Simba: The King of the Beasts

The Martin and Osa Johnson "expedition" documentary Simba seldom lets facts get in the way of a good story. Made under the auspices of the American Museum of Natural History, the film purports to be an authentic filmed record of the Johnsons' most recent foray into Africa. The title, it says here, is the native word for "lion," of which there are plenty in the picture. The film's highlight shows the intrepid Mrs. Osa Johnson bringing down a charging rhinoceros with one well-aimed shot. But the reusage of Simba footage in the Johnsons' 1932 documentary Congorilla reveals that the rhino was merely scared away by the gunfire -- a classic example of how the truth can be "adjusted" with the help of a clever editor.