Library in the News: November and December Edition

With the whirlwind of the holiday season come to a close, let’s take a look back at some of the headlines the Library made in November and December.

One of our big announcements was the opening of the Library exhibition “The Civil War in America” on Nov. 12.

The Washington Post chose to highlight a select item – a little-known diary written by a wartime teenager –  for its coverage of the exhibition. “A century and a half later, LeRoy Wiley Gresham’s smudges still mark the page, in a kind of communion with students of his remarkable record of the Civil War, the collapse of the Old South, and the last years of his privileged but afflicted life,” wrote Michael Ruane.

Where Guestbook did a great pictorial feature highlighting Civil War ambrotypes and a look at the Lincoln White House.  And both CNN and The Examiner did website pictorials including such display items as a copy of President Abraham Lincoln’s inaugural address, a copy of Lincoln’s Gettysburg address, a set of children’s tinker toys and a lock of Ulysses S. Grant’s hair.

Martha M. Boltz of the Washington Times wrote about her tour of the exhibition, which had previously been thwarted because of Hurricane Sandy. “The exhibition on the Civil War, with its 200 unique items, is extraordinary and exhaustive … It was wonderful to tour with such a knowledgeable staff of archivists and curators. When one of them would start talking about a given display or artifact and paused for a moment, another would step in and add to it. The depth of knowledge of these dedicated professionals would be hard to find anywhere else.”

The Associated Press looked at the letters and diaries in the exhibition that “offer a new glimpse at the arguments that split the nation 150 years ago and some of the festering debates that survive today.”

Other outlets picking up the AP story included The Denver Post, The Huffington Post, ABC News, USA Today, Fox News, Yahoo! and several local papers in Mississippi, South Carolina, Missouri, Utah, Montana, Nebraska, Washington and Georgia.

In late November, the Library announced it would make available on its website a group of audio recordings featuring interviews from music icons. The audio recordings are part of the Joe Smith Collection of more than 225 recordings of noted artists and executives in the industry. NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams aired a brief segment. And outlets like the Los Angeles Times and examiner.com also ran headlines.

“The interviews are fascinating and worth a break from literary pursuits,” said Dave Rosenthal of the Baltimore Sun.

Speaking of the music industry, the Library announced in December that Carole King would be the recipient of the 2013 Gershwin Prize for Popular Song.

Featuring the announcement were the New York Times, Washington Post, Rolling Stone, playbill.com, UPI, Reuters and the Associated Press. The AP story also ran in outlets including Billboard, the Washington Times, the Miami Herald, the Huffington Post, Salon.com and FoxNews.com. Broadcast affiliates far and wide for ABC, NBC, Fox and CBS also ran brief news segments.

In other entertainment news, the Library, also in December, added 25 new selections to its National Film Registry.

“‘Dirty Harry’ Callahan, Neo, Ralphie and his Red Ryder BB gun and the baseball-playing women of ‘A League of Their Own’ are taking a permanent field trip to the Library of Congress,” wrote Brian Truitt for USA Today, whose story includes brief segments of several of the films.

“One of the greatest productions on the long list of masterpieces produced by NFL Films has been selected for recognition in the National Film Registry of the Library of Congress for its place in American culture,” said Josh Alper for the Pro Football Talk blog on NBC Sports. “They couldn’t have picked a better film than the one the Library of Congress calls the ‘Citizen Kane’ of sports movies to represent football’s enduring importance.”

Many other national and local outlets, including broadcast media, ran stories following the Library’s announcement.

On a final note, Library benefactor David Rubenstein gave the institution $1.5 million to fund three new literacy awards. Brett Zongker of the Associated Press reported the story, which was picked up by a variety of news media throughout the country.

A Gift for President Karzai — and for You

On Thursday evening, a very nice gift was given, and received, in an ornate room at the U.S. Department of State.  Afghan President Hamid Karzai was the recipient – on behalf of several libraries and research institutions in his nation – of a trove of digitized treasures from the Library of Congress and its associated …

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Fear and Desire

I was reading an article the other day on the possibility of a prequel to “The Shining” (1980), Stanley Kubrick’s adaptation of the Stephen King novel. Apparently, the project is in its early stages of development but would focus on what happened at the haunted Overlook Hotel before the Torrance family arrived. While I’m not …

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The Registry — and Beyond

The closing days of the year are always exciting here at the Library of Congress, because the Librarian of Congress names the 25 films that are this year’s selections to the National Film Registry, which designates films that are to be preserved for posterity due to their cultural, aesthetic and historical value. But keep in …

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Hey There

If you love Broadway, we have a treat for you.  The Music Division of the Library of Congress has received a collection from the estate of Broadway giant John Raitt, who originated the role of Billy Bigelow in the Rodgers and Hammerstein show “Carousel” and also starred in “The Pajama Game,” “Oklahoma!” and other top …

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“I Am Joaquin” Shall Endure

Today the Librarian of Congress named the 25 films that will comprise the National Film Registry’s entries for the year 2010.  These are films that have cultural, historical or aesthetic significance that warrants their preservation for posterity.  All in all, there are 550 films in the registry. Although there is great variety in this year’s …

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