Gilbert K. Chesterton publishes his masterpiece.

Strengthening of cinema with the introduction of sound. In the decade of the 30s the language of cinema takes a leap forward as an artistic language by itself. The strength, intense credibility and deep humanity of his scripts, direction, interpretations, as well as photography and staging are the preface of what will come in the next decade. The Public Enemy (1931), Shanghai Express (1932), Design for Living (1933), Treasure Island (1934), Captains Courageous (1937), are just a few examples.

It begins to apply -officially in 1934- the “Motion Picture Production Code”, known as the Hays code. The code, voluntarily promoted and assumed by the same producers, took shape in a document that gathered the moral limits and principles commonly rooted in the society of their time, serving as a guide against potential excesses, in order not to go beyond the limits of the that was considered correct, acceptable and tasteful.

It was not a reformist reaction to dialogues or rude contents, but a materialization of a way of understanding life, much deeper and rooted in people and with a much more noble and far-reaching purpose; the conservation of the life meaning and lifestyle.

Unlike the ridiculous and interested interpretations of critics and snobs, it was far from being a code that shaped the cinema creating an artificial vision of life, but, logically, it was the opposite: it added on and developped -perhaps unconsciously -the language of cinema as never before (neither after), the human strength of their stories, their timelessness and especially their authenticity, when polishing, limiting and avoiding leftovers, distractions or abuses, as well as avoiding their kidnapping as an ideological tool for the satisfaction and benefit of social reformists, pedants, critics and politicians. Otherwise, its quality and realism would have been hopeless burdened. Although, obviously, this will appear paradoxical -or unacceptable- in the eyes of those who can not -or wish not to- understand it.

Leopold Stokowski records with the Philadelphia Orchestra his transcriptions of works by J.S. Bach, including the magnificent Chaconne.

The English thinker and writer Gilbert Keith Chesterton publishes his autobiography completing his work in this way and leaving a legacy of insurmountable clarity, humanity and truth.

The RMS Queen Mary liner makes its maiden voyage, thus initiating the long career of what would be the benchmark of elegant, comfortable and rational travel style for more than three decades.

Walt Disney produces two of the most outstanding works in the history of art, animation and cinematography, which would be followed by other masterpieces such as Pinocchio, Fantasia, Bambi, Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, etc.

Pan American introduces to its transoceanic lines (Pacific and Atlantic) the magnificent Boeing 314 Clipper improving and expanding the service already offered until then. Along with Imperial Clipper’s Short Empire Clipper, it was a paradigm of rational, comfortable and safe long-range travel.

Films like Ninotchka, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, Intermezzo, Stagecoach, Wuthering Heights, Gone with the Wind among so many, portray the unattainable peak of an era of great quality in their productions, combining first-class artistic sense, spontaneity and authenticity, elegance, and -surprising as it may seem from our current perspective-humility, shining therefore with its own light far above its own creators and original objetives.

Production, direction, scripts, performances, staging … nothing was left without being exceptional. The Ghost and Mrs. Muir (1947), The Maltese Falcon (1941), Waterloo Bridge (1940), The Big Sleep (1946), Laura (1944), Brief Encounter (1945), To Be or Not to Be (1942), Johnny Eager (1942), Odd Man Out (1947), High Wall (1947), The Curse of the Cat People (1944), La belle et la bête (1946) they are only a very small sample of works where the sense, beauty, feeling, philosophy of life and humanity, drama and ingenuity, staging and “genuineness” are the product of a talent, virtues and personality which rest unexplained under the light of a society as the current, intoxicated of relativism and blinded by the pursuit of efficiency and selfish and immediate benefit (not always economic).

In between two decades, 1930s and 1940s, it was also the golden decade of Frank Capra, director of exceptional masterpieces imbued with the essence of a bygone era that one would say was able to find -intimately and perhaps unconsciously- the secret of life: from It Happened One Night (1934) to It’s a Wonderful Life (1946), through masterpieces like Meet John Doe (1941), Mr. Deeds Goes to Town (1936), Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939), Arsenic and Old Lace (1944) or You Can’t Take it With You (1938).

In 1940, the Metro Goldwyn Mayer, hand in hand with Hanna & Barbera, starts the cartoon series Tom & Jerry. Starting the first and best period that would last until 1958. Fun, tender and endearing, the attention to detail put into these drawings goes far beyond commercial production.

Carl Barks takes over the Donald Duck comics, starting with “Donald Duck finds Pirate Gold” and producing during the following three decades about 500 stories full of realism, humanity, ingenuity and ideals, overflowing the barrier of time and the theoretical purpose of a children’s entertainment.

Norman Rockwell represented, as few have, the principles that distinguished the society of that time, throughout his career since the 20s and for more than four decades. In 1943 he created the series Four Freedoms, based on the ideals of Franklin D. Roosevelt.

Who would be for many the greatest opera diva of the twentieth century begins her career in Rovigo, followed by her debut at La Scala in Milan in 1946, which definitively would brought her to fame.

Edgar P. Jacobs creates the comic characters Blake & amp; Mortimer. Series that brought some of the best albums of the genre, created under an intense artistic conception, they are full of atmosphere, ingenuity, realism, and humanity, describing a real world, dramatic and at the same time truely elegant and orderly, based on solid convictions, faced to his eternal threats.

Jaguar produces one of its most emblematic models and the first produced completely after the war. Designed as a prototype, due to the interest raised Jaguar decided to produce it in series. Manufactured from 1948 to 1954 with a maximum speed close to 200 km/h, it was -and still is- one of the most beautiful and elegant sport cars.

Edgar P. Jacobs finishes his masterpiece, together with The Mystery of the Great Pyramid. Exciting, mysterious and full of drama and authenticity, it boasts perfect narrative, staging and characterization. An authentic masterpiece, never surpassed.

Walt Disney inaugurates Disneyland, in California, the new amusement park based on its creations and divided into different thematic areas:

To all who come to this happy place; welcome. Disneyland is your land. Here age relives fond memories of the past…and here youth may savor the challenge and promise of the future. Disneyland is dedicated to the ideals, the dreams and the hard facts that have created America…with the hope that it will be a source of joy and inspiration to all the world.