Canadian Army newsreels on YOUTUBE

[Alex Blair (RIP)]

HISTORIC ARMY NEWSREELS NOW AVAILABLE TO THE PUBLIC

OTTAWA, Nov. 1 /CNW/ - To commemorate the 65th anniversary of the end of WWII, The War Amps is making the complete set of The Canadian Army Newsreels available to the public for the first time, as part of its Military Heritage Series.

Featuring 20 hours of footage, this 6 DVD set contains 106 newsreels filmed and produced by the Canadian Army Film Unit.

The front-line cameramen were soldiers first and took guns into battle along with their 35 mm movie cameras to record the Canadian Infantry in action. Their heroic efforts enabled them to scoop the international press on the major events in Europe including the invasion of Sicily and the top story of the century - D-Day.

The newsreels also feature the daily routines of the soldiers behind the lines, life on the home front and historic footage of politicians and generals from the Allied and Axis countries. The newsreels were produced by the Army for soldiers serving overseas. Some footage shot by the Film Unit was also shown in home front movie theatres.

A vignette telling the story of the Canadian Army Film Unit, and samples of the newsreels, can be viewed at waramps.ca/military/canr.html and on The War Amps YouTube channel at youtube.com/warampsofcanada.

The War Amps embarked on this special project in cooperation with Library and Archives Canada (LAC) and veterans of the Canadian Army Film Unit. The Canadian Army Newsreels hold an important place in Canada's military history. While researchers have had access to the newsreels housed at LAC, The War Amps DVD set makes them available to a much wider audience.

Like all War Amps productions, The Canadian Army Newsreels DVD set was funded by corporate donations. It is available to the public at a cost-recovery price of $30 (including DVD guide) by calling toll-free 1 800 250-3030 or at waramps.ca.

For further information:

For more information or a broadcast-quality clip of the Newsreels, please contact Communications at 1 877 60MEDIA orcommunications@waramps.ca. Photos can be downloaded atwww.waramps.ca/newsroom/stock_photos/canr.html