us up where car sales after 2010 again . And this is an interesting shot. Its a foreign car. Its of course a Volkswagen Beetle and you all recognize it. The industry was very fragile by 1973 and indeed beginning in 1968 in part because of rising imports from germany like that beetle from japan like the Honda Civic and what would trigger that fragility and cause it to totally fragment was the issue of cheap oil and a Gasoline Shortage . Until 1973 sales and profits in the Auto Industry remained relatively high and so sometimes in history, we dont see the clouds that are approaching us and that was clearly true in detroit and the spring of 1973. But there were these difficulties that were kind of subterranean that would soon emerge front and center. Among the difficulties that the big three general motors the most significant valued company in this Country Number one Ford Number three chrysler not even an aim anymore number five. And that was a totally unregulated industry until the 1960s. And when its autonomy was compromised after the mid1960s in terms of both safety and emissions. That fragility really became evident. So an interesting way the Film Industry as weve already talked about runs parallel to the history of the Auto Industry it had bottomed out but in the 1960s late 1960s and early 70s. It was beginning a new rise and no film better represents that new rise. Then this Film Right here. Does anybody know what the name of this film is . Too easy rider easy rider. Thats right. 1969 easy rider represents the new element of the Film Industry because it was an independent Film Production where the studios had begun to collapse was made for 400,000 and went on to make tens of millions. Also it was directed by uh directors dennis hopper in this case who had learned how to make films from the master of independent Filmmaker Roger Corman a man who would have the important influence on Martin Scorsese Francis Ford Coppola many many others this independent filmmaker was going to produce the new stage of american film, but it was film made for popular consumption. Film made not for art but for entertainment and to make money. And much of that was dependent upon sensationalism. They didnt have the money to advertise the films. So what did they do . They simply took stories ripped them from the headlines and used the news in order to sell the movie. And thats where many of the films were going to talk about today come from and there was a lot of music in that film. And i can remember the first cassette that i ever bought. Was steppenwolf and steppenwolf is featured an easy rider . And so its Music And Film coming together in a big way. And you know, its in the late 60s and early 70s all these young people are out and about and traveling. Theyre following jack Kerouacs Admonition to get on the road as his famous book from the 50s. It kind of implored us to do. And the question was is this a Road Trip and all of youve probably taken Road Trips or youre going to take Road Trips soon. Its a great experience. Is it a trip to nowhere . Where really nothing much happens in the end that you can conclude . Or is it a trip where you have selfdiscovery . Or is it a trip where you discover about others . Okay. But in 19771 the Road Trips in film were trips to nowhere and very much a part of that whole ethos of what and milieu of what the 70s early 70s started out to be. Famous Film Twolane blacktop famous only later on. Its one of those great films. Thats a Cult Film now, but in 71, it was a flop. It starred among Others Singer james taylor. Here we have Brian Wilson of the beach boys. We have Lori Bird who is a girlfriend of director monti hellman, and then we have the great warren oats. And one of the reasons why this becomes a Coat Film is because three of the four die rather mysterious deaths oats dies at age 53 of a Heart Attack Wilson dies in a rather bizarre drowning Lori Bird ends up committing suicide, but its a Road Trip to nowhere with great filament film. Technique there is no real dialogue amongst the characters lots of frustration and facial tics that sort of convey a sentiment or an idea on the part of the person that is being centered on in the film. Two lane blacktop. Maybe oh. Now my favorite film from that same year if i can go back. Ah, well, were having a little trouble. Well, there we go. All right. Actually vanishing point. And i dont know if any of you have seen wet vanishing point or not. I would sort of doubt it it is a great film a film of people at the margins of american society. Barry newman is a a the driver of a Dodge Challenger with supercharger in it and his job is to drive back and forth from denver to San Francisco since she fearing automobiles for people. And hes going to take this Dodge Challenge or to San Francisco. Hes just come back from San Francisco to denver has no time get some drugs back on the road. And of course, this is world of outlaw speeds. This is a world of defiance. And its a word of where its a film of car chases. But its much more than that. There are all these subtle meetings in here as kowalski is driving across country. He keeps on going back and memory has memories of his past life past life is a policeman as a soldier. As a Race Driver as a motorcycle racer. As and so hes really living his life as hes on the road going 120 miles an hour being chased never actually harming anyone as hes leaving them in the dust, although they often are in the ditches. And as the police converge on him, he has a savior so to speak in a blind Disc Jockey at station k o w cow. In the desert by the name of super soul. Who sees a kowalski as a free spirit as the last american hero he calls them as the last free american in a time of great constraints. I got a jump, right . It ends. In futility the authorities block a road as he gets into california. Hes almost made it. Hes gotten some help from two hippies living in the desert. And ultimately he runs in he makes a decided a moment and decided moment. He decides he will drive into these two, uh, these two earth movers and thats the end of his life. Another feudal Cross Country Drive heres the twolane blacktop. Poster with the stars that i just mentioned Bird Taylor oats and wilson at the very same time that were seeing this rebelliousness. Were seeing a flexing of muscles on the part of the government related to what rights do you really have on the road . And its right before the government will really clamped down and come up with a 55 mile an Hour Speed limit that will take place after 1973 Oil Shock John Volpe Dot Secretary writes to auto enthusiasts and Motor Trend in 1971. So this is to the converted so to speak. And saying basically whenever you are in on a public road you surrender your private life and your autonomous rights away this roads belong to the state the states that state sets the standards and how you can use those roads and no matter what you think about individualism. You are not simply individual in american society. If you have an accident, even if youre the only one hurt its going to cost the State Money to take care of you. Thats a pretty hard statement. I think and that was John Volpe and that was really the federal government at this time. So what happens after 1971 and this clamping down related to speed limits . We see a series of coast to coast. No holds bar. Unofficial outlaw races that are called the cannonballs. And its named after a man by the name of Cannonball Baker who beginning around World War i and then on into the 30s kept on setting coast to coast records driving first motorcycles and then cars. He had a rather significant career that included indianapolis as well. And Brock Yates who was a journalist at Car And Driver had watched twolane blacktop and he came up with the idea. Lets have a race across country and see how fast we can go from, New York to california. So then we begin to see this transition. The way movies are establishing the way people act. And a very clear way in this in this example. And so the first cannonball takes place in 1971 now the reason i mentioned cannonball now were going to kind of drop this for a minute and then come back is it will be the source of a good number of films after 1975. Okay, and there will be cannonballs in 71 72 73 75 79 will be the last Official Cannonball by Brock Yates but to this day if you look at youtube you will find there are people doing cannonballs to this day. Okay, and how fast can you go from New York to la . All right, 35 hours is a pretty good time. I think i saw 33 or 32 now now you know what that means that means the ohio State Patrol on I70 Arent going to be very happy with you and in your ferrari. Or maybe youre going to try to sneak through in an ambulance. Or in a van or in a cadillac or maybe you will do what some of the cannonballs would do is youd go to Hertz Rentacar and youd rent a car for a week and then drive the hell out of it and then turn it in. Okay, and this is the first its in, New York. At a bar and the winner will be this ferrari here to the left and it will be driven by quite a significant american Race Car Driver Dan Gurney who is one of the great american formula one Race Car Drivers in history. You just recently died and his copilot will be block yates, but thered be about eight cars involved in this and dozens of speeding tickets including one of the interns. Youve got five speeding tickets in one town. Okay . Uh, yeah. So 1973 was a significant year in the story this bigger story. Were telling you about the 1970s because 1973 had two parts. It had the summer. And that Summer Part will see in film in an astalgia of american life that was beginning to slip away 73 was the Year Vietnam was coming to an end in america had lost the war. But then in the fall or the winter of 73 was also the great first Oil Shock and so weve come back to the image of badlands here and in the sunset the summer of nostalgia of this extraordinary year. Begins with american Graffiti And George lucass second film which focuses on this nostalgic past . How many of you seen american graffiti . One of you not many. All right. Yeah. It is a coming of age film. It is actually autobiographical of George Lucas at various stages of his life from about the 8th grade to high school. And the characters the central characters tend to be George Lucas at grade 9 Grade George lucas at grade 11 George Lucas a grade 12 in modesto, california growing up in the valley the center of Car Culture and its supposed to take place in 1962. And its about the end of an era because vietnam is just starting now. And actually one of the central characters. Well, lets go back here. Virtually in the early 1960s every community in america had something like Mels Drivein. There is a Mels Drivein in San Francisco. I think ive been there at least i have in my mind whether ive actually been there or not. I dont know. Well see if we have to go back this mind get scrambled sometimes but my wife aiken, south carolina. There was a frost stop. And all the kids from aching and go there on a friday night. And this was the central kind of focal point of this Film One night the last night between two of the central characters. Irani howard and Richard Dreyfuss will end up plant their planned anyway to go to on a plane to the east and to start college. And its supposed to be this last night. And its about cars. Its about romance. And theres a tinge of sadness in it because this character here toad. Whos the nerd, you know, he never has a girlfriend. Hes always awkward. Hes always stumbling he will end up being the character in the postscript where you see where these characters go according to lucas. Its told to dies in vietnam. Another central character and theres a sense. Theres a Drag Race at the end involving Harrison Ford and this character john milner. But milner is the Greaser Milner is the guy who never goes anywhere. He doesnt go to college. Hes just going to work around the garage, but it goes to show you that sometimes people who have the least amount of education have the most sensitivity of the world around them and whats changing. And he does. He cannot really fathom the changes that are taking place in the early 1960s. He cant really understand what is happening in 1962. The whole strip is shrinking. Thats the strip where the folks are doing the cruiseins and doing the cruises on a friday night. Its during that cruise that 16 year old girl gets into his car. Hes totally embarrassed. He tries to hide as hes driving on during the cruise and but they end up going to a junkyard and theres some very poignant dialogue, but he understands that the world is changing in a way that he doesnt like postscript, this character will end up dying in a Drag Race and so another tinge of sadness. But its this film that marks the obsession during the 1970s. Of the nostalgia of a day that was happy. That was still a part of american memory. Somehow america was great back, then. Itll be the spinoff at the show, of course this movie. Generates happy days the sitcom of the 1970s and then it has multiple spinoffs as well. So George Lucas was really his he and coppola who worked with him very closely understood that america americans at this time. Wanted to go to movies marked by nostalgia. Many people as you guys have learned many people dont think star wars is a nostalgic film. They think of a science fiction, but in fact, its a very much nostalgic film. And they become thats the biggest. Theyre the biggest conveyors of nostalgia of this lost time. So the key thing that happens here is the Oil Shock which really brings about the winter of 1970. It comes at the winter. The Oil Shock is caused by a series of global crisis involving us support for israel. And what it does is it drives a a moment in american history when gas prices dramatically rise as we can see right here with this chart you can see the price. Its seems not too bad to us and then one response is Richard Nixon passes a plan to conserve energy by lowering the the driving speed on the highways and rationing gas and this is exactly the moment too when inflation starts to rise and the postwar economic expansion. Begins to die to weather thats right. The result is a crisis and that crisis explodes on american society in in december of 1973 when struckers who rely upon cheap gas. Cheap diesel to drive across country and deliver all the consumer goods at americans are using suddenly spontaneously without plan protests one of the one of the truckers ran out of gas on the Pennsylvania Turnpike and just and and instead of pulling off the road. He spontaneously decided to stop the Truck Right in the middle of the highway producing a Traffic Jam and then he told everybody else using a cb about this all the other truckers and they stopped. And these truckers then produced the first outcry against american the changes taking place in america and we can see here. This is from the Akron Beacon a newspaper talking about the the truckers and now here you see one being arrested and you can see these are what comments that people wrote in about the truckers and if you analyze these comments what you see is that people are really supporting truckers because they think the truckers represent them in terms of their rejection of corporate capitalism as you see here oil companies, or they think that theyre against the corrupt Government Watergate is at the moment of completely breaking out right now a year from this moment. Richard nixon would leave office. And then rationing which is on its way. Its it will happen in a few days and you would have 55 and thats tyranny many people see that as the tyranny of government intervening in their lives. And finally that the government had been lying to them. About vietnam and this was becoming clear now that the war was lost and now the government is taxing cars with high Fuel Consumption called the gas guzzler tax. And and the government is now setting standards for mileage on new cars. And so tell it is telling the american Auto Industry how to design cars they had already done that earlier in terms of safety and emissions now, it is in terms of Fuel Consumption. And here we see the the polling that was done by the Akron Beacon showing that 69 of people. Cited with the truckers even though it was inconveniencing them in december. So how did this happen . How did the trucker become a symbol of american unhappiness a symbol of rebellion in american society and to tell you that story i have to go back and explain to origins of the Trucking Industry. So the Trucking Industry was growing rapidly at this time. The vision was created back in 1935 during a great depression in which there was long distance trucking. It was controlled by large corporations and run by unions the teamsters on the other side. There was the nonregulated trucking which was called rural Trucking Exception and this was mostly farmers moving agricultural goods to market now the interstate Highway Commission was created in order to regulate the regulated market and the corporate but roughly around 1960s corporations like iowa beef. Tracking began to use unregulated truckers in order to avoid the expense of the corporate trucking and as they did so more and more goods were shifted to the unregulated side of the market and this is how they were producing cheaper beef and bringing it to the market. But at the same time they were generating a whole new type of culture as truckers as the rural truckers began to expand who were these rural truckers many of them were farmers who had been run out of business by corporate corporatized farmers corporate corporate farming agro business, and they had moved to trucking because that was one area that they could they understood as they did so they created an entire subculture based on honky Tonks Truck stops Radio Communication and and eventually an entire Version Or Form of Country Music a subgenre called trucking Trucker Music. Now just to go back a second. Yeah, just for a point of humor more than anything. And all the truck stops ive ever been. Ive never seen good looking folks like this by the trucks, of course, they seem you talk about reality and it doesnt seem that way. Yeah, but i mean, i just wanted to make that comment. Now both of those of course, these are covers for trucker specific Trucker Music albums, which becomes a major area now, this is from a 1966 card comic book featuring truckers the independent Trucker Subculture emphasized several key things it emphasized the notion of independence individual men feeling like they controlled their own businesses and we see this in this idea of the independent. So the so the independent man was both a traditional concept but also modern concept because they were driving these incredible machines these modern trucks. Simultaneously this traditional man was also a rebel because he could stay out as long as he wanted on the road. He could meet many women as he drove around those unimagined women and the front of the cover of those of those albums and but nevertheless they represented also kind of real man patriarchy. Now the ideal of this was the Owner Operator the man who actually owned his own truck. This is very unusual in industry, but they were the ideal so truckers began to become popular for this reason to bring it back to the reason were talking about this. On one hand they had a job that was respectable and at the same time. It was sexy. Men could begin to imagine a society in which they were rebels and at the same time respectable and it was exclusive. As well as at this moment rebellious against the government as we see this image from the 55 being turned into a schwastica which comes from a Trucker Magazine at this time, and we have images like this the Trucker Magazine referring to is overdrive magazine and which which begins to place the trucker as a kind of symbol for americans, but theres one other thing here, too. Well, yeah, its during the 1970s that we do see a rise in the significance of the south. In terms of american discussions about who we are in part, its because as our economy is slowing down. Were starting to see the migration from the Rust Belt to the sun belt. And so youre starting to see the emergence of Charlotte And Atlanta as really significant american urban areas. And southern culture is being now celebrated in terms of its individualism. I mentioned in vanishing point the label that was given kowalski the last american hero. In 1974. There is a film called the last american hero and its about junior johnson and about nascar. And what is he doing . Of course, hes running liquor and trying to avoid the federal agents and ends up going to prison as does his father and but the values are that of rugged individualism. Dont tread on me and its this notion of the preindustrial south particularly tied into Country Music which explodes at this time Country Music was really not a genre of music for for much for a long time. And in the late in the 60s it begins to rise and in the 70s it explodes and Trucking Music was one subgenre of Country Music. So here is another dimension of this which adds to the sense of rebelliousness of the trucker. Right . And its the tools the trucker would use and what the cannonball folks would use to somehow avoid getting tickets and being stopped by the police. We see the emergence of the Radar Detector and some of you probably have a Radar Detector your parents ever Radar Detector. This is one of the first from the early 1960s, but actually what few folks know is that the Radar Detector as a sophisticated device really came to be first here in dayton, ohio for someone who worked at the Air Force Base and we got a ticket one day and decided to develop a Radar Detector called the Fuzz Buster and to this day that migration then took place to cincinnati and now you have cincinnati microwave and it would be the those folks who would appear at the cannonballs before the cannonballs would start selling their tools and then the other was this origin before the Cell Phone of the nationwide warning system. And that was the Cb Radio that had just been kind of made available to the population by the fcc. And so its smokey and the bandit and its the cb and yeah, we see here the right and its music again with jerry reed. Jerry. Reed was in vanishing point. He had a song there. Hell have a number of songs later on in the 70s very important, but here hes talking whistler Radar Eye detectors and to this day if youre a cannonballer youre going to have a cb youre going to have your Phone And Youll have a software tools there. Youll have a Radar Detector and youll have somebody with a binoculars looking in both directions trying to see if you can find someone on the side of the road or wherever anyway, so then what we see here is you can begin to understand why the trucker actually becomes a symbol of rebellion against what was increasingly seen as the tyranny of the modern state which was being blamed for this moment in american history when the american dream seemingly was slipping away. Ironically, of course as we just learned that things like the cv like the Radar Detectors were invented by the military industrial complex in other words the federal government. However, in the roads that people were driving on were built by the federal government all of this indicates the way that theres a kind of counterintuitive sense about the way americans are rebelling against the society one way we see this is in films that after the trucking protests of 1973. What we have is the explosion of trucker movies and trucker movies are captured captured this rebelliousness white Line Fever was one of the first ones in 1975 and it the Trucker Film is focused on the working man and how unhappy the working man feels about the society as these posters begin to indicate. Its trucks. Its girls its guns. Yes trucks girls and guns, right . Yeah that that are selling and its so its its aimed at a particular constituency. Particularly white males who are increasingly unhappy with the way the society seemingly because its its important to see here that 1975 or 1973 is about the time when the civil Rights Act of 1964 and 65 actually begins to be enforced so that women could compete with for mens jobs. Okay, and many men were very unhappy about this the exclusive right that they had once had to access to goodpaying jobs. Were now they were having to share with women and they were having to share with minor. And so what we see is the films which reflect this rebelliousness now just to give you an idea subjectwise here. We have James Brolin playing a trucker in 1976 and in which he in the film still cowboys. His truck is called outlaw. Okay, and his wife has left him for a fruit burger professor. I think that means me. And at the same time. Hes got a hes got a Repossession Man coming to his house driving a vw. And third he has a corporate Trucking Company breathing down his neck to take away his job to put him into a uniform and of course the owner of that company is called pinkus. Highly suggestive and he says to him to brolins character. I i know youre a big man. I know what got under the belt. Oh, this is suggestive of the way that the film is is aiming at those frustrated by the icc interstate Commerce Commission that was forcing the rules or corporations and at the end of the Film Clay goes crazy and smashing the furniture in his house screams. Im a man. Before driving his truck into pincuses. Home and a hail of bullets committing suicide back to cars and back to cannonball so we want to reconnect with my comments on cannonball. Were going to leave trucks behind for a few minutes. And this is the ultimate end of the Cannonball Films and it stars David Carradine who actually was the star in the first Cannonball Film in 1975. Entitled cannonball, so this Death Race 2000. Yeah Death Race 2000 leads into what johns talking about with cannonball because Death Race 2000 was Roger Corman production. And it involves this kind of sense of violence through vehicles. So then the same here we have canon ball, which is the first of the Cannonball Films. It infuriates this film infuriated Brock Yates at Car And Driver because he thought somehow cannonball was his idea in almost could be his property. All right, and now all of a sudden in hollywood some crumb comes up with a B Grade or even C Grade Movie and starring caradene, and its not much of a film but in april of 1975 with the speed limit set at 55 yates sends out a call for essentially entrance for 1975 cannonball. There is a race. And how they would quickly follows after the Carotene Film with my favorite. Actually, but first we have to get to some other yeah, these are all montage of the kind of film posters of these of these topics. And i think what i really wanted to make a point of in the 1960s, there were two really important films related to how automobiles are actually used in a Film One was a film called grand priest starring james garner, but then the other is a film that some of you may have seen and all of you in my Auto History Class would see and thats bullet starring steve mcqueen. Okay, and its because of the nature the filming the use of cameras inside the vehicle the use of cameras outside of the vehicle in chasings and the Chase Scene itself and so in the 70s there is this flowering of car films. Im gonna call it car exploitation, but there are so many of them involving everything from kind of a very independent films like gone in 60 seconds to some of ronnie howards first films as well in the later 70s and. N greece, but in american griffin american graffitis one and two characters and he was Roger Cormans he was a protege of Roger Corman. My favorite of all the Cannonball Films is Gumball Rally. Its a coast to Coast Race made for film in which the prize is one thing to get all those speeding tickets. Its a gumball thats it. All right, and you have women involved my favorite pair of women and i have a car like that except without the Whale Tail and thats a portion nine eleven and early one. Probably about a 74 75 and one of those women will tell one of those aggressive male types. If you can catch me you can have me all right, but at any rate, so theres this issue of Gender Negotiation there, but this is a remarkably fine film. I really like it. It involves a number of interesting characters. The winners are in a cobra. This fellow on the left in the cobra. Is an assistant professor at harvard who gets a call to get involved in this event, and its afraid to get involved because he thinks it might cost him his tenure. All right, and if you see his facial image at the beginning of the film and at the end of the film two very different figures. Its like the race transformed him. All right in the background is an italian driver driving a ferrari why hes lagging behind is because these two characters up front had already kind of connived to have a very good looking woman standing by the side of the road back there appealing to the italian driver so he would stop for a while. And another interesting kind of malefemale Gender Negotiation. So so yeah if i could comment on that john that what we have here is that these films are affect in this moment when Gender And Masculinity particularly in whether because of Womens Liberation and mens increasing pressure particularly white males feeling that the world is getting away from them these kind of films both celebrate masculinity for those white males, but simultaneously we see an attempt to negotiate the the conflict so that Womens Liberation can be partially expressed and accepted and then partially the women could be we they continue to be used as sexualized objects in these films. So this is strange negotiation thats happening in the Pop Film now, weve be remiss not to mention that cataclysmic event of Watergate And Nixon and his resignation and in august of 1974 his Vice President convicted of Tax Evasion the winter before we are told to turn down our thermostats to 60 degrees because of Energy Conservation and walking around freezing in our homes during this period of time if you could get Fuel Oil and if you were living in the northeast, that could be a real problem here is the greatest power on earth and we are suffering in many ways in terms of inconveniences, but also political Stability And Inflation all of a sudden the price of everything is rocketing up we call it stag Flag Inflation Stagflation in this land of opportunity and can you trust the government or the truck is already have decided they dont trust the government, but then most americans dont trust the government and that is true to this very day. We see here exactly has that evolved one of the remarkable things in the postwar eras. How much government was actually trusted as you can see right here in 1964 a little over 75 of americans identified the federal government as the most trustworthy institution in the united that makes sense because the the new deal had brought them prosperity. The the government taking them to the war now, they had social security. There was a lot of very positive things but these events we see the red lines here that johns pointing to these events begin to erode that Confidence Vietnam Water 25 down to 25 and today we would probably be happy if it was 25 right . So this is the moment when this problem with the distrust of government begins to happen and this is partially part in the pond. Fueling the films that were watching the films that were talking about. Now lest we end on a rosy note. In 1979. Thered be a second Oil Shock. And it would be even far more severe than the first. With inordinate consequences industrial Analyst Martin Anderson would write from mit and 1980 particularly related to the Auto Industry the largest shift in technological. Human and capital resources in us industrial history and so it should be no surprise that by the late 1980s as a result of this shift cities like dayton flint. The great gm cities end up becoming barren and starting to shut down as a result of Oil Shock to as a result of what happened in iran a friend of the United States the shah who had supported the United States with with oil excess Oil Production during those lean months in 1973 74 75. He ran a corrupt government. Hes fleas iran and that starts a revolution a revolution where american hostages are held an american government military Force Cant get those hostages out another ignominious episode. And again, we have no gas. And inflation again and i can remember in 1979. I was living on the east coast and i needed Fuel Oil and the question was would i get any Fuel Oil as my tank was reading about e and would we just freeze to no end . A big three ford general Motors Chrysler Deficits Chrysler becomes bankrupt in 1980 job losses follow its the end of a world in some ways particularly in the industrial northeast. Now of course truckers reacted to this much like they had in 1973 indeed the independent truckers had now grown in numbers because of the industrial system trends that i was talking about before and what we have is a huge strike by independence in 1970. 975,000 independence the teamsters the largest union of truckers does not join them in the strike. Nonetheless. It produces a very significant conflict that that fact that the teamsters the union doesnt join them. The the image of the outlaw trucker that we had seen in these films weve been talking about that image had now penetrated the the subculture of truckers who now saws increasingly as outlaws who saw themselves as rebels fighting against a tyrannical state. And these truckers became violent like the films did they dropped rocks from overpasses . They used Cb Radios to issue threats. And all together in 18 states hundreds of instances of snipers shooting at truckers still on the road one man died now this the Trucking Film at this point had created a conundrum though. How was an independent man going to stand up and collective movement against the federal state . This was against the idea of independent. Manhood. To unionize unions were being demonized. So how could that be . So the out the answer was the growth of the anarchical suicide that we saw earlier in white Line Fever, but this also was a downer. So another solution to the problem was a convoy as a spontaneous. Democratic rebellion against the federal government against the police youve all been on interstates where you see two trucks blocking both lanes and theyre just making a statement for a minute sometimes. Yes, but its there and thats kind of a mini convoy type story. And so theres a great film a great song and yeah, and an interesting time on the road. Yeah convoy is the film is the song that were talking about convoy happened in 1976 and becomes a huge hit which then leads to the film, but but really if we were to talk about right john if theres no film that better indicates this its not if theres one to film the better indicates this process it is smoking in the bandit it it vaulted Burt Reynolds to the highest level in hollywood and that car that firebird is the great iconic car of the 1970s there is so if you go to a pontiac army, thats what you want to see that Fire Trans am firebird with that artwork on it. Now what you end look at the franchise it follows. Yeah. I mean if you look at this, i mean what you see is that Smoking Havana costs 4. 3 million dollars to make at todays adjusted inflation dollars it has made over 521 million the the entire franchise as we now call it made three quarters of a billion dollars to be clear here smoking. The bandit was the second gross highest grossing film of 1977. I think you could probably guess what the highest grossing film of 1977 was star Wars Star wars. Okay, so this is to give you an indication of just how big this film is and whats very carefully here is a southern. Dixie flag, right . So what were seeing here is just as johns pointing out is the merging of the filmic vision of rebellion with not only regionalism the south but also an emergent new political culture. Well the Cannonball Films beyond Gumball Rally Cannonball Cannonball Run 1981 more stars in one film that i can ever think of rentals roger Moore Farrah Fawcett dom deluise Dean Martin Sammy davis, jr. Jamie Farr Terry bradshaw if you watch the football pregame programs mel tillis, they were all there great gross film in terms of amount of money made one of the worst films ever. I would almost suggest you dont watch it if youre looking at films that we have kind of covered in class today. It will disappoint to no end. It is terrible. There are some elements of Race And Nationalism in this film. We have some japanese team of incompetence who are driving a subaru and our frustrated during the race, and then there is Jamie Farr as an arab chic who another stereotype with some minions in this film as well Cannonball Run 1981, and then others would follow all the way up to Death Race if you really want to take that type of film forward. Now we got to wrap up. And this is an image from badlands. And its this notion of what is reality and what is illusion and how does the reality of a thing called the automobile . How is that transformed into an illusion in a way and how does philom do that . And you know, how does our identity end up somehow twist in turn related to the products from hollywood and how do we identify ourselves . That way i watch Gumball Rally i get in my car and i drive like hell through green county. Okay. Thats my identity coming through after being influenced by a Film Rebellion in terms of substance to this day and what that suggests ill leave that to you. Okay . I and the politics of theater. And what does that mean . And i ask you to close us out dr. Homan as were on the last minute or so of our so yeah, this politics the Hollywood Unification of america. At this moment when america the postwar consensus has ended. Where america at the dream of the Consumer Republic as one historian has referred to it has now sent seemingly crashed and burned. At this moment what is america going to be is it going to be an acceptance of a changed future will remove to a metric system as Jimmy Carter would suggest in 1976 or an a place is solar panels on top of the white house . And in the vision of a new future past petrochemicals or as what happens in 1980 when Ronald Reagan takes office. He takes off the the panels right off the white house and says, lets continue as we were theres nothing wrong with america. Theres only bad people thinking bad things drill more for oil and dig more coal. So is this then at this moment do we the emergence of the theater of politics where visions of american life have become to supplant actual american life where people live more in the imagination of what america could be versus the reality of america. So well leave you with those thoughts and well finish there. We have some questions perhaps that we want to have about our talk. Yeah, i was going to talk a little bit about soft energy technologies that and missed opportunities from the 70s the fact that electric cars were studied for a time in the 1970s in a big way synthetic fuels were developed in the 1970s, but we never thought longterm and so our crises of the 70s kept coming back to us in other ways in other times forward to this day. Yeah. So you guys have some questions for us about these this topic . Yeah glad where would the film its a mad mad world and the Hanovera Cartoon wacky races fit into the cannonball movies. You know, i had world. I know theres resurgent interest now and apparently theres going to be another mad mad world thats coming out. But i havent seen it in so long. I cant give you a good answer for that. Well, the mad mad world is in a sense an Ensemble Film Right where we have this again this race. Uh, and again its for comic purposes. So but the film really doesnt have the element of of anger the way we sometimes feel even in the comedic film like cannonball. Theres theres an anger now the Madman World was the 1960s before all of these elements come together. So i think the film could be seen more as a as a film that reflects americans exuberance of the car and the possibility of the car whereas cannonball and some of these other films are doing that and at the same time theyre expressing the anxiety that americans are feeling because the car one of the things that johns been telling us here and tells us so well in his book is that the car is the Premier Symbol . Of american once the horse once the cowboy could no longer be a modern example of americas and going off into the sunset on your horse the car replaced that and this is why we talk about the truckers a steel cowboys. The car is tied to our status whether you like it or not. And it also has its own tricky way and that is it makes us feel more important than we really are. Because actually we are not terribly important. For the most part but inside that vehicle, were the masters. So theres a sense of theres an illusion a consumer body illusion. Well, its driving in control driving in control when you if you cant have actual control working in a factory under a certain job conditions working for a corporation then at least youre in control when youre behind the wheel of the car unless of course. The federal government or the State Government or the police are watching how fast you ride and if y see that then you see why it becomes so important to rebel against 55. Did you guys have another question for us . Done. Yes, sir. So what were the some of the last thing impacts in society due to the the angry white male films that we found discussed. Well, i mean we talked a little bit about this notion of the angle angry white male films like Death Wish dirty Harry Right and weve talked about this in class. Here we see a version of this right or other examples would be walking tall, right . Here we see a version of this kind of film but its not quite as explicit as it wants as these other films are we dont see dirty harry telling in africanamerican make my day. In these films what we see are largely white truck drivers. Who want to get rid of hippies on the road who are bothering them subservient police who are just doing what this with the state. It was not real making fools of police. Yeah, making fools of police. I mean, theres no better example than than in smokey and the Bandit Jackie Gleason plays a Town Sheriff who pursues the bandit an absolute tremendous. Its its honestly its the only to watch the movie. Gleason is absolutely spectacular. Hes one of the funniest characters in my opinion in film in this movie. But but in effect. What the audience is doing is laughing at authority . And so this idea that youre behind the wheel that youre in control is a substitute for real politics. You see because real politics had died in 1968 with the death of Mlk And Oh and wonders whats going to happen when we go to autonomous cars. And that outlet of control. Yeah and being a captain behind the wheel. No longer is a privilege for us at least if the future have their way. Right, which john and i have talked about this. We think that theres going to be a tremendous rebellion against the idea of the autonomous car because people dont they dont understand why theyre doing it, but they dont want to give up the symbolic sense of control, which is now in other Words Democracy in a sense. In this sense is reducible to a consumer purchase product. Right the freedom of the road. Politics of democracy is increasingly threatened as we will know today. Threatened because people are satisfied with the Consumer Ursat Version of freedom. Ok. Any other questions . All right, then. Well, if no other questions, thanks for having guys. Thanks for coming and we cspanshop. Org is the store. Browse to see whats new. Your purchase will support our nonprofit operations. You have time to order the congressional directory with Contact Information for members of congress and the bidened aminute strag. 20 years ago, two large commercial airliners flew into the World Trade buildings in New York city. 2,763 people lost their lives. A few minutes later, american Airlines Flight 77 crashed into the pentagon killing 189 people. A fourth plane, united 93, crashed into a field near shanksville, pennsylvania, at three minutes past 10 00 a. M. On that morning. 44 perished. These events as everyone knows were a great shock to our nation and the world. As a small way to commemorate this moment in u. S. History, here are some of the callers to the Cspan Network the morning after beginning at 6 00 a. M. Next, university of central Florida Professor Michkowski teaches a class on the u. S. Auto industry. He discusses the successes and failures. Today were spanning e postWorld War ii domestic scene. The last class we look at suburbanization, and today what i want the look at is cars in the postWorld War ii era, and i especially want the look at the mavericks, Maverick Car designers and automakers, automakers who tried to