1960s Teen Runaways Complain About America & Their Lives. A Beautiful Folk Song At The End
HTML-код
- Опубликовано: 1 июл 2013
- I filmed this at a runaway kids coffeehouse in New York City in December 1967. At the time, runaways was a household word and was in the news just about every day. I recall the statistic that there were 250,000 runaway teenage kids under 18 in our major cities at that time. They were coming from all over the country. They came to New York in winter with nowhere to go and no protection from the rough folks who lived on the streets. I wonder what happened to them?
I was in New York city filmmaker at this time. Just about everything was a suitable subject for a documentary and virtually no one had been filmed using a 16mm camera and a professional audio recorder. I walked into this place and asked for permission (which was always given) and started to film. The resulting 10 minute movie ran on prime time NET - National Educational Television, the forerunner to PBS.
For those interested in the singer, his name was Chris Wilson (also known as "Gandalf the Grey", "The Wizard" or "The Wiz") He had worked with the Salvation Army in the 60s and they would send him around to sing to kids to discourage them from running away. Shortly around the time of this video he signed with Columbia Records and in 1970 released an album called "Gandalf the Grey Am I". The CD version of that album includes the song from this video, "The Future Belongs to the Children". From what I gather, he passed away several years ago due to cancer. Here he is later in life singing another beautiful song • SITS.avi This comes from his RUclips channel and you can find other performances of his on there as well. He also did a show on his channel talking about various subjects, one of which was dealing with cancer. He seemed to be a really nice guy with a big heart who lived an overall happy life.
If you enjoyed watching this old film of mine I ask you to click the Super Thanks button below the video screen. That support will help me to keep digging into my archives and finding more material that you might enjoy.
Thank you
David Hoffman filmmaker 
Кино
I totally agree. And thank you for your comment. I am finding these old 16mm prints from my early days and when I get the money, I transfer one to digital. Quite satisfying.
David Hoffman-filmmaker
David Hoffman this is amazing thank you ,..you do a great job
This is a great piece of work. Sort of the history that doesn't make it into the history books, the way people actually lived in a certain time and place. I look forward to watching more of these films.
Thank you Sydney. I agree that this real people history deserves to be seen and appreciated.
David Hoffman - filmmaker
*I remember The Answer! It was on Macdougal street, if I remember correctly. It was a blast! Right about the same time they opened up Westbeth - I spent the summer painting Westbeth's new gallery for it's fall opening - along with some of the beats from the Answer. Good Times!*
Amazing that you remember it!
David Hoffman - filmmaker
@@DavidHoffmanFilmmaker I'll _never_ forget either the Answer, or the opening of Westbeth. Did you shoot in Westbeth at all?
You can tell it's from mid 60s.. All the jubilant optimism :') 💙
Dear David. Many thanks for visiting The Answer Café. This video brought back many memories of this unique ministry to me, and the opportunity that Ed Herzberg and I had to develop this program on 105 MacDougal Street. I recognize the young people, and recall some of their names. I also wonder where some of these young people are as well. I will contact you about the possibility of having you transferring this to a DVD for me. Just confirm a price for me, and I will be happy to send you a certified check to cover the processing and mailing of this to me. Sincerely, Brian J. Figueroa, Major (Retired)
Brian, we could use "The Answer Cafe" now, in 2016. Not for today's kids & teenagers, but for those of us who were kids & teenagers of the 1960's. I'm still up for a game of checkers, chess, hanging out, anytime. But young kids today? Not so much. I say re-open.
Brian.You helped reunite me with my parents when I ran away in 67. It was a good thing you did with the Answer Cafe.
@@HelenTudor-Douglas I think kids would be open to a game of checkers nowadays.
@@HelenTudor-Douglas I think kids todays, and young adults my age (24) need a place like that, just a safe haven that isn’t just Starbucks or a McDonalds.
Life's short it's sad to see how fast it goes bye thanks for sharing.
crazy how similar kids are now and then
ADDABOY CHAMP the only thing that’s changed is the accent.
1967 I was only 2 years old living in Jackson Heights Queens NY. Safe and warm environment with my family. Didn’t become familiar with Hippies until 1969 when I was 4 when we moved to Sunnyside Queens and all the hippies in our block hung out outside listening to the great music of the era. I would watch our downstairs neighbors through our balcony down into their living room with all their records and their turntable on the floor. They were always so cool. It was a different era when teens and young adults cared for one another in that nurturing way without backstabbing trying to be better than the next person, There seems to be less compassion in youth today. Even the youth in this video try to do better for themselves and one another. The creativity of books, art, poetry, music was in their souls. I grew up with the music of that 60’s and 70’s through my folks. Books, art, and caring for others has always played a part in my life. I owe that to my folks and the teens in this video owe it to each other. One can only hope all or most found their way in life as difficult as life was and is for youth of all generations.
You are correct. Thank you for pointing it out.
This brightened my quarantine. Thank you.
*Thank you for all of these David. Your collection - and work - is truly amazing!*
wow this is amazing, such a cool little piece of history
Your videos are very nice. Thank you!
it's interesting to see how kids used to think over 50 years ago. it doesn't feel so long ago but then when you count the years, it's amazing. i wonder how those kids are today, i mean they're definitely adults but it's like how did they fare in life. would be interesting to know. sometimes, it's weird to be an adult, it comes so fast, at least for me. I don't want to relive my kid years, but i would definitely repeat my early 20s, i would do some things different, at least, in hindsight. i'm sure a lot of people say that. haha.
This would be 1967 as they mention the Beatles' "new" album 'Magical Mystery Tour'.
Thanks for the historical document ! It's wonderful that you could transfer this to the new medium (RUclips). Now it's going to live forever !
My fav channel you do a great job making great videos..awesome
The accents are so New Yawka thick in alot of those kids .
Yeah, most of these accents are really thick for a Californian ear.
This is fabulous. A great historic record. Back in the day when the Beatles were kings.
this is really great
again. fabulous.
I wonder if any of these teens , now in their seventies , are viewing this now ?
Yes, I am.
I am always amazed how your work is good for us to remember past almost as education manual.
Thank you for your comment. If your resources allow, I would sure appreciate your using the THANKS button under any of my videos including the one you have commented on. It is something new that RUclips is beta testing and would mean a great deal for my continuing efforts.
David Hoffman filmmaker
@7:04 Someone's playing House of The Rising Sun on guitar
These people were so gentle compared to people today. From a total lifetime ago. What a precious snapshot of 1967, when I was just under one year old.
David, we could use "The Answer Cafe" now, in 2016. Not for today's kids & teenagers, but for those of us who were kids & teenagers of the 1960's. I'm still up for a game of checkers, chess, hanging out, anytime. But young kids today? Not so much. I say re-open.
For sure. It was a magnificent environment filled with friendliness and sweetness and acceptance in the midst of, what was experienced by those street people at least, as a very rough street scene in NYC. Now, we have to depend more on ourselves than on any kind of system it seems. Thank you for your share.
David Hoffman-filmmaker
How would you know that kids today aren't into 'hanging out'? I am actually part of this generation. Ask me. Sure, with the spread of smartphones (beginning only 10 years ago), the entire world has changed - more so than when personal computers and simple video games began to emerge. Whereas cell phones used to be calling devices that adults would walk around with, they are now multi-purpose extension of one's life, which are entering current children's lives from day one of their existence. (By the way, I am technically part of this generation, but I see a clear gap between today's young kids and those born around ten years earlier. Young people such as myself are still old enough to remember a time without smartphones.) *HOWEVER*, this does *NOT* mean that today's kids (namely those born within the last ten years) don't have fun anymore.
Kids (and even young adults) still hang out, still go outside, still ride bikes, still go to the pool or beach, still play board games, still read books, etc. I know that you did not necessarily say that today's youth are socially inept or something, but please give us some more credit. I grew up playing with physical toys and by going outside, just like you might have done when you were a kid. Even those born after the iPhone continue to do this. The only difference, really, is that my brother and I shared a computer (that is primitive by today's standards), on which we had educational games. However, we preferred not to spend our entire time on that machine.
It just gets on my nerves when older folks in general harass our generation. Yes - I am also a bit worried for the younger kids of this generation (and even many adults), who are way too attached to their smartphones; but that doesn't mean that we are 'doomed,' nor does it mean that today's youth no longer wants to hang out and have fun. I honestly prefer riding my bike over using my cell phone. Heck, I barely use my iPhone. I've lived longer without it than I have with it. My parents had to force me to communicate with it. Some don't understand that and immediately assume that we were born with this stuff... which is odd, because I'm from 1997, which was a solid ten years before the iPhone existed. In the 1990s, people were still using dial-up and primarily obtained their day-to-day information through cable television. Yet, for some reason, I'm assumed, by older adults, to not even know what society was like a mere decade ago. I'll allude to the one time that a teacher of mine mentioned the extinct chain, Blockbuster Video. She then commented, after having mentioned it, that we probably wouldn't even know what Blockbuster was. Seriously? It only went out of business within the last five years. We used to rent movies from Blockbuster all the time. It is also assumed of me that I don't know what a brick phone is, that I don't know that the Web didn't exist when my parents were children, that I don't possess any knowledge on classic media or historical events, etc.
Most insulting was a phone conversation that I heard an older man having, as I was riding a bus home from school. He was indulging in the pleasurable thought that kids these days probably don't know that the internet hasn't been around forever, and that they probably think that Thomas Edison invented it or something. *sigh* Sure, maybe a VERY young kid doesn't know that our parents didn't have RUclips, but most children are well aware that the internet (namely the World Wide Web) was NOT a thing until semi-recently. Considering that Web access has become even more ubiquitous with smartphones, I would only accuse the most recent of children from this generation of not realizing that the internet (and the recent smartphones) are relatively new to consumers.
Okay, end of rant. (Don't take offense, as I am not directing all of this towards you specifically.)
As a kid today I could really use a place like this. I like chess and occasionally drive up to NYC Washington square to play but I always just end up playing retired older men or the homeless which tend to be a bit drug addled and not too fun to be with since those are the people who want to play. A place where young people could congregate in person would be great but it's really hard to find anything happening like this at least not on the east coast, even colleges don't have scenes that are this open and free. I wish they would reopen but the overall political climate of the world just isn't at all the same. Kids today aren't really unified under banners of peace and love like they were at this time(maybe that's just the idealic fantasy I always get shown). Today everything is super divided, whether it's your political stance, your music choice, or your religious beliefs everyone just wants to look for things to fight about or games to fight in. So I kind of agree with you kids today are in bad shape. Hopefully in the coming years people will become more open minded because right now it feels like everyone just wants to surround themselves with people who think the way they do and that is probably one of the worst things a person could do for themselves.
Wish I could spend a day in NYC in 1967 just to see what it was like.
On a side note why would these kids run away from home to go live in NYC one of the most expensive cities in the world?
I agree with the aspect of taking sides; there has grown a huge divide between a general population of liberal people and one of conservative people. However, it may just seem this way because, as of recently, it has become way easier for people to voice their opinions towards anyone in the world. Is is the Web? No - it's the fact that, for the last 10 years, we've had smartphones (and, sometime later, out-of-control social media). As far as I know, political tensions were high in the 1960s, and there was already *a lot* of societal chaos. People did seem to come together, though, after a while; however, that was sort of ruined by the 1980s, when there was this new conformity towards neo-conservatism. Still, if modern communications were given to people of the past, they'd likely create their own firestorms.
I think that the semi-recent introduction of smartphones and world-changing software and resources is concerning - I feel that more youth are at-risk these days, as a result of the impact that these devices and their nature have on people. However, at the same time, a much smarter and more well-informed generation is being raised. Anyone born at least 20 years ago is *new* to smartphones, since they have only been here for 10 years and didn't cause such a huge impact until a few years thereafter. Thus, the way we're handling this new technology may be different from the way in which newborns in 2017 will be handling it in the future (since they were legitimately born around it, whereas we - although we're accused of it - were NOT born around it). What I think will happen is that, after these growing pains are complete, we may have a society where technology is less of a mystery (complete with fewer mishaps) and more people are informed and on the same page with one another. Our society will take a break from the hideous amounts of conservatism it is being fed, in the same way that it will mature past the blatant and dumb overly-liberal ideals which have been placed upon its shoulders. Things should level out as new generations replace older ones. Right now, it's a battle between the young and old - and those of us who are moderate are stuck in the middle and roll our eyes at what is coming from either side.
So, while new consumer technology is definitely a puzzling threat, there is good that can come out of it; we're just in the midst of growing pains (like we had in the 1960s). Additionally, I believe that our society will one day reach more of a consensus, when it comes to political views. At least, I am hoping that it is realized why both ultra-conservatism and mega-liberalism are both horrible for us. Lastly, the smartphone is also an age of reconstruction and technological breakthroughs. We might not be able to know for sure what's in store for us in the future. We will see new threats - of course - but we may also resolve plenty of issues which currently plague us.
I wonder what happened too these people. Hope they all made it to good peaceful places. I’m sure many didn’t though. It is crazy to think when I was born they were all mature adults if they made it that far.
and the beat goes on...
Youth is a very dangerous time in ones life..........
Oh my gosh!! the girl in white might be cyndi lauper!!, she was homeless for a liite while when she was a teenage and she went thru new york, this sounds like looks like her, ! and she actually was looking for herself at this time.
What a wonderful project you did with these films. So much pretension with this generation, which was clearly demonstrated in this video. While I'm as a liberal as they come, this generation caused so much destruction of our culture. They became yuppies in the 80's and turned into the ME generation and pyschopathic capitalists.
Thank you, Ah yes. The ME generation. I remember.
David Hoffman - filmmaker
5 COMPANIES OWN ALL THE MEDIA...WHO MAKES DECISIONS???
Some became Yuppies etc But still a gross oversimplification.
This is why I love youtube.
Very interesting...things have changed so much...or have they? ... excellent video 🔥
Nope just different children have been let down for milleianm .
Anyone whose seen Key & Peele should know this guy looks exactly like Peele. @2:52
G he looks like this American actor we all love
Groovy and Linda.
These young people are a lot more healthy looking than the young people in 2019 you would think it would be the other way
round... A fascinating look into the past...
The kids in 2019 were raised by the kids of the kids who became parents in 1967.
6:32 what a confused kid, imitating his intellectual elite beatnik heroes
well.. they really seem to live something nice.
6:48 I thought: Wow... People are still playing it exactly the same way today. It's a permanent part of the culture. Pretty cool that it came from Dave van Ronk. Also pretty cool that it could have been Ronk himself in the background.
I’ve actually become really intrigued my this and would love too find out what these kids are doing now
I would like to find that out as well. It would make for some wonderful history but unfortunately, a fire in 2008 destroyed much of my archive and my records where I had the releases these people signed way back then.
David Hoffman filmmaker
@TUbIuyola That is an interesting idea. Thank you for it. I will consider doing just that.
David Hoffman filmmaker
Didn't hear a " Like" among them
That surprised me.
Worst people over here in U.K are the the 20s females...every other word is "like"...and they no idea they saying it
Wonder who started the trend?
The second guy says like literally within the first minute.
0:44 two or three there. It wasn’t yet common.
Haha, the kid at 3:30 is quoting Arlo Guthrie's 'Alice's Restaurant' which came out in 65 or 66.
hi david
do you have any more footage of these teens?
No outtakes.
David Hoffman-filmmaker
Seems a lot more positive in 1967 than the video from 1971, which is so bleak.
7:14 who's this dude?
Beautiful song
The dropouts in '67 are better mannered and more eloquent than nearly any kids I've encountered. Sad, but inevitable I suppose given the societal changes that have come in subsequent generations
Pete Said I,agree 100% it’s very true and very sad at the same time
Proof of the intentional dumbing down of the educational system.
Lol strait class and confidence respect
is the singer Gandalf the Grey (Peter Sando)?
@offbrand Peter Sando was from the band Gandalf. The guy singing in this video is Chris Wilson (Gandalf the Grey).
That girl at 6:00 ... That's me in my past life!
I looked just like at 14. I'm 26 now.
Hey maybe she died young...
Dominique Matthews so what happened too her then?
You were "Teen Queen"?
Does anyone know the song playing at 4:40 ?
Alice's Restaurant by Arlo Guthrie
....as much as this world is now ours, it was every bit as much their's.
Q: What do you like most here in New York?
1967: The people
2024: free Wifi
8:26 creepy guy keeps sings about " all the children "
is that arlo guthrie?
Guy sings " The future belongs to the children " and in 15 years they all became yuppies and fecked the world up
Why bother trying to find yourself if you can just let others (government) find you and provide for your needs? So much easier.
8:33 i hate folk guitarists lik him who only do easy chords no leads or higher notes lol
Does the girl at 1:58 have a trans-atlantic accent? Geez, she sounds like a 1930s movie star. No wish to be mean, but I find it rather irritating. I have read that it was only public speakers and actors/actresses who talked like this (and maybe also school students in the 1930s or so who were given speech lessons); but I am beginning to believe that it was an accent also learned by commoners (or, at the very least, it spread to them...) Can someone clarify this for me?
Transatlantic accent was an acquired upper-class American accent. Think Kathryn Hepburn. There is nothing upper class about this girl's accent.
I think she have acquired her way of speaking from older people, such as her parents. I know that this isn't transatlantic, but it's this speech pattern that I hear commonly, and it seems that it made its way up until the 1970s or so.
I also sense a slight Massachusetts accent, but there's also that 'typical 1960s young woman' voice I'm gathering. It's a speech pattern that makes it sound as though one is pursing one's lips together and also sounding influenced by transatlantic speech.
I wasn't simply referring to the accent... I was referring to the sound and demeanor. I don't care about her accent; she still sounds very typical, for some reason - just typical plus a noticeable accent.
It’s not trans-Atlantic.. seems very New York.