Hell's Highway: The True Story of Highway Safety Films

This film covers the early history of post World War II educational films, especially those involving traffic safety by the Highway Safety Foundation under direction of Richard Wayman. In the name of promoting safe driving in teenagers, these films became notorious for their gory depiction of accidents to shock their audiences to make their point. The film also covers the role of safety films of this era, their effect on North American teenage culture, the struggle between idealism and lurid exploitation and how they reflected the larger society concerns of the time that adults projected onto their youth.

5.273

91 min

Cast

John P. Butler

as Self

Earle Deems

as Self

John R. Domer

as Self

David Krug

as Self

Eric Krug

as Self

Rick Prelinger

as Self

Mike Vraney

as Self

James Waller

as Self

Bret Wood

as Self

Martin Yant

as Self

Helena Reckitt

as Narrator

Richard Anderson

as Husband (archive footage)

Sonny Bono

as Self (archive footage)

Hans Conried

as Self (archive footage)

Ronald Reagan

as Self (archive footage)

Robert F. Simon

as Rellik (archive footage)

James Stewart

as Narrator (archive footage)

Dick York

as Nick (archive footage)

Director

Bret Wood