So as I whittle away at my Friday afternoon over here eagerly awaiting closing time, I came across a YouTube channel which has recently uploaded tons of high quality videos of 1970s television broadcasts of May Day parades and other state holiday celebrations. It’s really rare to find this kind of footage online, at least in such good condition, and is fascinating to watch.
In this one segment below we are treated to a 1974 Soviet May Day Parade, complete with Leonid Brezhnev observing hundreds of gymnasts perform a choreographed dance that is practically as impressive as China’s Olympic opening ceremony shindig in 2008. I am deeply impressed with the stunning production quality of this 1974 broadcast, which for some reason immediately sets off cues of the stylistic approach of the current Kremlin productions, whether it’s Vladislav Surkov setting up Putin for a tiger hunt or hip hop concert, or the daily broadcasts of RussiaToday pretending to be a real news network. The cameras soar back and pan out to display the grandiosity of it all. They dip down low and marching soldiers approach, and zoom back out. Compare for yourselves after the jump… say what you will about Kremlin propaganda then and now – they really put some effort into it.