Oddball Films and curator Kat Shuchter present Learn Your Lesson...About Your Body- Sex, Hygiene and Shockucation, the ninth in a series of programs highlighting the most ridiculous, insane and camptastic shockucational films and TV specials of the collection. This month, we are taking on the growing body, with a healthy dose of puberty, hygiene and sex education. Lather up with the exceedingly creepy Soapy the Germ Fighter (1951) as he teaches you to wash your hair every two weeks and keep germs out of your body. Learn all you need to know about growing up and your health triangle in the groovy musical cartoon Steps Towards Maturity and Growth (1969), brought to you by Upjohn pharmaceuticals and Walt Di$ney Productions. Marlo Thomas joins a slumber party of young girls to gab about their changing bodies and other girl stuff with a groovy, disco infused soundtrack in The Body Human: The Facts for Girls (1980). The Schoolhouse Rock gang pipes in with a little number about feeding The Body Machine (1979). Unleash the freedom of your own body with Nudism: A Way of Life (c. 1950). Plus, we'll take a good hard look at the whole body with a multi-projector live mash-up of nudie cuties, VD PSAs, beefcake reels, anatomy films and the Planned Parenthood sponsored It's Not So Bad (1975). With more corporeal surprises in store, it's time you learned your lesson!
Steps Towards Maturity and Growth (Color, 1969)
Another coming of age cartoon classic brought to you by Walt Di$ney and the Upjohn Pharmaceutical Company. Mostly animated with an animated embryonic cycle and several jazzy musical numbers. It emphasizes the need for an equilateral triangle of physical, mental and social health.
"Being a girl is very special. I know... I remember"
TV's That Girl Marlo Thomas, the mastermind behind Free to be...You and Me, gabs with three young girls about the facts of life, their changing bodies and more awkward topics. With a jammin' slumber party, crowd surfing, chats about Billy Jean King's period and a soundtrack that includes The Bee-Gees, Donna Summer and the Righteous Brothers, The Facts for Girls really delivers!
Even more cartoon musical madness! The Schoolhouse Rock gang take on the digestive system and turning food into fuel for your psychedelic body machine!
An unbiased and unabashed exploration of the nudism movement which first gained popularity in Germany in the early 20th Century. While the narrator claims to be objective, the lingering shots of partially disrobed women seem to indicate otherwise. With a visit to a nudist colony and a housewife in nothing but an apron, you'll learn more about the (female) body than you thought you needed to...
