Rare clip of Johor in the 1930s going viral

JOHOR BARu: Johor’s rich history is being rekindled, thanks to an age-old video clip going viral over social media.

The eight-minute clip, believed to have been made some 80 years ago, was part of a travel documentary series titled Fitzpatrick Traveltalks. It was shown to American and British audiences by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc, a US media company founded in 1924.

Called Singapore and Jahore, the clip begins with footage of the Singapore port before showing the Causeway, which was completed in 1923, and scenes of Johor Baru.

One scene shows Sungai Segget with a small boat along its banks, with the Johor Baru High Court building and Masjid Sultan Abu Bakar visible.

The clip also shows two of Johor’s past rulers – Almarhum Sultan Ismail Ibni Almarhum Sultan Ibrahim, the then Tunku Mahkota Johor, who was driving a vintage car before greeting the show’s host just outside Istana Besar. The host is then seen meeting Johor’s second Ruler Almarhum Sultan Ibrahim Ibni Almarhum Sultan Abu Bakar together with the Johor Military Force.

The clip was uploaded by Persatuan Bangsa Johor on its Facebook page where it received more than 8,000 views.

Local historian Kamdi Kamil urged the people, mainly the younger generation, to view the clip to learn about the state’s rich history.

“To have such a major international production company depicting Johor Baru proves that the city was already well-known to foreigners back in the early days,” he added.