Educational Media Reviews Online

“In the eyes of the world, first in space means first, period. Second in space is second in everything.”—Lyndon B. Johnson, 1957.

On October 4, 1957, the Soviet Union launched a rocket that would lift into orbit, a small metal sphere with four antennas attached. Sputnik became the first man-made object to be placed into orbit around the Earth.

The Sputnik mission was achieved in complete secrecy and it took the world by complete surprise. In the United States it began a panic that set off an arms race between the U.S. and the Soviet Union, and escalated the Cold War as tensions mounted around the globe.

This documentary film, based on the book Sputnik: The Shock of the Century by Paul Dickson, combines contemporary film footage, interviews with persons related to some of the key players in the events and a narrative that tells the story of the race for space, the Cold War and international politics, as well as the emotions and feelings of average citizens, to show the impact of this one event.

Using archival films, some only recently de-classified, along with stock footage of 1950s U.S. life, commercials, and TV programs, Fever of ’57 tells an interesting story of the 18 month period that followed October 4, 1957. The launch of Sputnik created surprise, shock, and enthusiasm around the World as all eyes turned skyward in wonder at what this orbiting object meant to life as it was known in post-war modern culture.

People everywhere became interested in space. Space travel and exploration came into the minds of millions. With it too, came the realization that space could become the next battlefield, or at the least, the next place, from which destruction would appear. These 18 months saw the beginning of a nuclear arms race, increased fear of mass death, and the wounding of national pride in America, and in the Soviet Union as the chain-reaction events of 1957-58 became focused on this seemingly simple event.

This film captures the spirit of these events, showing not only the main theme, but also showing it in context with society at the time. It is both a history of early space programs and a documentary on life in the ‘50s, when post-war prosperity became mixed with feelings of mistrust and fear caused by technology, political ambitions, and other factors.

Interviews with a number of people, including: Dr. Sergei Khrushchev, the son of then Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev and Susan Eisenhower, granddaughter of then President Dwight D. Eisenhower, provide insight into the high-level politics of the struggle between the West and Communism as affected by the Sputnik launch. The speakers tell how both sides wrestled with the reality of entering a new age, and its accompanying potential.

Contemporary television broadcasts, “man-on-the-street” interviews, and footage of American life in the 1950s; Congressional assemblies, White House press conferences, and Soviet political footage makes this film very interesting for anyone to watch. The film covers: Sputnik development and launching, U.S. and World reactions, the American response (attempts to “catch up,” with the Soviets), nuclear arms attrition (there were more nuclear tests during 1958, than in any other year—about one blast every three days), Cold War politics, air-raid system development, and other facets of this domino-effect, series of events.

The film also explores some contrasts of the period. American civil rights issues were reaching their height around the same time that Sputnik was circling the Earth and the Soviets drew attention to this in their Cold War rhetoric. Footage of the imposed integration of public schools in Arkansas is shown in comparison to Soviet propaganda of Americans to be worthy of destruction or “liberation” by the people.

Fever of ’57 offers a chronology of 18 months that will amaze viewers, showing the almost daily events as they happened, many of which seem unrelated, but which are in fact, building upon one another to accelerate the world to the brink of destruction. Civil Defense programs, fallout shelters, military escalation, political struggles, and public fear are mixed in with public interest in space, people creating fashions out of space-related symbols, and American prosperity during the post-war era.

Another essential point of this film is the documenting of the views of President Eisenhower and Soviet Premier Khrushchev as they worked through this critical period in history. Both men were previously high-level officers in the military and both played an important role in World War II. As such, both had an extreme aversion to committing resources to a costly, but wasteful arms race, as well as the common sense to express their views on the futility of such an escalation of panic-ridden reactions. Both leaders worked in their respective countries to push for more peaceful and realistic resolutions, as well as to create genuine security for their people, and their efforts probably averted a global catastrophe. Within a year of Sputnik, the United States and the Soviet Union began seeking assurances with each other to reduce the chance of nuclear holocaust, and defusing the situation.

Within eight months of Sputnik, President Eisenhower established NASA and transferred all efforts for the peaceful development of space to the civilian sector. He also had a successful U.S. satellite launched into orbit that played a message from the President of the United States, wishing peace and prosperity to all. These two acts demonstrated to the World, America’s commitment to peaceful intentions for space.

Note from the publisher’s description of the production product: The Fever of '57 is a DVD set of programs crafted for classroom use, with three 30-minute film segments that can be used back-to-back and designed to be used in conjunction with this companion educational website for Grade 8 - 16 Science, Social Studies and History.”

This film is well made, has a good pace and is full of information on life in the 1950s. Coverage of the Sputnik launch, through the race for space is excellent and features many film clips of never-seen footage. As an educational tool, it is very good, and the producers have developed a companion educational program with classroom resources to complement the work.

Overall the production is one that will interest students, teachers, and adult viewers. For anyone alive in the 1950s, this will bring back memories of this unique period in American, and world history. Fever of ’57 is a highly recommended production. Complete details on the film and teacher/student resources are available on the film’s web site.