The National Film Registry of the Library of Congress announced Wednesday its annual list of films to be inducted and they range from a beloved musical to a 29-second film from 1898 that may represent the earliest example of African-American intimacy on screen.
The 25 of America’s most influential motion pictures are selected because of their importance to the nation’s film heritage.
This year is also a milestone for the registry.
“The National Film Registry turns 30 this year and for those three decades, we have been recognizing, celebrating and preserving this distinctive medium,” said Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden. “These cinematic treasures must be protected because they document our history, culture, hopes and dreams.”
The selection of films range from Stanley Kubrick’s “The Shining” to “Jurassic Park,” “Brokeback Mountain” and the opulent musical “My Fair Lady. ”
There is also “Something Good – Negro Kiss,” a newly discovered 29-second film that, according to scholars and archivists, was part of American cinema history from the late 19th century.
Cinema was only a few years old in 1898 and distributors, struggling to entice audiences to this new medium, tried to find acceptable “risqué” fare that included a brief run of “kissing” films.
“Something Good” featured vaudeville actors Saint Suttle and Gertie Brown and is the earliest- known surviving Selig Polyscope Company film.
Here is the complete list of the films added to the 2018 National Film Registry:
- “Bad Day at Black Rock” (1955)
- “Broadcast News” (1987)
- “Brokeback Mountain” (2005)
- “Cinderella” (1950)
- “Days of Wine and Roses” (1962)
- “Dixon-Wanamaker Expedition to Crow Agency” (1908)
- “Eve’s Bayou” (1997)
- “The Girl Without a Soul” (1917)
- “Hair Piece: A Film for Nappy-Headed People” (1984)
- “Hearts and Minds” (1974)
- “Hud” (1963)
- “The Informer” (1935)
- “Jurassic Park” (1993)
- “The Lady From Shanghai” (1947)
- “Leave Her to Heaven” (1945)
- “Monterey Pop” (1968)
- “My Fair Lady” (1964)
- “The Navigator” (1924)
- “On the Town” (1949)
- “One-Eyed Jacks” (1961)
- “Pickup on South Street” (1953)
- “Rebecca” (1940)
- “The Shining” (1980)
- “Smoke Signals” (1998)
- “Something Good – Negro Kiss” (1898)
Under the terms of the National Film Preservation Act, each year the librarian of Congress names to the National Film Registry 25 motion pictures that are “culturally, historically or aesthetically” significant. The films must be at least 10 years old.