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Want to support this channel and help us preserve old films? Visit Visit our website This silent, black and white German driver's educational film is probably one of the earliest in the genre, likely dating to the late 1920s or early 1930s. The film portrays mistakes drivers make that result in crashes and to educate new drivers on situations that require additional attention. The film most likely was accompanied by an instructional booklet which included a script, which would have been read out loud as the film was projected in the classroom. The film begins with informational text in German stating that mastery of an automobile involves knowledge of roads, and safe and effective driving techniques (00:08). A woman with a cane walks on a gravel road and a car drives towards her (00:23). The car avoids the woman and crashes into a tree (00:31). “Driver! Beware! Drive Carefully!“ text on screen (00:35-:45). Three men drive in on open-top sedan car down a pavement road (00:51). A tram or trolley passes through a town and makes a stop to pick up passengers (01:00). A car drives past the tram as the passengers aboard, and nearly hits them (01:05). Informational text in German “Pay Attention“ followed at (01:29) by guidance concerning passing -- don't scare other drivers with your horn and don't force them to give way to you. Cars are shown speeding on a road, close up shot of speedometer / odometer with German markings, seems to be indicating a speed of 100km/hr (01:42). One car collides with a car coming from a sideroad (01:53). Another car crashes into a tree (01:58). The cars are flipped upside down and heavy smoke is veiling around them (02:00), and a newspaper headline (2:11) mentions the accident. Skid dangers on a curve are shown next: a sports car is driving on a narrow, winding road around a ledge, and a horse carriage is approaching from behind the curve, which results in a crash (02:25). Cars are driving on a wide road as one car speeds past another car (02:29). On car drifts on a curve due to speeding (02:48). Two men exit the car (02:54). “Pay attention at the crossing!“ A tram is passing through a town and a car crossing the street collides with the tram (03:12). Conductors and passengers rush out to attend to the driver (03:23), and they carry out an unconscious body from the car (03:40). “Pay attention on the street!“ A loaded wagon is parked on the street (04:08). A car, driving in the street, turns to avoid hitting the wagon, and is then hit by a trolley car passing by simultaneously (04:38). (Note: the trolley car has a sign for Bettenhausen on the roof, indicating the film may have been shot either in Kassel or possibly Baten-Wurttemberg). The owner of the wagon sees the crash and expresses great distress (04:51). Many people gather around the scene of the accident (05:18). The car drives away undamaged from the collision (05:31), and the passengers reenter the tram, which also continues undamaged (05:37). The owner of the wagon reloads his goods with the help of children (05:48). An animation of the crash seen from above, making it clear that the trolley car cannot maneuver because it is on tracks (06:09). “How to Drive Properly“ (6:38). An animation of the correct way to approach the situation, where the car waits for the tram to pass, before turning to avoid the wagon (06:44). Informational text in German -- “be especially careful at level crossings“ and be aware of “railroad signals, lights, beacons, etc.“ (07:21). A sign with a train on it used to alert passenger of trains crossing the road (07:40). A large electric locomotive pulls a train past a crossing gate, and a car is driving on the road (07:46). The conductor notices the car and blows the horn to alert the driver (08:16). A man and a woman are inside the car, and they don’t hear the train’s horn (08:23). The train and the car collide, the car is pushed under the train and dragged along the tracks (09:11). A final warning: “Pay Attention!“ “Ende” – The End (10:24). We encourage viewers to add comments and, especially, to provide additional information about our videos by adding a comment! See something interesting? Tell people what it is and what they can see by writing something for example: “01:00:12:00 -- President Roosevelt is seen meeting with Winston Churchill at the Quebec Conference.“ This film is part of the Periscope Film LLC archive, one of the largest historic military, transportation, and aviation stock footage collections in the USA. Entirely film backed, this material is available for licensing in 24p HD, 2k and 4k. For more information visit
