The Margaret Herrick Library, located in

Beverly Hills Beverly Hills is a city located in Los Angeles County, California. A notable and historic suburb of Greater Los Angeles, it is in a wealthy area immediately southwest of the Hollywood Hills, approximately northwest of downtown Los Angeles. ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

, is the main repository of print, graphic and research materials of the

Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS, often pronounced ; also known as simply the Academy or the Motion Picture Academy) is a professional honorary organization with the stated goal of advancing the arts and sciences of motion ...

(AMPAS). The library contains a digital repository and has historical materials that include those relating to the

Oscars The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

awards show.

Collection

The library has in excess of 1,000 collections including original film scripts, movie production records, correspondence and other materials pertaining to movie studios, production companies, individuals, and professional organizations. The library also collects and maintains

oral histories Oral history is the collection and study of historical information about individuals, families, important events, or everyday life using audiotapes, videotapes, or transcriptions of planned interviews. These interviews are conducted with people wh ...

of the industry.

History

The original research library was created in 1928, a year after the founding of AMPAS. It is funded by the Academy Foundation, which is AMPAS' educational division. It one of the biggest film research libraries in the world, holding in excess of 32,000 books, 80,000 screenplays, and 300,000 files of clippings. Other materials at the library are 35,000 posters, 10 million photographs, copies of 2,400 periodicals, costume and production and costume sketches, sheet music and musical scores, and advertising materials, including press books and lobby cards. There are also artifacts such as Academy Award statuettes. The library is governed by the Academy's Board of Governors. In 1947, Herrick was responsible for the first acquisition of an archival collection: the

William Selig William Nicholas Selig (March 14, 1864 – July 15, 1948) was a pioneer of the American motion picture industry. In 1896 he created one of the first film production companies, Selig Polyscope Company of Chicago. Selig produced a string of co ...

collection. In 1953, Herrick worked to have the

broadcast on television, which allowed the award ceremony and the library to become financially independent of the studios, upon which the show and library had been previously wholly reliant. AMPAS' research library was renamed for

Margaret Herrick Margaret Florence Herrick (September 27, 1902June 21, 1976), also known professionally as Margaret Gledhill, was an American librarian and the Executive Director of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. In 1971, the Academy's library w ...

, who served as AMPAS librarian from 1936 to 1943 before becoming executive director from 1945 to 1971, upon her retirement in 1971. Dedicated to AMPAS' mission of broadening the film industry's educational and cultural outreach, Herrick was responsible for establishing the library as a world-class research institution. In its inception, the Academy library had offices in the Roosevelt Hotel. The library moved to its current building, a former waterworks, in

in 1991.
Beverly Hills Waterworks Building / Fairbanks Center for Motion Picture Study
'. In: laconservancy.org, date 14 July 2020.

References

External links

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Margaret Herrick Library Digital Collections
{{Authority control Buildings and structures in Beverly Hills, California Libraries in Los Angeles County, California Film archives in the United States Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Photo archives in the United States Cinema of Southern California Film organizations in the United States Organizations established in 1928 1928 establishments in California

Collection

History

See also

References

Further reading

External links