About the year 1040 a.d. two men in China succeeded in printing from a press with movable type. Historians have rated this invention one of the most important in the long life of man on this planet. Because of the printing press, man has been able to spread knowledge far and wide. But the printing press has also made it possible for those who are in a position to control what is printed to spread untruths or part truths, so that great populations can be swayed in their thinking. If you would stop to count the many different ways in which printing influences our modern life, you would be amazed. The printed word has had a tremendous influence on the development of civilization.

The Silver Screen Attracts over Seventy-five Million People Every Week in the United States.

Modern historians and others believe that the invention of motion pictures, and especially the talking picture, is as important to this century as the invention of printing was to an earlier day. Certainly no one can deny that the motion picture has become a very essential part of modern life. In America alone over seventy million people go to the movies each week! Every small town has its movie theater today, and young people, especially, spend a great part of their leisure time and money enjoying the movies. It is estimated that the American people spend one billion five hundred million dollars on movies each year. Going to the movies is a common American pastime. It might therefore be well to examine the movies to see what they are and how we can derive the greatest benefit from them.

Movies are finding an ever-increasing use in the schools. They have made it possible for pupils to visit many lands and sec many fascinating things which were formerly known only to travelers.

Originally the movies were made for entertainment purposes only. Today they are still used for this purpose for the most part. Whether or not the movies are for entertainment only, the truth is that they are a powerful educational force. Studies by scientists have shown that while you are watching a movie you are learning many things. The movie not only changes your opinions of current events, but also your attitude toward the people whom it presents on the screen.

Why Go to the Movies? Probably most people do not stop to think why they go to the movies each week. They have simply become accustomed to going each time the program changes. To these people the movies are entertainment, pure and simple. By paying the admission they can be carried away from the humdrum of ordinary life and sec distant lands, live with kings, and laugh at the antics of Mickey Mouse.

Another group might be classified as "star worshipers." To these individuals it does not matter what play is being given, how well it is acted, or how true to life it is. By reading the movie magazines and newspapers they keep up to date on the news of their favorite stars and watch for them to appear in their local theater. As you will see, these people miss many of the most enjoyable features of a movie because they are absorbed in what their star is doing or saying.

There is still another set of people, unfortunately in the minority, who have learned how to discriminate in their choice of movies and how to enjoy those they choose to patronize. There is a way to learn how to benefit from the movies.

If the movies are to fill their place in American life, they must be more than mere entertainment. It would be tragic, indeed, if so remarkable an invention as moving pictures should not be utilized to the best possible end. It is possible to enjoy the movies as entertainment and still have them carry educational values. Aladdin with his wonderful lamp could not ask for more than to have distant scenes, talented actors, and beautiful music brought before him. Properly used, the movies can broaden our appreciation of life to an extent never possible before in history.

Learning To Judge

Few of us would think of buying a pair of shoes or a new suit before first shopping about to see many different samples and to compare their values, and yet most of us pay money to see movies that are of questionable value to us and to society as a whole.

It may seem a little unusual to you that we should consider ways in which to increase enjoyment of movies. There is nothing complicated about going to the movies. If one has the necessary money, it is simply a matter of buying a ticket and passing into the theater. From that point on, all one has to do is keep his eyes and ears open, and the projection machine does the rest. This is why many people say that the movies are a spectator type of activity - very little is required of the person being entertained except to sit still, listen, and watch the screen.

Yet, if you will stop and think a moment you will no doubt recall that you have attended at one time or another movies that you did not like. You may not have known why you did not like them, but somehow they left you with a feeling of wasted time or not full value for your money.

Now it is the purpose of this section to help you get the greatest amount of enjoyment and the greatest benefit from the money spent on movies. No doubt you will be surprised at the number of different things there are to look for that you have not seen before. As you learn these things, however, your appreciation of good movies will increase.

There are many different ways of finding out about a movie before you lay your money down for a ticket. Some of the sources of information are not reliable and may be very misleading. Others are good and will help you to spend your movie money wisely. Let us consider some of these sources very briefly.