Overview
- Description
- June 1945 wedding ceremony of Sergeant Arthur Mainzer, a combat cameraman who filmed the liberation of Buchenwald for the U.S. Army Air Forces, to Germaine Girardot, a French woman. The film was taken by other combat cameramen and photographers with the Ninth Air Force as a gift to Arthur.
Various CUs of a crowd outside the church in a suburb of Paris preparing for the wedding, including military cameramen in uniform and the wedding party. Germaine, the bride, and her father begin the procession into the church. INT, church and wedding ceremony with priest (dark). Audience seated in pews. 01:08:26 EXT, church with townspeople and guests greeting the newlyweds. U.S. military exiting the church. Various CUs of the bride and groom posing for photographs. Tying flowers to the wedding car. Candid views of cameramen filming the wedding guests and activity outside the church. Wedding party departs in a U.S. military vehicle. French civilians wave goodbye. Candid CUs of military men, smoking and joking around. French spectators in apartment windows. Arthur and Germaine, the newlyweds, wave from a window above a cafe and kiss. More shots of U.S. combat camermen.
The members of the 4th Combat Camera, 9th Air Force Unit and photographers from Photo Finishing, 9th Air Force who attended the wedding and are pictured in the film are: Sgt. John Killorin, Pvt. Verl E. Luzena, 1st Lt. Robert J. Fleck (best man), Cpl. John Killorin, Pvt. Paige J. Nelson, Pvt. Mario Mongini, Cpl. Pasquale Mirabella, Sgt. William E. Kelley, Pvt. Harold Citron, Pfc. Sherman Snider, Cpl. Lamoine Wark, Sgt. Louis F. Schadlich, Sgt. Ralph Lopatin, Pfc. Henry S. Rapaez, Nick Toth, and Sgt. Elmer H. Merkel. See Film and Video departmental files or attached document for more specifics. - Duration
- 00:17:45
- Date
-
Event:
1945 June 30
- Locale
-
Montreuil,
France
- Credit
- United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, gift of Arthur J. Mainzer
- Contributor
-
Camera Operator:
U.S. Ninth Army Air Force 4th Combat Camera Unit
Subject: Arthur J. Mainzer
Camera Operator: United States. Army Air Forces. Combat Camera Unit, 4th.
Camera Operator: United States. Army Air Forces. Air Force, 9th.
- Biography
-
Arthur Mainzer (1923-) was a cameraman in the 4th Combat Camera Unit of the 9th Air Force. The Combat Camera Unit was tasked with creating Air Force training films at Hal Roach Studios. After completing training at the Air Force Photo Technical School in Denver, CO and the First Motion Picture Unit in Culver, City, CA, Mainzer was deployed to Europe. He was filming bomb damage by the Allied Air Forces with Captain Ellis Carter when they heard about Buchenwald and drove there by jeep on April 13, 1945. Mainzer and Carter filmed conditions at the camp on Kodak color film stock using two handheld 16mm film cameras. The footage was then sent to headquarters in London for processing.
Physical Details
- Language
- Silent
- Genre/Form
- Amateur.
- B&W / Color
- Color
- Image Quality
- Good
- Time Code
- 01:00:00:00 to 01:17:45:00
- Film Format
- Master
Master 2897 Film: 16 mm - color
Master 2897 Video: Digital Betacam - color - NTSC - small
Master 2897 Film: 16 mm - color
Master 2897 Video: Digital Betacam - color - NTSC - small
Master 2897 Film: 16 mm - color
Master 2897 Video: Digital Betacam - color - NTSC - small
Master 2897 Film: 16 mm - color
Master 2897 Video: Digital Betacam - color - NTSC - small- Preservation
Preservation 2897 Film: negative - 16 mm - polyester - color - internegative - B-wind - Kodak - 3273 - digital intermediate
Preservation 2897 Video: Betacam SP - color - NTSC - small
Preservation 2897 Film: negative - 16 mm - polyester - color - internegative - B-wind - Kodak - 3273 - digital intermediate
Preservation 2897 Video: Betacam SP - color - NTSC - small
Preservation 2897 Film: negative - 16 mm - polyester - color - internegative - B-wind - Kodak - 3273 - digital intermediate
Preservation 2897 Video: Betacam SP - color - NTSC - small
Preservation 2897 Film: negative - 16 mm - polyester - color - internegative - B-wind - Kodak - 3273 - digital intermediate
Preservation 2897 Video: Betacam SP - color - NTSC - small- User
User 2897 Film: positive - 16 mm - color - silent - answer print - Kodachrome
User 2897 Video: DVD - color
User 2897 Film: positive - 16 mm - color - silent - answer print - Kodachrome
User 2897 Video: DVD - color
User 2897 Film: positive - 16 mm - color - silent - answer print - Kodachrome
User 2897 Video: DVD - color
User 2897 Film: positive - 16 mm - color - silent - answer print - Kodachrome
User 2897 Video: DVD - color
Rights & Restrictions
- Conditions on Access
- You do not require further permission from the Museum to access this archival media.
- Copyright
- United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
- Conditions on Use
- The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum places no restrictions on use of this material. You do not require further permission from the Museum to reproduce or use this film footage.
- Copyright Holder
- United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
Keywords & Subjects
Administrative Notes
- Legal Status
- Permanent Collection
- Film Provenance
- Arthur Mainzer donated his 16mm kodachrome film and a war diary to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in September 2010.
- Note
- Transferred by Brodsky & Treadway in May 2010. The film stock used is all Kodachrome, some manufactured in the US in 1944 and 1945, and some manufactured in the UK in 1943. There are considerable differences in the gamma and hue of intercut images, owing to manufacture, exposure (three cameras were used, at least one with several lenses), and exposures, as well as changes in lighting. Some cuts were overexposed, and some underexposed. One camera lens lacked center definition. The cameramen seemed to be working without exposure meters. Almost all scenes were filmed at 16 frames per second, which is the rate of this archival film transfer.
- Film Source
- Arthur J. Mainzer
- File Number
- Legacy Database File: 5363
- Special Collection
-
Steven Spielberg Film and Video Archive
- Record last modified:
- 2024-02-21 08:02:48
- This page:
- https://collections.ushmm.org/search/catalog/irn1004452
Additional Resources
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Also in Arthur J. Mainzer collection
War diary of U.S. Air Force combat cameraman Arthur Manizer (about 40 pages) and one 16mm original kodachrome film documenting Arthur Manzer's wedding to Germaine Giradot on June 30, 1945 in a suburb of Paris, France (Montreuil Sous Bois).
Arthur J. Mainzer diary
Document
The collection consists of a diary issued to American soldiers during World War II that was used by Arthur J. Mainzer of the United States Army Air Force. The diary includes enlistment information, family history, autographs from friends, promotion information, photographs, and diary entries of his activities from 1942 October-1944 February as well as a train ticket and two unmarked postcards from an enclosure in the back of the diary.