Video Nature Doc Hodgepodgery
$8 liquor store box full of nature documentary tapes from a school library sale part 3!
This week, we’re finishing up the the $8 liquor store box full of nature documentary tapes from a school library sale series. I apologize for not being able to come up with a catchier name for it. I really thought by the third entry, something would have come to me, but it’ll have to do.
Long, boring title aside, this week we have a captivating assortment of tapes that will take you around the world on a virtual safari to see all kinds of (mostly scary) animals in their natural habitat.
First up, we’ve got two tapes sold in South Africa, likely from a gift shop on site where whoever purchased these started or ended a safari of their own. Both of these were sold in plastic clamshells with a combination holder inside to accept Betamax and VHS cassettes, and appear to have come in both PAL and NTSC. Thankfully, the ones I picked up were sold for a tourist visiting from the Americas, Japan, Myanmar, South Korea, Taiwan, or Philippines, as I had no trouble playing them in my standard VCR. I’m going to guess the tourist who picked these up was American because, well, that’s where I found them. In America.
After that is a classic Trials of Life tape narrated by the prolific David Attenborough. These are always a good find because the videography in the Trials of Life series is beautiful and this tape is no exception.
After, after that, I’ve got a triple feature of Predators of the Wild for y’all. The last tape, about the wolf, is especially wonderful with great cinematography and a pretty good amount of information on the social system of packs.
I hope you like edutainment! Let’s get right into the tapes!
Sights And Sounds Of African Wildlife
1989 | Runtime: 50 Minutes
This is the latest wildlife video to be produced by multiple international award-winner Dick Reucassel. It is a fitting library companion to "The Nile Crocodile", "Die Nylkrokodil", "The Ways of the Wild", "Die Gang van die Natuur" and "Schattenspiel der Natur”.
It perfectly captures, in sight and sound, that very special ambience experienced unforgettably in the few precious wild places remaining as natural habitats in the regions of Southeastern Africa. Beautiful sequences that are colourful or exciting, rare or intimate, unfold along secret and hidden trails among riverine bush, near quiet waterways, to thornveld, woodland and open savannah… from an African dawn, through a day's heat to the tranquility of sunset and into the mysteries of creatures of the night. Finely focused and faithfully recorded, approximately 98 species present a panorama of colours and a chorus of calls from the piping of iridescent sunbirds to the trumpeting of the great, grey elephant herds; from the guttural squawks and raucous cries of vultures on a kill to the joyously rippling cadences of a pair of nesting Paradise Flycatchers. Throughout this captivating hour of wildlife pageantry there pulses a dominant vein an inescapable thread linking birds and animals alike a wary, caring, sometimes fierce protection of their young ... that they and their kind may survive. Such guardianship may be displayed in the tenderness of a crocodile's jaws or the sheathing of a caracal's claws with her kitten. This video aptly brings Shakespeare's words to life: "One touch of Nature makes the whole world kin."
The Ways Of The Wild
1987 | Runtime 21 Minutes
Dick Reucassel, award winning wildlife photographer and cinematographer, invites you to look over his shoulder as he films the real lives and times of the inhabitants of Southern Africa's celebrated wildlife sanctuaries.
This remarkable documentary offers fascinating insights into animal and bird behaviour which are rarely observed. The behaviour of the Hippopotamus, for instance, is unique and remains unexplained. The interaction of the delicate and complex patterns of wildlife is brilliantly developed through the authentic sights and sounds of Southern Africa's bushveld and savanna. Some fifty species enrich this experience, including: intimate moments within the lion pride during courtship, play, hunting and on the kill, a lioness being chased by her prey; the introduction of a wild dog pup to the pack; a close-up of a true carnivore which is insectivorous; a look at the only African mammal clad in scaly armour; a very private look into a Crested Barbet's nest; moments of tranquility and high drama at the drinking place; unique Crocodile behaviour; the protection from lions of an injured Elephant calf, Cheetah on a kill. This is an educationally stimulating and aesthetically satisfying contribution to the appreciation and understanding of the wildlife heritage of Southern Africa. Following the worldwide success of his documentary, The Nile Crocodile, Dick Reucassel now brings you a refreshing perspective on our wildlife society.
Friends And Rivals: The Trials Of Life
1991 | Runtime: 50 Minutes
Man was hardly the first species to realize that it's wise to organize. And anthropologist David Attenborough presents this wisdom of social structure in an unforgettably vivid way. Move with a pride of lions and its ruling matriarchs. Swoop down on a Scottish lake where hooper swans set up housekeeping along strict family lines. Tunnel underground to watch mole rats live under a highly specialized regime as diggers, earthmovers and soldiers. Go aboveground to watch mongooses divvy up their assignments as hunters, sentinels, even baby-sitters. But, as Attenborough reveals so dramatically, it isn't the lion who's the king of the jungle-it's the incredibly organized, five million-living-as-one, six- caste systemized ant who reigns supreme.
Giant Tarantula: Predators Of The Wild
1993 | Runtime: 52 Minutes
Tarantula... alien, menacing, mysterious; a frightful giant conjured from our darkest, most terrifying nightmare. Legs long enough to span a large dinner plate, armed with fearsomely effective, venom-injecting fangs, eight eyes scanning for the slightest movement, this merciless jungle monster devours a menu of victims that includes frogs, snakes, small mammals and even birds.
Learn why this silent hunter, with venom and strength to match its grotesque size, has become a respected “spirit guide" to the shamans in the lost world of the Amazon. And why, ounce for ounce, the giant tarantula is one of the deadliest, most horrific killers ever to walk the planet.
Hunters And The Hunted: Predators Of The Wild
1992 | Runtime: 52 Minutes
Hunters & the Hunted...there is one chilling reality for all predators, kill or starve. Every miss brings them one step closer to death. For the hyena, lion and wild dog, there can be no compassion, no mercy, no hesitation...the young, sick, unwise...all must die.
Explore the dark realm of the hunters and the bloody rivalries that mark their domain. The shocking battles between hyena and lion, the chaos of wild dogs closing the trap and the astonishing defense of prey under attack. See the predators, their most lethal tactics and their last resorts when desperation sets in.
Wolf: Predators Of The Wild
1993 | Runtime: 52 Minutes
Wolf... archetypal symbol of untamed ferocity and elemental, almost supernatural cunning. Drawn to the chase by the eerie howls of their killing song, the pack forms a single, blood- thirsty entity, bent on relentless pursuit, inevitable capture and swift, certain death.
Journey to the spectacular, isolated mountain realms of northern Spain, where the last remaining Iberian wolf packs wage a mortal battle for survival. The wolves' legendary intelligence, their lethally effective social hunting skills and awesome powers of endurance are all put to the ultimate test in a life and death struggle against man's most modern weapons--and most primitive fears.
Well, that’s it for this week! I hope you enjoyed the tapes! If you’re looking for more, please check out my page on Archive.org for the full list of digitized media. If you have any questions, feel free to send me a message right here or drop a comment below. If you haven’t already, please check out the rest of this series, linked below, or all of my other previous posts here. Thanks so much for checking out this week’s edition of Diptych!
See you soon!
—Forrest
This series has been my favorite so far, st good in every tape