1975WOMEN'S ISSUES
Episode #105
OBD: 1975-11-18
TRT: 30 min
A film, "The Women of McCaysville" by Charlotte Zwerin about a group of Georgia women who establish their own sewing factory; songs by folk singer Holly Near; and Eleanor Holmes Watson, New York City Commissioner of Human Rights, speaking on "Women and the Recession"
OBD: 1975-11-18
TRT: 30 min
A film, "The Women of McCaysville" by Charlotte Zwerin about a group of Georgia women who establish their own sewing factory; songs by folk singer Holly Near; and Eleanor Holmes Watson, New York City Commissioner of Human Rights, speaking on "Women and the Recession"
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| 01:00:00 0 |
Opening slate with countdown overlay. Woman Alive! Program #5. Air date 11/18-19/75
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| 01:00:11 11.19 |
WNET graphics
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| 01:00:20 20.14 |
Slate. Corporation for Public Broadcasting. Grant from the organization is announced.
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| 01:00:25 25.71 |
Animated show opener with Holly Near's name in a big pink frame.
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| 01:00:43 43.43 |
Holly Near
Feeling Better
(live)
Holly Near a songwriter and women's activist in the 1970's performs a song she wrote, Feeling Better.
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| 01:04:00 240.12 |
An unknown country woman sitting on her porch in a rocking chair speaking into the camera talks about how hard women work and how much farther they go than men.
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| 01:04:39 279.63 |
Inside the McCaysville Industries sewing factory. "The Women of McCaysville Industries" overlay a WS of the Georgia factory with rows of women on industrial sewing machines.
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| 01:04:49 289.03 |
CU a woman sewing at her station. Unseen narrator explains McCaysville industries is small and own and managed by five women who walked out of a Levi Strauss plant in 1966 touching off a long and bitter strike. Their experience at Levi's and other sewing factories is the motivating force behind the management of their own factory.
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| 01:05:00 300.74 |
Various shots including close ups of the women in the sewing factory at work at their sewing machines.
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| 01:05:14 314.75 |
WS of the Levi's plant. Z'in on the tall red "Levi's" sign
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| 01:05:21 321.05 |
Talking head women, Eva Chancey and Bernice Ratcliff talk with unseen interviewer and explain some of the issues at the Levi plant that caused the strike. Levi's brought in new machines that the old hands couldn't run. They brought in new younger women to run them because as Chancey states, they were told, "they could teach new dogs new tricks better than they can teach old dogs new tricks".
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| 01:06:47 407.9 |
CU heavy chain on gate at Levi plant. pan to the tall Levi's sign and the front of the building, "Levi's" on the red awning.
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| 01:07:02 422.65 |
CU Eva Chancey talks about the violence that incurred during the wildcat strike unsanctioned by the ILGWU. The women stayed out without Union support.
Chancey speaks about cherry bombs that were thrown under their tent. |
| 01:07:35 455.75 |
Chancey standing outside with the Levi's sign in background explains how she was found guilty for throwing an RC bottle through a car trying to kill a Scab. However, she states the judge didn't listen, just yawned, and told her come to court dressed "decent" in dresses not pants.
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| 01:08:18 498.17 |
ELS of The Levi's plant as seen through an overpass from the road. Unseen, the narrator explains the strike lasted more than a year and finally an election was held at the plant and the Union was voted out by a large majority.
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| 01:08:25 505.23 |
CU Eva Chancey on her porch states her friends were sorry they didn't vote for the Union.
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| 01:09:01 541.83 |
Exterior McCaysville Industries, a yellow Volkswagen parked outside and other cars and pick ups pull up to the building as women workers arrive everyday even though the owners are unable to give their workers pension and health benefits.
Narrator explains how in the end the women lost the strike but won something more important - they decided to sew for themselves. |
| 01:09:51 591.89 |
Back with Bernice Ratcliff, Manager at McCaysville Industries. She explains that if it weren't for the girls and operators there would be no factory and you have to let them know they're important.
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| 01:10:27 627.48 |
Shots of the women sewers at McCaysville as Eva Chancey unseen explains the workers aren't pushed so hard and the owners work long hours with them.
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| 01:10:52 652.98 |
Chancey walking at her small farm she and her husband own, her second job where they grow most of their own food. She points out her corn field and introduces her hog where they'lll make lard from. She states her income is less than $3,00 0 a YEAR.
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| 01:12:02 722.12 |
Mr. Chancey seen outside his home giving a haircut to a friend (with a cigarette hanging out of his mouth), another means of income. CU of Chancey using 40 year old clippers for the haircut and explains they had saved each other over $1,000 with the clippers.
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| 01:13:41 821.23 |
Women including Chancey and Ratcliff at their sewing machines working hard at McCaysville Industries. CU hand with painted nails pushing fabric through the sewing machine. A pan through the sewing room with women at work as Ratcliff unseen explains if a girl is sick they don't question it, and they can take breaks to the restroom when they need to unquestioned.
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| 01:14:56 896.89 |
Camera rests on a sign on the wall in the workroom "We miss you when you're out....when you're not here someone else has to do your work...Let's Avoid Absenteeism"
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| 01:15:02 902.57 |
CU a hand pushing fabric through a sewing machine needle. Feet working the pedals of a sewing machine.
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| 01:17:01 1021.83 |
Ratcliff smiling talking with unseen interviewer about how she is no longer afraid to talk with people. Shots of her in the workroom, carrying stack of fabrics, women seen at their sewing machines.
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| 01:18:12 1092.1 |
A young woman at her sewing machine, cu of her hands working the machine. Unseen narrator explains that the high quality of their work has brought them a lot of work, the downside of that being that one of their contractors wanted to buy them out by 51% interest in the factory lest the contractor wouldn't bring them any more work.
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| 01:18:27 1107.42 |
Ratcliff and Chancey talk to unseen interviewer about this potential take over of their factory and its impact... They both state that they refused his offer and the potential buyer told the women that he had a better chance of getting a loan to build a bigger factory than they did as women.
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| 01:20:05 1205.1 |
Two of the other women owners of the factory, one woman wearing cat eye glasses the other with curlers in her hair sit around at the factory and talk with the unseen interviewer and each other about the potential sale - all in agreement they would refuse the offer. They all discuss the sale and how they would persevere without it to old age.
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| 01:20:58 1258.88 |
The women owners - cu's of each and their names: Bernice Ratcliff, Lorine Miller, Lucille Clearley, Madelyn Miller, Eva Chancey
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| 01:21:13 1273.89 |
CU hand strumming a banjo, pan up from banjo reveals Chesley Chancey playing and Eva on their porch.
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| 01:21:41 1301.05 |
Next segment.
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| 01:21:45 1305.81 |
Holly Near
Started out Fine
(live)
Holly in the studio sings her tune, Started Out fine, with piano accompaniment
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| 01:23:45 1425.29 |
The word, "Comment" in a gold frame, begins next segment.
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| 01:23:46 1426.88 |
Commentary by African American woman, Eleanor Holmes Watson, New York City Commissioner of human Rights, speaks about women, their job opportunities, and the recession. She states that women can't afford to stay at home due to inflation and high cost of living and they insist the job opportunities reflect their growing needs.
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| 01:25:29 1529.42 |
Holly Near
Water Come Down
(live)
Holly Near accompanied by piano in the studio sings her tune, Water Come Down
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| 01:27:30 1650.56 |
Credits roll over Holly Near singing Water Come Down.
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| 01:29:09 1749.29 |
Grant announced from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.
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| 01:29:14 1754.89 |
PBS graphics
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| 01:29:41 1781 |
End Reel. Woman Alive!
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