Here’s part two of the British-Pathe short film that I posted yesterday, showing us London in all its glory in 1950. But is it really showing us the whole story? My friend Marc Myers, Wall Street Journal columnist and author of the excellent, long-running JazzWax blog, pointed out to me that the travelogue carefully avoids showing much of what distinguished London at that time, which was the remaining evidence of the all-too-recent blitz. Whole neighborhoods had been decimated and the reminders of the recent war were likely tip-toed around to present a version of the fairy-tale city, a bastion of tradition, charm and manners. Perhaps debt relief was being sought and the image that the city wanted to portray was one of solvency, growth and resilience. The truth is that the London of those years was still beat up and hurting, with food rationing in effect, and much of the damage far from being repaired. Nonetheless, what a wonderful view of the city this is. And that Rex Harrison! A real pleasure having Henry Higgins narrate. Or, for that matter, Doctor Dolittle…