It's a big day around here.
As we just talked about with Tom Costello.
Today's the day that 9 news has
been on the air for 70 years,
70 years. And as we celebrate this Milestone,
9 news reporter Noel Brennan wanted
to go back to the beginning to see
what stories he could rediscover from
decades ago that involved a trip to
a warehouse and a dust filled journey
digging through 16 millimeter film.
Should I just try to find the like,
the earliest date and start there?
1969 all these are so dusty from
this palette. 1975 all the way
74 to here is channel 9 stuff.
Any journalist that's pretty cool
hunting for a good story look at
how dusty this is has to be willing
to do the kind of digging, I think.
These are from 69 that gets your hands dirty.
My hands are so dirty.
It's been a while since anyone from
9 news has been to this warehouse.
Holy Cow, home to our stations
entire 16 millimeter film archive.
See what we got in here.
Reels from the Fifties,
60s and 70s,
untouched and unseen for decades.
Looks like snow in a park.
As Nine News celebrates 70 years on the air.
I'm on a treasure hunt through history.
This is 1965 to pick out.
A few old reels of film,
black and white and rediscover stories
told by journalists who came before
police in Oregon are investigating
reports of a man claiming to be from
outer space who supposedly urged 20
people to sell their possessions
and prepare to leave Earth.
Most reels are labeled by date,
but they're not exactly organized.
Now I just feel like we've made a mess.
The coolest fine for me is July 21st,
1969, the day after the lunar landing,
the only way to really know what's on a real.
Well, I can tell you there is
footage on here
is to take a look. So
what I'm doing right now is just
adjusting the little gates here so that
they can accommodate 16 millimeter.
I have no clue how to use
fancy film transfer equipment.
It's so much fun.
It it's a it's a transformer really,
but David does just swap
between all the various modes.
And get it going.
The tech at Rocky Mountain
Audio video productions.
It's magic helps take us back in time by
digitizing film this is the flood of 1965.
It is stunningly clear.
We see the aftermath of a
disaster and a dog rescue.
Oh, he's a big one.
And he then cut to a moment in history
and a man we all recognize. Ohh wow.
Doctor Martin Luther King Junior during
the Selma to Montgomery marches in 1965.
Here he is.
Here's Martin Luther King Junior Nine
News made the trip to follow Colorado
leaders marching with Doctor King.
That's it. How cool is that?
Reels reveal milestones.
Literally.
CSU students are putting in the Mile
High marker on the Capitol steps in 1969.
Somewhere in Denver,
rowdy teenagers are caught in the spotlight.
They also get the attention of Denver police.
The Port St Brain will be the
first commercial sized nuclear
plant in the United States. To
a reporter shows a now defunct
nuclear power plant in Weld County.
At the height of construction.
The lowering process itself
took all day to complete
when safety harnesses
apparently weren't a thing.
This is Channel 9 News team
reporter Stuart Jacoby.
Coverage the day after the lunar
landing doesn't show the moon.
He's sitting the same way.
I am just the Mayor of Denver.
I'm watching TV. All these moments,
the construction 9 news captured
years ago, captivate me.
I wonder who this woman is.
They also leave mysteries left to unravel.
If someone is willing to
keep digging, I don't
even know where to start.
That is incredible.
All of that old video you just
saw came from just three small
reels of 16 millimeter film.
Those old stories and old dug
up have led to some new ones.
So it is really exciting that we're
going to be able to share some of
those new stories in the weeks ahead.