The Tree in a Test Tube
Encyclopedia
The Tree in a Test Tube (1942
) is a short film produced by the U. S. Department of Agriculture
and distributed by the U.S. Forest Service, featuring Laurel and Hardy
, with narration read by MGM announcer and producer Pete Smith
.
. The props demonstrate the omnipresence of wood in the American economy.
film, shot in Kodachrome
on 16mm, and is basically World War II
propaganda. The Rogue Song
(1930), made in Technicolor
and featuring the duo in their only other known color footage, is now considered a lost film
.
Their routine lasts around five minutes and was shot silent (their voices are not heard). The second half of the film is unrelated documentary film
footage. Laurel and Hardy shot this brief film during their lunch hour on the back lot of Twentieth Century-Fox on November 29, 1941 and the film went into release in spring of 1942.
1942 in film
The year 1942 in film involved some significant events, in particular the release of a film consistently rated as one of the greatest of all time, Casablanca.-Events:...
) is a short film produced by the U. S. Department of Agriculture
United States Department of Agriculture
The United States Department of Agriculture is the United States federal executive department responsible for developing and executing U.S. federal government policy on farming, agriculture, and food...
and distributed by the U.S. Forest Service, featuring Laurel and Hardy
Laurel and Hardy
Laurel and Hardy were one of the most popular and critically acclaimed comedy double acts of the early Classical Hollywood era of American cinema...
, with narration read by MGM announcer and producer Pete Smith
Pete Smith (film producer)
Pete Smith was a film producer and narrator of "short subject" films from 1931 to 1955....
.
Plot outline
To Pete Smith's voice over commentary, Stan and Oliver produce various props - the contents of a suitcase and their wallets - all manufactured from wood, or containing wood byproducts such as celluloseCellulose
Cellulose is an organic compound with the formula , a polysaccharide consisting of a linear chain of several hundred to over ten thousand β linked D-glucose units....
. The props demonstrate the omnipresence of wood in the American economy.
Production background
The Tree in a Test Tube is L&H's only known surviving colorColor
Color or colour is the visual perceptual property corresponding in humans to the categories called red, green, blue and others. Color derives from the spectrum of light interacting in the eye with the spectral sensitivities of the light receptors...
film, shot in Kodachrome
Kodachrome
Kodachrome is the trademarked brand name of a type of color reversal film that was manufactured by Eastman Kodak from 1935 to 2009.-Background:...
on 16mm, and is basically World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
propaganda. The Rogue Song
The Rogue Song (film)
The Rogue Song is a 1930 romantic musical film which tells the story of a Russian bandit who falls in love with a princess, but takes his revenge on her when her brother rapes and kills his sister. It was directed by Lionel Barrymore and Hal Roach and released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer...
(1930), made in Technicolor
Technicolor
Technicolor is a color motion picture process invented in 1916 and improved over several decades.It was the second major process, after Britain's Kinemacolor, and the most widely used color process in Hollywood from 1922 to 1952...
and featuring the duo in their only other known color footage, is now considered a lost film
Lost film
A lost film is a feature film or short film that is no longer known to exist in studio archives, private collections or public archives such as the Library of Congress, where at least one copy of all American films are deposited and catalogued for copyright reasons...
.
Their routine lasts around five minutes and was shot silent (their voices are not heard). The second half of the film is unrelated documentary film
Documentary film
Documentary films constitute a broad category of nonfictional motion pictures intended to document some aspect of reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction or maintaining a historical record...
footage. Laurel and Hardy shot this brief film during their lunch hour on the back lot of Twentieth Century-Fox on November 29, 1941 and the film went into release in spring of 1942.