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For some reason, I'm watching this on TV
YouTube - Duck And Cover (1951) Bert The Turtle Civil Defense Film
Favorite Lines: "The atomic bomb may burn you worse than a terrible sunburn" and "It's such a big explosion it may smash houses or break windows all over town" The very idea that flopping on the floor and curling into a ball with your hands behind your neck will protect you from a nuclear explosion is just patently absurd. Duck and Cover!
If you haven't already, check out The Atomic Cafe. All sorts of safety videos, military clips, and propaganda about nuclear bombs. It's available on streaming Netflix.
I remember this from when I was considerably younger.
Well... yes and no.
If the thing drops right outside your house, then obviously the table is not going to provide much protection.
The big difference can be made is you are outside the direct blast area, but still close enough that the shockwave will ram into your house. If you are in that area, then dropping on the floor and covering your neck can make a huge difference, because you will not be minced by debris and broken glass.
The people for whom it makes a difference are those a couple of miles to a couple 10s of miles outside the blast zone. Depending on where it drops (assuming near a big city or large piece of infrastructure) that is actually sound advice, and can make a big difference in total number of wounded and casualties.
I vaguely remember "Duck and Cover." But definitely remember the air-raid siren tests...Fridays @10AM, like clockwork