By 1950, only about 60 per cent of homes in the United States had a telephone. And since one of the best ways to sell a product is by appealing to kids, AT&T created this 18-minute film called Adventure in Telezonia that somehow manages to teach, terrify and sell, all at the same time.
The film was actually distributed to schools as a way to educate school kids on proper phone usage. It came with other ‘educational’ propaganda and even a set of fake telephones so kids could practise and master the art of lifting a handset and saying hello. Who knows, maybe if Palm had taken a similar approach — infiltrating schools with similar educational films about its products — webOS might still be alive and kicking today. [YouTube]