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This 1977 color promotional film hosted by Star Trek actor William Shatner spotlights Estes’ Alpha III starter kit, the Scissor-Wing Transport, and Starship Enterprise flying model rockets (TRT: 15:20).
A title card with the Estes logo and address in Penrose, Colorado (0:12). Opening titles, “Model Rocketry” and “The Last Frontier” over a model of the Starship Enterprise of Star Trek fame (0:23). An Estes model of a NASA Apollo-era Saturn V rocket intercut with footage of real Mariner and Saturn V rockets blasting off from Cape Canaveral (0:40). 8mm footage taken by an Estes model rocket shows its flight and the deployment of a parachute bearing the Estes logo (1:20). The parachute falls on William Shatner, with his back turned. A crowd of children run through a field to meet him. He hands over the large Saturn 5 model (1:32). Closeup: Shatner speaks (1:44). A toy train set is quickly passed over by a young man with a new Estes product: A Model Rocketry Field Operations Kit. His workbench also displays a Star Trek model kit and an Estes Cineroc 8mm “movie camera” filmmaking kit. Unboxing. Unfolding an instruction sheet for an Alpha III rocket. Rocket parts: Body tube, engine, parachute, shock cord, decals (1:51). Hands measure and trim the rocket’s engine mount to size, then glue is applied (2:28). Reviewing a procedural checklist (2:55). An Estes Alpha III takes off in a medium slow motion shot (3:08). Two disappointed boys watch as their rocket’s “parachute recovery system” fails to deploy (3:13). A windsock on an airport runway. A Philadelphia 76’s pennant acting as a windsock. A boy throws a blade of grass into the air (3:33). A finger indicates the model rocket’s engine. A finger on the launch controller button (3:50). Animation shows a rocket careening wildly around the frame. Cut to a mid-air explosion (3:57). A stunt plane flying upside-down. An animated illustration of the stunt plane shows the craft’s center of gravity. The animated model rocket rotates, spinning on its center of gravity (4:10). Mounting several Estes model rockets’ nose cones. Animated arrows indicate the forces of thrust, drag, lift, and gravity (5:06). A successful launch. Marking and applying model rocket fins (5:27). An Estes “Re-Entry Vehicle” with a mounted glider at takeoff (6:04). A boy tests an Alpha III model rocket by swinging it around overhead on a string (6:29). Closeup on a rocket labeled “76” at launch. A parachute deploys successfully. A tumble recovery device twirls in mid-air. Helicopter recovery in action. Animation depicts “glide recovery” of a Scissor-Wing Transport boost glider (7:13). Closeup on mandatory RP-1B model rocket recovery fireproof wadding (7:57). Folding and packing a parachute in a transparent rocket tube (8:37). The igniter is inserted into the engine and taped down. An illustration clarifies the process (9:05). A launch countdown, with a closeup on igniter clips. Animation illustrates the engine burning. A parachute ejects (9:43). Children set up a large rocket on a launch pad in an open field. Ignition and a slow motion takeoff. Other model rockets, including an Estes “Goonybird” launch in a montage (10:09). William Shatner sets off one of a lineup of model rockets, demonstrating Cineroc 8mm footage (11:50). A closeup of the Scissor-Wing Transport and glider and slow motion footage. Animation helps illustrate the glider’s deployment (12:06). A boy uses a homemade altitude tracker (13:23). Shatner with the children in closeup. He wears a chain necklace. Pull back to reveal a model of the Starship Enterprise and Klingon Battle Cruiser. Both take off in slow motion, followed by other models (13:50). More Cineroc footage (14:43). End credits (14:54).
This film, produced by Donald A. Gazzaniga, was distributed by Ramsgate Films of Santa Monica, CA. Star Trek licensed model rockets made their debut with Estes in 1975. Cineroc 8mm rubber-band powered camera systems were produced from 1970-1975. They enabled model rocket enthusiasts to expose and mail away 40 second rolls of 8mm film for development.
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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 www.PeriscopeFilm.com