The Radium Girls -Glowing in the Dark
The Radium Girls at work circa: 1920
Glow kits suppied by Manufactures circa: 1930
Synopsis
"The Radium Girls - Glowing in the Dark is about the abuse of low paid mainly young women in the workplace and the subsequent tragic deaths of the watch dial assembly line workers at The United States Radium Company in the 1920's." But this nearly forgotten story follows through to modern day times as well. In the 1970's US Radium factory was torn down to the ground piece by piece, the entire region and city of Orange, New Jersey became contaminated. Now known as Radium City...Another story swept under the rug of time. And what about the usage of Radium in the workplace today?
Do you own a vintage watch from 1890's-1930's? Look at the dial at night, does it glow? If the answer is yes, then it may have been hand painted with liquid or powered Radium that has a half life of 1500 years! Watchmakers of the day and even now are warned about the dials and watch hands that still are radioactive.
The Radium Girls were instructed to wet with their lips their fine bristled brushes that painted the dials and tiny watch hands that were later assembled for many US & Swiss Watch Manufacturers. Radium when contact is made with saliva becomes like calcium and bone structure is effected. With the cases of The Radium Girls, deformation and bone loss was quick but death was not. In the front page trials that dragged on for over a year, US Radium received a slap on the wrist and a payout to each family of $1,800.00. By the time of the settlements all the girls were dead.
The Radium Girls died, the story forgotton and US Radium flourished as well as many Watch Manufacturer's of the day continuing the process of painting not only watch dials and hands but also airplane cockpit gauges, vanity and mantel clocks and even perfume bottles that glowed in the dark with Radium!
With usage and strict safety instructions supplied from Madame Curey herself when she sold her patent to US Radium, most were ignored and it is now believed thousands suffered needless and horrible deaths, not heading the fair warning of The Radium Girls -
-The Story that "TIME" forgot!
John Vizzusi, Filmmaker
Sights & Sounds Films 2009
Contact E-Mail: Centralhsd@earthlink.net
Watch Dial & Hands painter- US Radium 1920
See Profile of Filmmaker
