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Includes memo from Wilson Siebert of J. Walter Thompson to David McCall.

Yang Chunlin (b. 1950) is a resident of Caozhuang Village, Shandong Province. In this interview, Yang recalls the days during the Great Famine. The food supply in the village started to run low in 1959. Many villagers could not be buried after they died, because their relatives were too hungry to dig graves for them. In the end of 1961, the village experienced "45 Days of Clearance": the villagers were not allowed to eat any grain. In addition, Yang also talks about several cadres who were very cruel in those years.

Yang Chunyun (b.1930) was born in Baiyun Village, Fengqing Town, Yunnan Province. During the Great Famine, Yang stole grains from the interviewer's great grandfather, who later starved to death; the grandparents of the interviewer never talked to him afterwards. In this interview, Yang remembers his experiences during the Great Famine. While eating at the People's Commune canteen, his household had six children and his old mother (who starved to death). He did all kinds of work in the village, and was sent to a steel mill, where he constructed blast furnace and forged hoes for four years. The filmmaker's description of this interview has been translated into English.

Biographical information. Faculty/Staff: Economics, 2001