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Mathematics Goes to the Movies

by Burkard Polster and Marty Ross

Magic Town (1947)

2:55
He (Rip) is working on a new scheme-called it his mathematical miracle how to question 50-100 people, perhaps in one town, and find out exactly how the whole country is thinking.

4:15
RIP: I am still hunting for that short-cut. Mathematical miracle.

5:45
COMPETITOR: You and your mathematical miracles.

8:50
RIP: Grandview, you good old mathematical miracle, here we come.

10:18
RIP: Look at that fellow. I know all about him. He is married. He has 1.7 children. Out of his income he spends 11.2 % in rent, 23.5 for food, 17.2 for clothing.
IKE: Poor guy he is just a series of fractions. He should stop acting like a human being.

14:30
RIP: What a town. You know all we have to do is to put decimal points in the right place and we are done.

17:15
SLOAN: Changes. There goes your mathematical miracle.

44:40
I only hope these figures will be close to Stringer’s.
Don’t worry about that, all you have to do…
I know, I know, put the decimal points in their proper places. There I’ve done it.

1:04:19
One of the headlines: Mathematically perfect community.

1:04:39
typewriter: mathematically perfect town discovered