Tag Archives: Librarian of Congress

Congressman Joaquin Castro Launches National Call for Latino Films to Nominate for National Film Library

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U.S. Congressman Joaquin Castro is working to get more Latino films preserved…

The 48-year-old Mexican American politician, who has represented Texas’s 20th congressional district in the U.S. House of Representatives since 2013, has teamed up with members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus to launch a nationwide call for Latino films to nominate for the National Film Registry.

Joaquin CastroThe U.S.’s preeminent archive of films with cultural, historic or aesthetic significance is essential in preserving cinema. Every year, the Librarian of Congress adds 25 new movies to the registry after reviewing titles nominated by the public and conferring with National Film Preservation Board members and Library film curators.

As of 2023, there are 24 Latino films on the National Film Registry, less than three percent of the 850 movies in the registry.

“Since the earliest days of cinema, Latino actors, writers, directors, and creatives have made extraordinary contributions to American filmmaking,” said Congressman Castro. “As the Library of Congress works to preserve the films that shaped American culture, public nominations will put a spotlight on the Latino-driven films that have sold out theaters and defined generations. As we launch this year’s push for inclusion, I look forward to hearing from folks across America about the Latino films that have made an enduring impact on their lives.”

Most recently, the NFR added: “Cyrano de Bergerac” (1950), starring Puerto Rican actor José Ferrer, the first Latino ever to win an acting Oscar, and “The Ballad of Gregorio Cortez” (1982) with Edward James Olmos. Other notable inclusions are “West Side Story” (1961), “La Bamba” (1987), “Selena” (1997) and “Real Women Have Curves” (2002).

To be eligible, films must be at least 10 years old. To qualify for nominations to the Library of Congress, submissions must be received by August 3.

Some titles the Library of Congress might consider include Guillermo del Toro’s adult-fantasy drama Pan’s Labyrinth (2006), Peter Sollet’s independent New York film Raising Victor Vargas (2002) and Alfonso Cuarón’s coming-of-age masterpiece Y tu mamá también (2002).

Suggestions may be submitted at Congressman Castro’s website.

Lin-Manuel Miranda Introduces “Hamilton” Cast Performance to Mark First Anniversary of January 6th Attack on U.S. Capitol

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Lin-Manuel Miranda is marking the first anniversary of the January 6th attack on the U.S. Capitol through music.

The 41-year-old Puerto Rican Tony Award-winning actor, songwriter, singer, playwright, producer and film director introduced a Hamilton cast performance of Dear Theodosia as part of the congressional events to mark the historic day.

Lin-Manuel Miranda “We should never take our rights and liberties for granted, but we must remain committed to finding a way forward together,” said Miranda, appearing virtually, along with members of the cast.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi cited lyrics from the song: We’ll make it right for you. If we lay a strong enough foundation, we will pass it on to you, and we will give the world to you.

The performance was followed by a discussion with Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden and historians Doris Kearns Goodwin and Jon Meacham, both of whom put the January 6th attack and the current political divisions in context with other moments of American history.

Their words were a bit of a warning. Goodwin said that “in my lifetime, this is the hardest moment for democracy,” while Meacham said that he believes “this is a chapter, not the end of the story. And if it is the end of the story we will have failed as a people that the world will forever condemn.”

But polls show a wide gap in beliefs even over what happened on January 6th, with revisionist takes over its root causes and conspiracy theories over the role of the government. The significance of the day also has been minimized, with one lawmaker comparing the rioters to tourists at the Capitol.

Meacham said that what people have to do is to “use the power of memory as an incentive, not as a bludgeon,” i.e. by presenting the situation as one of being on the right side of history.

“We don’t build statues to people who tear down; we build statues to people who create,” he said.

Goodwin said that she is hopeful that the January 6th Committee will be able to “retell the story” of that date, so that “more people can be persuaded that this cannot happen again.”

López’s “Descargas: Cuban Jam Session in Miniature” Added to National Recording Registry

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The late Cachao López has earned his place in U.S. history five years after his passing at the age of 89…

Descargas: Cuban Jam Session in Miniature, the 1957 work from the Cuba-born Grammy-winning singer who helped popularize mambo in the United States is one of the recordings chosen to be part of the National Recording Registry this year in recognition of their importance to the nation’s aural legacy.

Descargas: Cuban Jam Session in Miniature

Inspired by the all-star jam sessions that Norman Granz organized and recorded for his Jazz at the Philharmonic series, López — a titan of Afro-Cuban music — sought to accomplish something similar with his peers in Havana. He brought musicians into the studio for two early morning sessions, when they were still fully charged up from their evening’s work in nightclubs and ballrooms.

Rather than record Granz’s previous longform jams, the 12 musicians López recruited created 12 short, spontaneous “miniature” pieces, each of which highlighted key instruments and facets of Afro-Cuban music. The resulting fusion seamlessly blended African, European and American influences.

The album has had a lasting impact on Latin music, especially on the salsa style that emerged in the 1960s, and López organized many similar sessions for further albums both in Cuba and in America, where he settled after the Cuban Revolution.

Under the terms of the National Recording Preservation Act of 2000, the Librarian of Congress, with advice from the library’s National Recording Preservation Board and input from the public, each year selects 25 recordings that are least 10 years old and “culturally, historically or aesthetically significant.”

“Congress created the National Recording Registry to celebrate the richness and variety of our audio heritage and to underscore our responsibility for long-term preservation, to assure that legacy can be appreciated and studied for generations,”  Librarian of Congress James H. Billington said in a statement.

The latest selections bring the number of recordings in this preservation hall of fame to 375.