"LilacTime" (New Color Version - 1970)

In the Spring of every year, Rochester, NY welcomes the season with it's famous Lilac Festival, held at Highland Park. Renowned park designer Frederick Law Olmstead was responsible for the development of the park. Among his other accomplishments was the design of New York City's famous Central Park. The park's lilac collection was started by horticulturist John Dunbar in 1892 with 20 varieties.
To honor this annual event, filmmaker Tom Nottingham and myself decided to make a short film about the lilacs in bloom. With a 16mm Bolex camera, we filmed the different areas of the park. To match the pictures, we found the old classic recording on a shellac disc, "Jeannine, I Dream of Lilac Time" sung by Gene Austin in 1928. The combination was perfect. It was aired on WROC-TV on May 19th, 1970, and again a year later. This cut is all original except for the end title, and Tom used a little modern technology to clean up the in-camera dissolves. Shot on 16mm Ektachrome with a Bolex camera and processed and edited at WROC.
In 2009, Tom Nottingham took the original pristine 16mm color film and had it scanned. I will keep the original black & white version up on YouTube as it has had over 5000 views, but now you can see it in it's original color!
Filmed: May 19, 1970.

Category:

Entertainment

Tags:

• Kerry
• Decker
• Tom
• Nottinham
• Gene
• Austin
• Jeanine16mm
• color
• movie
• film
• Rochester
• Lilac
• Festival
• NY
• New
• York
• 78rpm

[fayeteville]

very nice video and the music was fine

[KKD1247]

Thanks. It was my first co-production that was ever shown on TV.

[1Director]

This must have been the 16mm Ektachrome with mag stripe for sound we used on those days. I am surprised that it still looks so good and that Thom was able to save it. After editing the original film and going through the film chain all was left was scratchy stuff.

[Clemburke1111]

I am a huge fan of Colleen Moore,,and loved her in that old silent film!

[nottinghams]

In 1970, I was a young Engineer working at WROC-TV. Because of my photographic background from RIT, I was sometimes asked to shoot Community Interest projects for the weekend news. Kerry and I set out to capture the Lilac Time Festival, and we picked a picture-perfect day to go to Highland Park to see the flowers. Dean Close, a weekend newscaster, saw the footage and asked if they could air the film. Recently, I uncovered the film in my garage, and I had it transferred to video. This the result.

[snowbag]

Thanks for sharing. I very much enjoy your rochester material.

[WACOAGENTS]

Wonderful!!!! Thanks for taking me out of my reality into the past; wish I could visit there for a little while......

[videoholic50sthru70s]

This looks GREAT....especially for something this old!!!

[kevinKLITZ]

omgggggg!!!!!!! sooo goood!!!!!