History Burgoo

Spring Film Series Kicks Off March 17

Films have become an important part of programming at KHS since March 2010.  Since that time we have screened eight films, which have covered topics from stereotyping the "hillbilly image" to learning more about the "Narco" farm on Leestown Road in Fayette county to the terrible tragedy of the Prestonsburg school bus crash in the 1950's.  All of these films have given us an opportunity to explore Kentucky's culture and history that may not be found in other mediums.  We have also been fortunate to host a few directors for our screenings and this has given our audience an opportunity to talk with the filmmakers firsthand about their knowledge on the topic and their experience making the films.

This March 17 will begin the spring film series at KHS and will continue along the lines of the programming offered in 2010.  Again, we will be featuring independent films made by Kentuckians and about Kentucky topics.  We are also fortunate that we will have multiple directors on hand for the March and April films, a tradition we hope to continue throughout 2011.  Thanks to everyone for their support of this new program and we look forward to a great year of movie watching.

Our first set of screenings will be a group of short films by the youth filmmaking crew of the Appalachian Media Institute (AMI).  Many of these films address social and cultural issues that directly connect with Kentucky culture, from the stereotypes that go along with the eastern Kentucky accent to families coping with loved ones serving in the military overseas.  Provocative, insightful, and sometimes humorous these films are told from the perspective of the young people making them.  In addition to the films being shown, the directors will be in attendance and will participate in an informal question and answer session after the screenings. 

Above image from "Back Home," courtesy AMI.

AMI has been training youth in media literacy since 1988 and they help young people explore how media production skills can be used to ask, and begin to answer, critical questions of themselves and their communities.

In April, KHS will be screening another original documentary, this one on the life and times of former major league baseball player Steve Hamilton. Titled "The Father, The Pitcher, The Hero"  this film, made by several students from Morehead State University, chronicles the late baseball players life, pitching career, and involvement with the Major League Baseball's Players Association. 

      

Our third film, "To Save the Land and People" is a history of the early efforts to stop strip mining in Kentucky.  The documentary, directed by Anne Lewis, also discusses the impact that coal mining has on
Above image, screen shot from "To Save the Land and People," courtesy Appalshop, Inc.

the environment and the community in which it is found.  "To Save the Land and People" is an Appalshop film and more information can be learned from their website, www.appalshop.org. 

All films are free with admission to the Kentucky Historical Society campus and include film screening, entrance to Thomas D. Clark Center exhibitions, as well as free popcorn and soda.  For more information about the film series contact Mike Deetsch at mike.deetsch@ky.gov or 502-564-1792.

Fall Film Series at KHS Begins October 28!

This October KHS will be screening three very unique movies as part of it's film series.  The first film, scheduled to screen October 28, is titled the The Narcotic Farm and is a story about the large federal addiction hospital that sits on Leestown Road in Fayette County just outside of Masterson Station Park.  While the building now serves at a Federal Medical Center, essentially treating those inmates with serious or chronic medical problems, it was first created in the 1930's as a drug treatment center for both federal inmates and volunteers alike.

In November KHS will screen the documentary The Very Worst Thing, written and directed by Michael Crisp, a film about the fatal school bus crash in Prestonsburg, KY in 1958.  The Prestonsburg crash is tied with the Carrollton bus crash of 1988 for the highest number of fatalities (28) resulting from a bus accident.  Director Crisp will be on hand after the screening to answer questions from the public.

December's film, Big Lever: Party Politics in Leslie County, comes right on the heals of the November elections.  This film details President Richard Nixon's first public appearance after he resigned from office.

All fees include admission to the KHS campus, film entry, popcorn and soda.  Admission for The Narcotic Farm and Big Lever is $4 for members and $8 for non-members.  Admission for The Very Worst Thing is $10 for both members and non-members.

The Narcotic Farm

Thursday, Oct. 28, 6:30 p.m.

Narrated and scored by former inmate Wayne Kramer, the film tells the story of this long forgotten American institution through the voices of the former addicts who spent years of their lives locked within its walls.  Many of the photographs and film footage are from the KHS collections.

The Very Worst Thing

Thursday, Nov. 18, 6:30 p.m.

A documentary about the worst school bus crash in United States history, which occurred in Floyd County (Ky.) on the morning of February 28, 1958.  Carrying 48 elementary and high school students, the bus collided with a tow truck on US Highway 23 just 3 miles south of Prestonsburg, then plunged over a steep embankment into the swollen waters of the Big Sandy River.  The director will be available for questions after the film.

Big Lever: Party Politics in Leslie County, Kentucky

Thursday, Dec. 9, 6:30 p.m.

In 1978 Richard Nixon chose this small mountain jurisdiction for his first public appearance since

resigning the Presidency. Priceless footage of his visit introduces this incisive and sometimes hilarious look at the engines that drive American politics. The film explores the machinations of party politics in this rural and staunchly Republican county: Hollow to hollow vote-hunting; family squabbles over candidates; patronage promises; speech-making on the courthouse steps; and the up-and- down career of the incumbent County Judge-Executive who sought re-election while under indictment for vote fraud conspiracy.

For more information about the KHS film series feel free to contact me at mike.deetsch@ky.gov.

--Mike Deetsch

Teaching American History in Berea

Democratic Visions teachers in Berea, KY

Teachers from the Democratic Visions Teaching American History Grant, which the Kentucky Historical Society administers, spent the week of July 18-23 in beautiful Berea, Kentucky learning the art of digital storytelling.

Although a significant amount of time was used to conceptualize, develop, and produce their digital stories, the teachers also participated in two tours of historic Berea.  One, led by D. Karl Raitz from the Univeristy of Kentucky examined the settling and founding of Berea, and the other, led by Dr. Jackie Burnside of Berea College, focused on Berea's African American history.  In addition, guest presenter Mimi Pickering, director of several Appalshop films, led a session on digital storytelling platforms and techniques, and worked one-on-one with the teachers during their production.

The teachers learned and used the PlaceStories digital storytelling platform and Audacity audio editor to create their individual stories.  Despite a number of technical issues that slowed production, the teachers created excellent stories on a number of different topics that were all shown on the final day of the seminar.

This summer institute provided these teachers with yet another important skill to add to their educational toolkit.  Digital storytelling will provide additional ways for them to instruct and motivate their students' learning.

--Tim Talbott

KHS Film Series - Strangers and Kin: A History of the Hillbilly Image

I'm sure that many of you are aware of the stereotypes that are attached to the people of Kentucky.  That we're uneducated.  We don't have any culture.  And that we're all poor.  These are just a few of the descriptions I heard about my home state when I went off to college in Indiana.  No matter what the reason, Kentucky just gets a bum rap.  This topic is exactly what Appalshop filmmaker Herb E. Smith explores in his 1984 documentary "Strangers and Kin: A History of the Hillbilly Image" which will be screened at the Kentucky Historical Society on Thursday, June 10 at 6:30 p.m.  The hour-long documentary uses images from popular and news media sources and interviews to talk about what really is a hillbilly and how did that stereotype get placed on residents of Kentucky, specifically those living in Appalachia. 

What struck me most while watching this film was the concept of progress.  Many of the people interviewed in the documentary said that people living outside of Kentucky view eastern Kentuckians as resistant to progress.  And there is evidence of this outside view throughout the film, as seen in segments of Walter Cronkite's "Depressed Area USA" and Paul Henning's "The Beverly Hillbillies."  

While the film works to help dispel these myths, it also encourages one to think about how and why these myths exist in the first place. Other images and clips throughout the film are at times frustrating and often leave you scratching your head.  In order to help counter these stereotypes there are some funny segments woven throughout the documentary that involve reenactments and dramatic readings.  I won't give away more than this.  You'll just have to come here to watch the movie.

For more information on "Strangers and Kin" or the KHS Film series please visit our website at www.history.ky.gov.

When: Thursday, June 10 at 6:30 p.m.

Where: Thomas D. Clark Center for Kentucky History

Admission: $4 members or $8 non-members; admission fee includes film, refreshments, and admission to KHS campus

--Mike Deetsch

"Stranger with a Camera" with Appalshop filmmaker Elizabeth Barret

The Kentucky Historical Society (KHS) film series will show the Appalshop documentary "Stranger with a Camera" at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, May 13 at the Thomas D. Clark Center for Kentucky History.  Elizabeth Barret, the director, will be at the showing and speak after the screening.

In 1967 Canadian filmmaker Hugh O'Connor was shot and killed by Hobart Ison while filming a
documentary in Jeremiah, KY for the United States Department of Commerce.  Frustrated with the national media painting an inaccurate portrait of his town, Ison wanted to take matters into his own hands.  O'Connor and Ison had not met prior to this encounter. 

This story is the impetus behind the 2000 documentary, "Stranger with a Camera," directed by Leslie County native Barret.  During this hour-long documentary, Barret tells the account of O'Connor's death, the criminal trial of his assassin, and the challenge the media face when attempting to share a community's story.

Among members of the community there were mixed feelings for members of the media and filmmakers like O'Connor.  One resident notes in the film, "They're telling the truth [about the poverty of our community] and someone should know about us."  While another resident counters," You're showing the poverty [and nothing else] and [you] shouldn't be revealing it to others."  Barret has always recognized the complexities of the relationship between the media and the place where she grew up.  As she asks in the film, "Can filmmakers show poverty without shaming the people we portray?  I came to see that there was a complex relationship between social action and social embarrassment."

As a director and filmmaker, Barret is committed to producing and preserving work in media about the history, culture, and social issues of the Appalachian region and rural America.  "Stranger with a Camera," an award-winning documentary, was recognized in 2001 by the American Historical Association for the film's interpretation of history through the medium of film or video.  The film was also an official selection of the 2000 Sundance Film Festival and was broadcast nationally on "P.O.V.," the PBS series that showcased the work of America's best contemporary-issue independent filmmakers.

Tickets to the film are $4 for KHS members and $8 for the general public.  Admission to "Stranger with a Camera" includes post-film discussion with the filmmaker, popcorn, soda, and entrance to the KHS campus.

--Mike Deetsch