U-Matic
Eastern Market
Cut-A-Ways
5-17-91
U-Matic S tape containing silent footage of Eastern Market shot on May 17, 1991, followed by footage with sound of the Market's Centennial parade from May 4, 1991 (duplicated in slightly lower quality on tape 2015.008.238).
The tape opens with a shot of an Eaddy's Fresh Fruits-Veg. truck with Jiminy Cricket painted on its side, parked in front of the cow mural above the entrance to Shed 2. From the truck, the camera then pans to face first northwest, then southeast along the sidewalk on the southwest side of Russell Street. Here a workers are stacking and moving boxes for delivery trucks.
The camera then catches a Premiere Produce truck being unloaded. Following another shot of Shed 2's cow mural, the camera follows a Rocky Produce Incorporated truck and a Ben B. Schwartz and Sons truck as they pass on Russell Street.
After a cut in the recording, footage begins from the day of the market's Centennial Parade. First a brief shot shows flower displays in Shed 1, on the south corner of Russell Street and Alfred Street, the camera begins recording audio.
Then after another brief gap in the film, footage of the parade begins. A police motorcycle leads the group, followed by a pair of people carrying an "Eastern Market Centennial Fest" banner. They are followed by a Vietnam Veterans of America color guard, a horse-drawn carriage carrying Grand Marshal Sal Ciaramitaro, members of the Detroit Police Department's Mounted Police, the Detroit Fire Department's Ladder 7, a Detroit Fire Department clown group, and another fire truck. After a cut, a group of dancers on roller skates in matching black suits perform a routine. They are followed by a Detroit Metro Fruit Vendors Association banana cart, a group from the American Legion, another firefighter clown, and another Metro Detroit Fruit Vendors Association cart. MacKenzie High School's Band of Renown follows next. While the band approaches the camera turns to film several spectators. And as the band passes they can be heard performing Whitney Houston's "I'm Your Baby Tonight." They are followed by a 40 and 8 Voiture 1002 float in the form of a truck made up to resemble a blue train engine, pulling a caboose. Signs on the float read "Le Blue Goose," "Voiture 1002, Suburban Wayne County, Michigan, "Vote for Benji in '92," and "Benjamin Harrison Presidential Campaign Reenactment." After the train passes, the camera gets more shots of the crowd. The camera cuts back to the parade as a forklift carrying a crate of watermelons and pulling a cart of produce passes. A sign on the cart reads, "Wholesale Center District Council." Next a group of young people in police uniform--presumably the Detroit Police Department's Junior Cadet Corps--march past. They are followed by another group of young people holding signs with historical information about 1891. Two people in large pig masks march among them. Next from the center of the street, the camera films as the Crestwood High School marching band from Dearborn Heights marches past. A clown and a group of children in matching Alexis Company shirts then perform a cheer for the camera. They are followed by two people in eagle mascot costumes. After more shots of the crowd, a car pulls a small float containing a jazz quartet seated on pallets. The camera then cuts to the Eastern Market Merchant Association float consisting of a giant cake on a trailer pulled by a truck. People in large flower costumes pass next, followed by a float promoting Flower Days. This float consists of a truck pulling a flower cart with a sign providing the dates of flower days. The float is followed by a group of cheerleaders clad in black and red, a group of Boy Scouts, and the Martin Luther King High School marching band performing Sam and Dave's "Hold On, I'm Comin'." After a cut, filming resumes with the Detroit Department of Transportation's mascot dancing past the camera, ahead of a group of Boy Scouts, and Buttercup the clown in a tiny car. A calliope then travels past, playing "You Are My Sunshine," and "When the Saints Go Marching In." After another cut, a clown attempts to hand a bedpan to the driver of a passing Pepsi truck. The parade footage wraps up with shots of the crowd, and announcer Mal Sillars on a platform adjacent to the route.
The recording is on a 3M UCA 30S U-Matic tape with a handwritten label directly on the tape's shell. The tape is housed within a black plastic case with a handwritten City of Detroit Department of Public Information Video Production label on its cover.
Request ImageRelated Records
U-Matic
Eastern Market's 100 Year Birthday Celebration
Eastern Market Cut-A-Ways
5-4-1991
