To the People of the United States
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| To the People of the United States | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Arthur Lubin |
| Produced by | United States Public Health Service |
| Written by | Edmund L. Hartmann |
| Narrated by | Jean Hersholt |
| Starring | Jean Hersholt |
| Distributed by | War Activities Committee of the Motion Pictures Industry |
| Release date(s) | 21 October 1943 |
| Running time | 21 min |
| Country |  U.S.A. |
| Language | English |
| IMDb profile | |
To the People of the United States was a short propaganda film produced by the US Public Health Service in 1943 to warn the American GIs against syphilis. It was directed by Arthur Lubin.
The film opens with the ground crew of a flying fortress talking to their colleagues about being grounded. It seems the other planes in their unit are off to fight the enemy, but they and their play lay idle because their pilot is "sick'. We then see the pilot, whose face is never shown, talking with a medical, feeling very embarrassed and guilty about what has happened. The doctor assures him that he will fly again when he gets better. When the pilot interjects that he has heard he wouldn't, the doctor asks "heard from who? The kid next door or the drug patton sells man? Surely not anyone who knew what he was talking about". The doctor then informs him that if the disease is caught early, and he keeps up a strict treatment he will be able to go about his business normally again.
Once the pilot leaves the doctor addresses the audience "Do you want the facts? Well the first question is the extent of syphilis in America" We then visit the local draft board, and they say that nearly 47 of every thousand men called up have to be dismissed because they had syphilis. He then visits an Army hospital and is informed by the doctor that syphilis is like a forest fire, no organization or saboteur could do half the damage that VD does to the army.
The doctor then goes into the social stigma associated with syphilis, and the fact that so many people will not get a blood test to check for syphilis. He notes in his native Scandinavia, people were much more open about it, and it was a normal sight for people to get a blood test for syphilis. He shows a diagram of Norway, Sweden, and Denmark, which he says has a comparable population as the State of New York, and how fewer Scandinavians have VD than New Yorkers, The film ends with a plea for everyone to get a blood test.
