Fairly standard newsreel story about the dedication of the Harry S Truman Library. Conspiracy theorists should have fun with the Masonic rituals depicted. Others will find this pretty ordinary.
Ratings: Camp/Humor Value: **. Weirdness: **. Historical Interest: ***. Overall Rating: **.

I have about 60 pages left of David McCullough's biography of Harry Truman, so I am at my peak of interest. I looked at the dedication from the perspective that at this time, retired Presidents had no pensions or Secret Service Protection. Hoover was well off. Earl Warren had been Dewey's VP choice in the hard fought 1948 election. William Knowland, a staunch Republican, was hardly all smiles. Eleanor was no doubt considering how this compared to her husband's library at Hyde Park. On leaving office, Truman believed he was going to build the library on his family homestead, and the site selected- right beside the railroad tracks. Truman had been worried about providing utilities. Truman's brother Vivian was heard to say, "Ain't no use wastin' good farmland on any old dang library."