Descriptive Summary
Important Information for Users of the Collection
Biography
Collection Scope and Content Summary
Indexing Terms
Descriptive Summary
Title: Academy War Film Library files
Date (inclusive): 1938-1950
Date (bulk): 1941-1945
Collection number: 1258
Creator:
Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences
Extent:
3 linear feet of papers.
Repository:
Margaret Herrick Library. Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
Languages:
English
Important Information for Users of the Collection
Access
Available by appointment only.
Publication rights
Property rights to the physical object belong to the Margaret Herrick Library. Researchers are
responsible for obtaining all necessary rights, licenses, or permissions from the appropriate companies
or individuals before quoting from or publishing materials obtained from the library.
Preferred Citation
Academy War Film Library files, Margaret Herrick Library, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and
Sciences.
Acquisition Information
Collected by the library in the 1940s
Biography
The Academy War Film Library is a collection of motion picture films and associated papers gathered by
the Academy library during World War II. Those involved include librarian and executive secretary
Margaret Gledhill (later Margaret Herrick), executive secretary Donald Gledhill, and librarian Grace
Gaunt. The project was made possible through the cooperation of the Academy, the motion picture industry,
and the governments of the United Nations. The Academy library acquired more than 400 films produced by
the governments of Canada, Great Britain, Russia, and the United States, among others. The Academy
located the films, prepared catalogs, held special screenings for Academy members and studio employees,
and referred requests for footage to the government. Film topics included air raids, civilian defense,
mobilization, rationing, training, the role of women in industrialization and the armed forces, and war
bond campaigns. Today, the Academy Film Archive houses the more than 230 associated film prints that
survive in the War Film Collection.
Collection Scope and Content Summary
The Academy War Film Library files span the years 1938-1950 (bulk 1941-1945) and encompass 3 linear
feet. The collection consists of files with clippings, correspondence, and other material on war films
produced in Australia, Belgium, Canada, China, Great Britain, Russia, and the United States. Of interest
are an address to the National Board of Review by Canadian Film Commander John Grierson, files on British
Information Services, and material on the United Nations Information Office, including films on the
United Nations. There is correspondence with numerous U.S. Government agencies, including the Office of
War Information (OWI), Treasury Department, and the Office of Censorship. The OWI List of U.S. War
Information Films is of interest. There are miscellaneous files regarding the War Film Catalog produced
by the Academy listing films; film receipts and bookings; and miscellaneous correspondence regarding
films borrowed for screenings. One file includes correspondence from Negro Marches On, Inc. and a
pressbook for its upcoming motion picture WE'VE COME A LONG, LONG WAY (1944). The correspondence includes letters to Frank
Capra, John Ford, John Huston, Garson Kanin, Walter Wanger, and Darryl F. Zanuck. Also included are letters from Garson Kanin,
Julian Lesser, Gregg Toland, and Walter Wanger. Notable is a letter from Gregg Toland to Donald Gledhill requesting a 16mm
sound projector to view a "confidential" film prior to its release which turned out to be John Ford's THE BATTLE OF MIDWAY
(1942).
Arrangement
Arranged in the following series: Not arranged in series.
Indexing Terms
Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences