News feature film/docu

Great interview today with Brian G Andersson! He has been the Commissioner NYC Deparment of records! But not only that, he has as the name reveals, Swedish roots! Brian took us on several exciting stories about New York at the time when Alexander Samuelson came here to New York 1883. How awesome !! New York must have been something that few emigrants were prepared for. A city that consisted of people from all corners of the world. There must have been many Seeds who have never seen an Indian or African. The conversation on the street must have consisted of all possible languages ​​in a wonderful mix. One passed the Castle Garden in Manhattan at the time when Alexander traveled 1883. Ellis Island was only started in 1891.

Mikael Wahlbäck behind the camera.

Shooting in Battery park.

The Statue of Liberty was not built when Alexander sailed into the port on May 6, 1883. It was finished only a few years later. The emigrant control at Castle Garden was a matter of sending emigrants to their final destinations. It was a great risk that you were fooled by some smooth New Yorker that tricked you off your money. Many including Alexander had their final destination enrolled in the Ticket. For Alexander, it was Chicago. But he ended up in Streator located on the way there!

Now we are in San Jose California and will interview Jeff Dean, the designer in Alexanders team, here tomorrow!

Now we are in New York. Alexander and his brother Otto came to New York and had to go through the emigrant control at Castle Garden. To find out more about what New York looked like in the late 19th century, we visited the South Street Seaport Museum. Here we met William Wroka.

William tells of a New York that was very different from what it looks like today. A port full of emigrant ships, ferries, yachts and sailboats. The city had just begun to shoot in height so it must have been an incredible view that met the two young brothers when they sailed into the port of New York! Something that was radically different to little Surte, that they left behind.

A teapot from SS Alaska. The Atlantic Steamer that took Alexander over the Atlantic.

Me together with historian William Wroka.

To get a better picture of New York at this time, take a look at the amazing movie A Trip Through New York City from 1911.

Even though the movie is 23 years after Alexander came, you still get a picture of how it must have been!

Now, both brothers will head west to Chicago. Our journey is also going west but towards California. Here are new interviews waiting!

On Sunday we visited the world of Coca Cola in Atlanta and on Monday morning we got into Coca-Cola’s archive and shot some film. Ted Ryan, Coca-Cola’s director-heritage communications at The Coca-Cola Company, welcomed us and showed us around in a giant archive where everything that we could imagine was filed. From bottles to promotional products. From keychains to historical documents.

Here were all the contracts and patents. Of course, the patent where Samuel’s name stands as the sender is the most interesting. A time document that felt awesome to hold!

Next stop is New York!

From our stay in Daytona Beach, The newspaper writes!

http://www.news-journalonline.com/news/20180415/swedish-filmmaker-visits-daytona-beach-to-document-iconic-coca-cola-bottle

It feels almost unreal to get the opportunity to live at Preston Root’s home. His great grandfather owned The Root Glass Company, the glass mill where the bottle was created. It feels a bit like going around in a movie. Preston has a fantastic accommodation and in the Indiana Jones-inspired park at his home there are several houses. We are of course living in one’s own and there are so many things from Root Glass Company. I have been sitting looking through several old books from the glass mill. Here is also a lot of bottles from the time before the Cola bottle- time at Root Glas Company.

Yesterday we were at the family museum where one of the few bottles from the first serie is kept. The bottle that is the reason for this whole fantastic journey.  Alexander and his team made some bottles to send to the contest that Coca-cola announced. Coca-Cola were looking for a distinct bottle that was hard to copy and that you could recognize in the dark. It felt extremely cool to hold the bottle that otherwise was kept behind the armor glass.

At the museum there were also 2 trains that the family had to travel around the United States. Preston’s grandfather died young in a plane accident so for Preston’s father it was unthinkable to fly. To go by train in your own caravan, furnished as a holiday home on 2 floors, is not to despise!

Read more about Preston Root family museum here!

A whole movie day in the family museum and late food in town.

We are now on our way to Atlanta to visit Coca Cola’s headquarters where Coca Cola’s head of all Coca Cola’s history, Ted Ryan’s welcomes us. The excitement keeps on !!

In Chicago we visited the Swedish American Museum where we met Karin Moen Abercrombie. We interviewed Karin who told us what Chicago looked like when Alexander came to the United States. He never came to Chicago even though Chicago was in his emigrant ticket. But Karin's stories made us understand how the Swedes lived in the United States at that time. Andersonville in Chicago was at that time the Swedish part and Karin tells me that there were more Swedes living in Chicago than Swedes lived in Gothenburg with is the second largest city in Sweden! Incredible!

We also had a walk in the museum that had an exhibition about emigration. A fantastic museum that we Swedes should be proud of. Good advertising for Sweden!

Read more about the museum here!

Andersonville was a cozy part of Chicago that I recommend to visit if one is in the area! Low house that gave sense of history and very fresh and good order and that is where the museum is which is a must visit!

Our trip continues to Daytona Beach where Mr Preston Root takes care of us!

The day before yesterday we were in Terre Haute! This was where the bottle was created! To see how it all was done, we visited the Vigo County Historical Society & Museum. We were received by Susan Tingley! In an amazing house there were environments and objects from this time. Of course there was also a lot about the history of the bottle. Susan was a wonderful entrepreneur. She was building a brand around town. "The birthplace of the Coca-Cola bottle" Something that Surte should think through. Surte has almost the same opportunity!

Read more about Vigo County Historical Society Museum

The city of Terre Haute markets itself with the iconic Coca-Cola bottle, which was created here in this town in 1915.

In those beautiful environments, we did interviews with Marylee Hagan, Executive Director and Susan Tingley, Development Director.

Susan then started searching in the old housing register over town and suddenly we had found a couple of houses where Alexander had lived. Out to the car and on with microphones and away to shoot som film. We also went to the library where Earl Dean and Clyde Edwards took inspiration for the bottle in a reference book.

Leaving Terre Haute felt boring. It was an exciting experience Susan gave us!

Now we are going to Chicago

After a nice movie day in Stretor, Illinois, we drove to Newark, Ohio! It's about 700 kilometers to go and I'm glad we do not have to go by horse and wagon. Steam train would work though!Our hired car was really nice to drive and we had a booked meeting with Pastor William Rauch. William or Bill, as he is called, is in great knowledgeable about Alexander and his life.



Bill's interest in Alexander began in 2000 when Per Göran Kihl from Surte, together with Vivan Almqvist began researching Alexander. Something that later resulted in a report in the Gothenburg newspaper. Alexander belonged to Pastor Bill's parish, and the pastor has therefore been able to dig in the old archives and email me the results. It felt very nice to meet him and get the story on film.

In Newark, we visited Alexanders grave and even his house that still stands. The house or farm was at Alexanders time alone among meadows and fields, but today it is in the middle of a residential area. Time has its tooth! When the Alexander died his son William took over the farm. It is said that Alexander longed after the farm life because of his growth. You can take the boy out of the farm, but you can not take the farm out of the boy "was an explanation of why he bought the farm. For me, who researched Alexanders life during 4 years, it felt unbelievable to come to his grave! It also snowed, which gave the scenery a further dimension!

Our journey continues from New Ark to Terre Haute! Exciting !!!

During our interview at Streator, we were interviewed by The Times! Really nice that there is such an interest in the United States for the subject!

Here you can read more about what the magazine is writing!