The Case of the Tremendous Trifle

About this item

Description	Addressed to "the men and women of American industry," the film tells the story of the Allies' targeting a strategic site for bombing in order to halt German industrial production. Introduced as the story of, "One of the thousands of unsung trifles that go into the making of our fighting weapons […] This the biography of one of those fragments, the life and death of a small steel ball." Dramatizations depict the strategic planning and intelligence gathering leading up to the bombing of the ball bearing manufacturers in Schweinfurt, Germany. In the U.S. a refugee of the concentration camps is contributes his knowledge of German industry. In the U.K. a captured German officer who formerly was a salesman for the bearing manufacturers is interrogated. Use of photo reconnaissance and spying is shown to aid in preparation for a precision bombing mission. Actual footage of preparations and execution of daytime bombing raids and combat illustrate the Schweinfurt mission. Concludes with assertions that recent Allied successes in battle could be attributed to the destruction of the bearing factories. Final narration addresses workers in the U.S. suggesting that the small "trifles" that make up industrial production will win the war for the Allies.
Creator	United States Army Signal Corps
Date Issued	1944
Original Format	16mm
Duration	20:01
Color/Black & White	B&W
Sound/Silent	Sound
Nation of Origin	U.S.
Geographic Coverage	Schweinfurt-am-Main, Germany
Temporal Coverage	August 17, 1943 October 14, 1943