Michael Holman Family Home Movie #14: Museum Object and Cultural History

The object in the museum catalogue

This film is from a collection of home movies filmed by the family of Michael Holman, an important figure in the history of hip hop. It consists of a single reel of 8mm silent acetate film with color (a), an original metal film reel (b), and an original cardboard film box (c).

The film begins with a series of wide shots taken during the 1963 Baha'i World Congress in London. Next, a group of people pose at the entrance of an unidentified building. Linda Holman stands on the far left, wearing a beige coat with a red sweater underneath. This is followed by a shot of people entering a car parked in a spot marked, "Calais." A series of shots depicting various monuments around Paris, France follows. A middle aged man and a young girl, Linda Holman, pose in many of the shots. Linda wears a navy skirt and jacket. There are two brief shots that appear to have been taken in Nice, France and Monaco. A single shot depicts two young girls on the street of an unidentified city dressed in elaborate white gowns.

This is followed by several shots of St. Peter's Square in the Vatican where Linda Holman wears a white sweater, blue skirt, and pink headband, and several shots taken most likely in Nice. A series of shots taken from a moving vehicle depict small villages surrounded by large mountains in an unidentified location. Next, there are multiple shots from a moving vehicle of a large group of West German soldiers and their armored vehicles in an unidentified location. Alice Holman waves at the camera wearing a pink hat and jacket, as she is boarding a ship. The final shot of the film is taken from the deck of ship flying a Hungarian flag.

The standard yellow Kodak 8mm film box (c) that accompanies the film has handwritten mailing addresses for processing film in Europe. It also includes a brief handwritten content note.

Materials, dates and provenance

• Date: ca. 1963
• Created by: Pauline Thompson Wood, American, born 1901
• Subject of: Alice Holman, American, 1927 - 2009
• Subject of: Linda Holman, American, born 1953
• Owned by: Michael Holman, American, born 1955
• Type: silent films
• Type: home movies
• Type: color films (visual works)
• Type: 8mm (photographic film size)
• Medium: acetate film, plastic and cardboard
• Dimensions: Duration: 3 Minutes
• Dimensions: Length (Film): 50 Feet
• Place depicted: London, Greater London, England, United Kingdom, Europe
• Place depicted: Paris, Île-de-France, France, Europe
• Place depicted: Nice, Provence-Alpes-Cote d'Azur, France, Europe
• Place depicted: Monaco-Ville, Monaco, Europe
• Place depicted: Vatican City, Holy See, Europe
• Place depicted: West Germany, Europe
• Topic: African American
• Topic: Families
• Topic: Film
• Topic: Religion
• Topic: Travel
• Object number: 2016.31.3.14.1abc
• Credit Line: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture
• Data Source: National Museum of African American History and Culture

Sources and reuse

Catalogue descriptions and facts adapted from National Museum of African American History and Culture through the Smithsonian's official Open Access dataset. This record explicitly marks its metadata CC0 1.0; formatting and selection have been changed. The underlying object's rights statement is: © Michael Holman Permission required for use. Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.