By Films that get lost over time is as inevitable as losing a Bic pen. However, Bics are disposable; if a film gets lost, it’s a sad thing. Currently, the majority of lost films are from 1894 to 1930, with about 80 percent of films made in that era being lost. The interesting thing about these lost gems is that they turn up in the most unexpected places. Take 2001: A Space Odyssey for instance. Kubrick ended up cutting loads of scenes from the movie before and a few days after the film’s world premiere. But in 2010, 17 minutes of that footage was found in a Kansas salt mine.
Which brings us to Robert Altman and his lost film. You see, before making it big in Hollywood, a lot of directors end up doing industrial and instructional movies to help finance their own projects; Altman did the same. One of the instructional movies he made was titled Modern Football, a 1951 movie aimed at high school athletics teachers and their students. This supposed lost film was picked up in a flea market recently for all of $10. I don’t know about you, but that brings a smile to my face and warmth to my heart.
[via Film Drunk]