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Moscow Looks at New York City

Sept. 6, 1962 - Moscow television tonight took the unusual step of presenting a documentary film that showed New York City and its tall buildings. Its title: “City Without a Soul.” Normally, Soviet cameramen go to great lengths to avoid photographing buildings in the West. For example, documentaries about Premier Khrushchev’s trips to the U.S. concentrated on smaller buildings in slum districts. But tonight, the majestic buildings of Rockefeller Center and the financial district were in full view, as were the gaudy advertising signs of Times Square. There were also photographs of Harlem, blind beggars, dirty streets, and unemployed men lining up for compensation payments. In describing an image of the Statue of Liberty, the announcer said: “Looking at the Statue of Liberty, one unwittingly thinks that the raised arm and torch resemble the customary salute of the Fascists.”

© 2024 by Joe Rubenstein

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