The Wanderwells filmed their travels and edited the footage on the fly to present to audiences in towns they visited, raising money in the process to further extend the tour. The race had no defined route and apparently no finish line, as it lasted for the next seven years. In 1922, Nell and Walter set out on a “Million Dollar Wager” race, in which separate teams led by the husband and wife departed from Atlanta on an expedition around the world to see who would be first to visit the most countries, and travel the most miles. Most travel shorts played up the “exotic” otherness of their subjects to sell tickets, and while some of the Wanderwell’s footage utilized the chauvinistic language of the era, they went to great lengths to explore the common humanity and good nature of the people they befriended in their films. Residents of small and mid-sized American towns rarely traveled more than a few miles from home, so this footage offered an irresistible glimpse into faraway kingdoms and civilizations. Explorers set out in automobiles, ships and airplanes, rushing to document and share their views of far-flung peoples. Travelogue films were an extremely profitable genre in the 1920s. However, the “peace through education and disarmament” campaign transitioned into a more manageable mission: Embarking on a globe trek and sharing footage of their travels with paying audiences along the way. The Wanderwells initially envisioned the Work Around the World Education Club as a volunteer international police force that would monitor countries for signs of military buildup, to prevent a repeat of the atrocities and death of World War I. After a brief courtship, the couple married in Birmingham, AL, in 1918 and set out on their worldwide adventure. Nell Miller (pictured above at left) was born in 1896 outside of Seattle, WA, and worked as a Broadway chorus girl before meeting Walter in 1918. A Polish expat, Walter was born sometime around 1895 as Valerian Johannes Pieczynski. Walter’s charismatic appeal and infectious personality frequently landed him in trouble, but he mostly emerged unscathed. To raise money to keep the expedition going, Walter, a charismatic salesman and something of a rogue, sold tickets to screenings of their travelogue footage where he and Nell spoke of their adventures to rapt crowds. Walter Wanderwell co-founded the Work Around the World Educational Club with his wife Nell in 1919 in an effort to promote world peace after the Great War. The Wanderwell Expeditions: Worldwide adventure, seduction, and murder in the Age of Exploration
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