America’s Youth

When Mickey Rooney and Deanna Durbin (seen here playing badminton and table tennis) were in their teens how did the rest of the nation’s youth occupy their time? This survey shows the nation’s 16 - 24 year-olds at work and play, from jitterbugging boys and girls, couples kissing in cars and fresh-faced workers in offices and factories, to the many young lives blighted by unemployment, the film presents a balanced but vibrant picture of American youth just before the war.

This film uses data from the American Youth Commission, a non-governmental agency, to show the young (and, with the exception of one brief scene, overwhelmingly white) people of America in a world on the brink of war. Although the term ‘teenager’ is not used, it is clear that many of the young people in the film conform to the modern notion of the phenomenon which is commonly dated to the early 1940s. The rise of co-educational colleges, increasing availability of cars and the beginnings of economic recovery after the depression meant that many young Americans were able to begin to define themselves on their own terms. This film shows the beginnings of a distinct ‘teen’ culture with its own rituals, language and fashions.