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Reviews
The Inheritance (1964)
labor documentary describes immigrant roots
This documentary was made for the Amalgamated Clothing Workers (ACWA) as part of their 50th anniversary celebration. The union was formed in the early 1900s by immigrant workers--Jewish, Italian, Eastern European, etc. The movie documents their early efforts to win a union, the events of the Depression and the New Deal, World War II. It ends with the 1963 civil rights march on Washington, linking the struggles of the union with those of the civil rights movement. Millard Lampell made the move (he had been blacklisted.) Y.A. "Yip" Harburg (over the rainbow) wrote some original music. The copies out there are mostly circulating in beat-up copies of copies of VCR tapes. Excellent documentary, using a lot of Brechtian montage. Someone really needs to restore this movie. I show it to my graduate students. Dr. James H. Williams
One of the Hollywood Ten (2000)
Good Companion to Salt of the Earth
Saw this film on TV. Came in about half-way. I met Juan and Virginia Chacon when I was organizing steelworkers in the southwest. I also met Francis Williams (no relation) an African-American cultural worker who played an important role in developing the script. yes, the movie is didactic and preachy--but so is Salt of the Earth. Unless you are Pauline Kael, you can't help but be moved by it.
I show Salt of the Earth to my students and I wonder how I can get a copy of this film to show them as well?
James H. Williams, PhD Department of Social Work Savannah State University Savannah, GA 31404