Culture Vulture Quiz – The Rock and Oscar

the-oscars-logoThe Oscars are tonight.  In honor of that, here is a Culture Vulture Quiz to explore the connection between the Oscars and Little Rock (with a few other Arkansas connected films thrown in).  In honor of the 86th Oscars, here are 86 questions; hopefully it won’t take as long to complete as it will to watch the entire ceremony tonight.

To get more in the mood for movies, be sure and visit the Old State House Museum for their Lights! Camera! Arkansas! exhibit and visit screenings at the CALS Ron Robinson Theater.

Answers will be published tomorrow. Email your guesses to lrculturevulture@aol.com.

1.  Which Oscar winner gave future Oscar winner Mary Steenburgen her first break in the movies?
A – Woody Allen
B – James Cagney
C – Jack Nicholson
D – Jason Robards

Ben in Tree2.  In which category was The Hanging Tree (which starred Little Rock native Ben Piazza) nominated for an Oscar?
A – Cinematography (Color)
B – Film Editing
C – Song
D – Sound

3.  Which former Little Rock resident won an Honorary Oscar in 1958?
A – Julie Adams
B – Gilbert “Broncho Billy” Anderson
C – Jay C. Flippen
D – Dick Powell

4.  The Oscar winning documentary short “Nine from Little Rock” was narrated by which member of the Little Rock Nine?
A – Minnijean Brown
B – Ernest Green
C – Jefferson Thomas
D – Carlotta Walls

5.  In addition to receiving an Oscar for the live action short “The Accountant,” Ray McKinnon has appeared in several Oscar winning films.  In which of these Oscar winners did he NOT appear?
A – Apollo 13
B – The Blind Side
C – Driving Miss Daisy
D – Sling Blade

6.  Arkansas actor Rick Dial acted with many heavyweights during his film career. With which of these Oscar winners did he NOT appear?
A – Michael Caine
B – Chris Cooper
C – Robert Duvall
D – Timothy Hutton

7.  Twice nominated for an Oscar, Arkansan Melinda Dillon is perhaps best known for appearing in which iconic holiday film?
A – A Christmas Story
B – Elf
C – Home Alone
D – It’s a Wonderful Life

8.  How many Oscar nominees and winners starred in The Firm, which was filmed partially in Arkansas?
A – 1
B – 4
C – 5
D – 7

9.  Little Rock Film Festival honorees Harry and Linda Bloodworth Thomason produced the Arkansas-set TV show “Evening Shade.” Which Oscar nominated actor did NOT appear in that show?
A – Charles Durning
B – Hal Holbrook
C – Burt Reynolds
D – Billy Bob Thornton

The_War_Room_FilmPoster10.  The song “Get Back to Little Rock” is featured in the Oscar-nominated documentary The War Room.  Who sang the song in the film?
A – The Groan Ups
B – The Philander Smith Gospel Choir
C – Jason D. Williams
D – Lucinda Williams

11.  Leo Robin and Jule Styne, who wrote the song “Little Girl from Little Rock” each won Oscars.  For which song did Robin win a Best Song Oscar?
A – “Beyond the Blue Horizon”
B – “Blue Hawaii”
C – “Diamonds Are a Girl’s Best Friend”
D – “Thanks for the Memory”

12.  For which song did Styne win a Best Song Oscar?
A – “I Fall in Love Too Easily”
B – “It’s Magic”
C – “Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!”
D – “Three Coins in the Fountain”

13.  Prior to receiving four Academy Award nominations, Beasts of the Southern Wild was a hit at the Little Rock Film Festival.  Quvenzhané Wallis, the film’s star, made Oscar history by becoming the youngest Best Actress nominee.  How old was she?
A – 7
B – 9
C – 11
D – 13

14.  The late Bob Ginnaven was a Little Rock adman and actor.  In addition to Steel Magnolias, in which Oscar- nominated film, did he also appear with Dolly Parton?
A – The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas
B – Nine to Five
C – Rhinestone
D – Straight Talk

15.  Little Rock native George Newbern (and Arkansas Arts Center Children’s Theatre alum) has twice appeared on film as the son-in-law of which Oscar winning actress?
A – Goldie Hawn
B – Diane Keaton
C – Barbra Streisand
D – Dianne Wiest

16.  Little Rock Hall graduate, Arkansas Arts Center Children’s Theatre alum and Pulitzer Prize winning writer David Auburn has written three movies. Which of the following Oscar winners has NOT starred in one of his movies?
A – Adrien Brody
B – Anthony Hopkins
C – Gwyneth Paltrow
D – Christopher Plummer

17.  Which Oscar winner starred in the TV movie Crisis at Central High?
A – Jessica Lange
B – Vanessa Redgrave
C – Jessica Tandy
D – Joanne Woodward

18. The Oscar nominated film The Story of Dr. Wassell starred Gary Cooper as World War II hero and Little Rock native Dr. Corydon M. Wassell (who was related to two Little Rock mayors).  It was directed by which Oscar winner?
A – Cecil B. DeMille
B – Howard Hawks
C – Billy Wilder
D – William Wyler

ark rep19.  Which Oscar winning actress appeared on stage at the Arkansas Repertory Theatre?
A – Kathy Bates
B – Mercedes McCambridge
C – Sissy Spacek
D – Hilary Swank

20.  Which film starring former Little Rock resident Dick Powell won 5 Oscars?
A – The Bad and the Beautiful
B – 42nd Street
C – Golddiggers of 1933
D – A Midsummer Night’s Dream

21.  Scenes from A Soldier’s Story were filmed at Lamar Porter Field in Little Rock.  Which of the following Oscar winning or nominated actors did not appear in that movie?
A – Adolph Caesar
B – Morgan Freeman
C – Howard E. Rollins Jr.
D – Denzel Washington

22.  Which movie filmed in Arkansas boasted an Oscar winner and Oscar nominee as well as a future Oscar winner and future Oscar nominee among its cast?
A – Bloody Mama
B – Shotgun Stories
C – White Lightning
D – The White River Kid

23.  Ted Danson, Emmy winning actor and co-owner of Little Rock restaurant South on Main, appeared in which Oscar winning film?
A – Black Hawk Down
B – The Hurt Looker
C – Saving Private Ryan
D – Zero Dark Thirty

24.  In addition to Mary Steenburgen, Central Arkansas-filmed End of the Line boasted several award winning (and future award winning) actors.  Which of the following cast members has not, to date, been nominated for an Oscar?
A – Kevin Bacon
B – Bob Balaban
C – Barbara Barrie
D – Holly Hunter

25.  Oscar nominated Michael Shannon has appeared in each of the movies to date directed by Little Rock native Jeff Nichols. Several other Oscar winners and nominees have appeared in Nichols’ films. Which of the following have not yet appeared in a Jeff Nichols production?
A – Jessica Chastain
B – Matthew McConaughey
C – Amy Ryan
D – Reese Witherspoon

26. Oscar winner Gregory Peck appeared on the silver screen as which political candidate with a Little Rock connection?
A – Orval Faubus
B – Douglas MacArthur
C – Joseph Taylor Robinson
D – Winthrop Rockefeller

27. Arkansan Jason Moore directed a recent Broadway revival of Steel Magnolias. Which Oscar nominated actress from the 1970s appeared in it?
A – Jill Clayburgh
B – Melinda Dillon
C – Barbara Harris
D – Marsha Mason

28. Arkansas native John Grisham was an early supporter of the Oxford American. Many of his novels have been turned into feature films. In addition to The Firm, which other Grisham-based film, has earned an actor an Oscar nomination?
A – The Chamber
B – The Client
C – The Pelican Brief
D – A Time to Kill

Mayor J V Satterfield escorting actress Maureen O'Hara at the Movie Ball (photo from Arkansas Democrat)

Mayor J V Satterfield escorting actress Maureen O’Hara at the Movie Ball (photo from Arkansas Democrat)

29. Shortly after appearing in Little Rock for an event around the opening of Robinson Auditorium, Maureen O’Hara filmed which Best Picture Oscar winner?
A – How Green Was My Valley
B – The Lost Weekend
C – Mrs. Miniver
D – Rebecca

30. Oscar winner Lisa Blount made a name for herself in An Officer and a Gentleman. Which of her costars won an Oscar for appearing in that film?
A – Richard Gere
B – Louis Gossett, Jr.
C – Robert Loggia
D – Debra Winger

31. Carol Channing, who played “Little Girl from Little Rock” Lorelei Lee on stage, received an Oscar nomination for which movie?
A – Hello, Dolly!
B – Mame
C – Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band
D – Thoroughly Modern Millie

32. Which multiple Oscar nominee has been a featured speaker at the Clinton School?
A – Ed Harris
B – John Lithgow
C – Sigourney Weaver
D – Debra Winger

33. South Pacific‘s heroine, Nellie Forbush, is from Little Rock. The film was nominated for three Oscars, receiving a win in one of the categories. In which of the following categories was the film NOT nominated?
A – Cinematography, Color
B – Film Editing
C – Scoring of a Motion Picture
D – Sound

34. Delight native Glenn Campbell, who recently gave his farewell Little Rock performance at Robinson Center Music Hall, co-starred with which actor who received an Oscar for that performance?
A – Lee Marvin
B – George C. Scott
C – Rod Steiger
D – John Wayne

35. Oscar winner Shirley Jones is appearing with Celebrity Attractions in Central Arkansas next season and has appeared previously with the Arkansas Symphony Orchestra. For which film did she win her Oscar?
A – Beyond the Poseidon Adventure
B – Carousel
C – Elmer Gantry
D – The Music Man

36. The Arkansas Rep production of Les Miserables runs from March 5 through April 6.  Last year a film version of this classic musical received 8 nominations. How many Oscars did it win?
A – Zero
B – Three
C – Five
D – Seven

lrff_mp_hdr_logo37. The Little Rock Film Festival honored Arkansas native Hal Needham in 2011. He received Scientific and Technical Oscar in 1987 and an Honorary Oscar in 2013. Which of the following Oscar winners did NOT appear in a movie directed by Needham?
A – Sally Field
B – Jack Lemmon
C – Shirley MacLaine
D – Frank Sinatra

38. John Corigliano will be featured with the Arkansas Symphony Orchestra in the 2014-2015 season. For which film did he win an Oscar?
A – Altered States
B – Amadeus
C – The Red Violin
D – Reds

39. In the 1990s, Wildwood Park for the Arts featured several performers who have also been subjects of Oscar winning films. Which of the following Oscar winning or nominated movies is about someone who performed at Wildwood?
A – Coal Miner’s Daughter
B – Dreamgirls
C – Sweet Dreams
D – What’s Love Got to Do with It?

40. As a young actor, which future Oscar nominee performed scenes from Shakespeare on the stage of Little Rock Central auditorium as part of a national tour?
A – Alan Alda
B – Ed Harris
C – Hal Holbrook
D – Ian McKellen

41. Nominated for tonight’s Oscars for the song from Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom, Bono and The Edge performed in the rain at the opening of the Clinton Presidential Center. For which film were they previously Oscar nominated?
A – The Devil Wears Prada
B – Gangs of New York
C – Lara Croft: Tomb Raider
D – Short Cuts

42. Dave Brubeck performed at Wildwood several times. Which 2013 Oscar winner featured music by Brubeck?
A – Argo
B – Django Unchained
C – Silver Linings Playbook
D – Zero Dark Thirty

43. Which Oscar winner appeared in Little Rock for a fundraiser for the Arkansas Repertory Theatre?
A – Julie Andrews
B – Holly Hunter
C – Kevin Kline
D – Gregory Peck

44. Political writer Joe Klein appeared at the third Arkansas Literary Festival. His novel Primary Colors (published with the author name “Anonymous”) was made into an Oscar nominated movie. Which of the following stars of the movie has not won an Oscar?
A – Kathy Bates
B – Emma Thompson
C – Billy Bob Thornton
D – John Travolta

45. Which Little Rock actor has served as an Oscar co-host?
A – Gil Gerard
B – Ben Piazza
C – Dick Powell
D – Mary Steenburgen

ASO_2-color46. Which Oscar winner and Oscar host has performed with the Arkansas Symphony Orchestra?
A – Whoopi Goldberg
B – Goldie Hawn
C – Shirley MacLaine
D – Liza Minnelli

47. Which Oscar nominated or winning actor, who has been acclaimed for his portrayal of Abraham Lincoln, appeared at the Clinton School in 2009?
A – Daniel Day-Lewis
B – Hal Holbrook
C – Gregory Peck
D – Sam Waterston

48. The works of former Little Rock resident and acclaimed composer William Grant Still have been featured in many movies. Which Oscar winning screwball comedy featured the music of Still?
A – The Awful Truth
B – It Happened One Night
C – The Philadelphia Story
D – You Can’t Take It with You

49. Which writer, whose writings have inspired two Oscar nominated movies, has been featured in Little Rock-based Oxford American?
A – Dee Brown
B – James Goldman
C – William Goldman
D – Charles Portis

50. In which movie did Oscar winner Mary Steenburgen NOT appear with back-to-back Oscar winner Jason Robards?
A – Melvin and Howard
B – Parenthood
C – Philadelphia
D – Time After Time

51. What happened to Oscar winner Elia Kazan in Little Rock?
A – He was born
B – He graduated from college
C – He was married
D – He became a father

52. Oscar nominated actor Roy Scheider died in Little Rock. In the 1970s, he received two Oscar nominations. In addition to a nod for The French Connection, for which other film did he receive a nomination?
A – All that Jazz
B – Jaws
C – Klute
D – Marathon Man

53. Paris, Ark. native and UCA alum James Bridges was an acclaimed director and screenwriter. In addition to receiving an Oscar nomination for writing The Paper Chase (which earned a Supporting Actor Oscar for John Houseman), for which other project did Bridges receive an Oscar nomination?
A – Bright Lights, Big City
B – The China Syndrome
C – September 30, 1955
D – Urban Cowboy

54. Bill Clinton is one-fourth of the way to EGOT status.  Which award has he received?
A – Emmy
B – Grammy
C – Oscar
D – Tony

55. Brinkley native Louis Jordan’s song “Stone Cold Dead in the Market” appears in which Oscar winning movie?
A – Apocalypse Now
B – Raging Bull
C – Rocky
D – 10

56. Congressman John Lewis is one of the featured speakers at the 2014 Arkansas Literary Festival. In which Oscar-nominated documentary is Rep. Lewis featured?
A – Eyes on the Prize
B – An Inconvenient Truth
C – Paradise Lost 3
D – The War Room

mavis57. Mavis Staples, who appeared at Little Rock’s Christ Episcopal Church in 2013, can be heard on the soundtrack of which Oscar-winning film?
A – The Color Purple
B – The Help
C – Saturday Night Fever
D – Shaft

58. Arkansas native Tess Harper received an Oscar nomination for her performance in Crimes of the Heart. Which Oscar winning actress did not play one of her cousins in that film?
A – Sally Field
B – Diane Keaton
C – Jessica Lange
D – Sissy Spacek

59.  Little Rock Film Festival honoree Jay Russell is branching out into theatrical producing.  Which Oscar nominated Hitchcock film is the inspiration for his upcoming Broadway production?
A. Psycho
B. Rear Window
C. North by Northwest
D. Vertigo

60. In addition to being married to former Little Rock resident Helen Gurley Brown, David Brown was a movie producer. For which of these Oscar nominated films did he, himself receive an Oscar nomination?
A. Angela’s Ashes
B. Cocoon
C. The Player
D. The Verdict

61. Which Oscar nominated Documentary Feature was honored at the 2013 Little Rock Film Festival?
A. The Act of Killing
B. Dirty Wars
C. The Square
D. 20 Feet from Stardom

62.  Which Oscar winning director helmed The Last Waltz, a documentary which featured Arkansan Levon Helm?
A – William Friedkin
B – George Lucas
C – Martin Scorsese
D – Steven Spielberg

63. John Glenn, who was featured guest at the Museum of Discovery during the Clinton Library opening, was also a character in the Oscar winning film The Right Stuff.  Which actor portrayed him in that film?
A – Tom Hanks
B – Ed Harris
C – Sam Shepard
D – Gary Sinese

64. The work of which fashion icon, whose dresses often adorn Oscar ceremony attendees, was featured at the Clinton Presidential Center in 2013?
A – Christian Dior
B – Alexander McQueen
C – Oscar de la Renta
D – Valentino

65. Little Rock District Judge Vic Fleming appears in the documentary Wordplay. Another person who is featured is which Oscar host?
A – David Letterman
B – Steve Martin
C – Chris Rock
D – Jon Stewart

66. Part-time Little Rock resident Judge Reinhold spoofed an Oscar winning Best Picture as part of his appearance as the iconic “close talker” on Seinfeld. Which movie was it?
A – Braveheart
B – Dances with Wolves
C – Schindler’s List
D – Unforgiven

AST_logo67. This summer the Arkansas Shakespeare Theatre will present Hamlet. The 1948 version of this movie is, to date, the only filmed version of a Shakespeare play to win Best Picture. Which actor won an Oscar for appearing in this movie?
A – Stanley Holloway
B – Laurence Olivier
C – Anthony Quayle
D – Jean Simmons

68. Mary Steenburgen starred in the Oscar nominated film Cross Creek, which was a biopic of the author of which novel?
A – The Exact and Very Strange Truth
B – Old Yeller
C – To Kill a Mockingbird
D – The Yearling

69. On which TV show hosted by an Oscar host, did Governor Bill Clinton appear in 1988?
A – Johnny Carson
B – Chevy Chase
C – Ellen Degeneres
D – Bob Hope

70. Hot Springs native Alan Ladd is perhaps best remembered for essaying the title role in Shane. The film was nominated for six Oscars and received one.  For which category did it win the Oscar?
A – Cinematography, Color
B – Director
C – Screenplay
D – Supporting Actor

71. Edward Everett Horton starred in the first play to be booked into Robinson Auditorium in April 1940. With a long and varied film career, he appeared in many Oscar nominated and winning films. Which of the following Horton films did NOT win an Oscar?
A – The Front Page
B – Here Comes Mr. Jordan
C – It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World
D – Lost Horizon

72. Gordon MacRae was the featured performer at the 1963 opening of the Arkansas Arts Center. Which of his films won two Oscars?
A – Carousel
B – Look for the Silver Lining
C – Oklahoma!
D – The West Point Story

73. Which Oscar nominee appeared in Little Rock in conjunction with Ballet Arkansas?
A – Fred Astaire
B – Mikhail Barishnikov
C – Leslie Browne
D – Natalie Portman

74. The main branch of the Central Arkansas Library System has the names of authors inscribed around the top, one of which is Harper Lee.  Not only was her To Kill a Mockingbird turned into an Oscar winning movie, an actress received an Oscar nomination for portraying Lee in a film.  Which actress?
A – Amy Adams
B – Cate Blanchett
C – Catherine Keener
D – Melissa Leo

75. Charles S. Dutton recently appeared at Philander Smith College’s Bless the Mic series.  In which Oscar nominated sci-fi film was he a performer?
A – Alien
B – Alien 3
C – Terminator
D – Terminator 2: Judgment Day

gilg76. Little Rock Catholic High grad Gil Gerard appeared in which Oscar nominated 1970s disaster film?
A – Airport
B – Airport 75
C – Airport 77
D – Concorde: Airport 79

77. With which two time Oscar winner who was the daughter of an Oscar winner did Ben Piazza twice share the stage?
A – Mia Farrow
B – Jane Fonda
C – Liza Minnelli
D – Sigourney Weaver

78. Little Rock native Frank Bonner guest starred on a variety show hosted by which Oscar winner?
A – George Burns
B – Red Buttons
C – Goldie Hawn
D – Cloris Leachman

79. Which Little Rock museum recently hosted an exhibit on Gone with the Wind?
A – Arkansas Arts Center
B – Clinton Presidential Center
C – Historic Arkansas Museum
D – MacArthur Museum of Arkansas Military History

80. Which Oscar nominated actress was featured in the Disney Channel movie The Ernest Green Story?
A – Diahann Carroll
B – Ruby Dee
C – Cicely Tyson
D – Alfre Woodard

81. Bruno, which starred Joey Lauren Adams was the feature film directorial debut of which Oscar winning performer?
A – Shirley Jones
B – Shirley Knight
C – Shirley MacLaine
D – Shirley Temple

82. Which cast member from the 2000 Best Picture winner had previously acted on local Little Rock stages?
A. Joey Lauren Adams
B. Wes Bentley
C. Matt Besser
D. George Newbern

83.  James Earl Jones has appeared in Central Arkansas several times including with the Arkansas Symphony and at UCA.  For which movie did he receive an Oscar nomination?
A. Coming to America
B. Conan the Barbarian
C. The Empire Strikes Back
D. The Great White Hope

DD-SC-93-0462284. Which multiple Oscar nominated performer was appointed to head a federal agency by President Clinton?
A. Jane Alexander
B. Jane Fonda
C. Peter Fonda
D. Jon Voight

85. Oscar nominated film So This Is Washington focused on which Arkansas duo?
A. Thaddeus and Hattie Caraway
B. Bill and Hillary Clinton
C. Lum and Abner
D. Wilbur Mills and Fanne Fox

86. Ben Piazza’s final feature film appearance was a Darryl F. Zanuck in the film Guilty by Suspicion. Zanuck was a recipient of the Irving Thalberg Award. Which of the following is true about Zanuck?
A – First Thalberg Award recipient
B – Only three time Thalberg Award recipient
C – Only Thalberg recipient to also be the father of a Thalberg recipient
D – Last person to receive a Thalberg who was a previous recipient

Little Rock Look Back: Grand Opening of Robinson Auditorium

auditoriumduskOn February 16, 1940, after three years of planning and construction, the Joseph Taylor Robinson Memorial Auditorium officially opened. It was a cold, rainy night, but those in attendance did not care.

Searchlights painting arcs in the sky greeted attendees. They were borrowed from the Arkansas National Guard. Newspaper accounts noted that only a few of the men who attended were in tuxedos, most were simply in suits. The work to get the building opened had been so harried, that it was discovered there was not an Arkansas Flag to fly in front of the building. Mayor Satterfield found one at the last minute courtesy of the Arkansas Department of the Spanish War Veterans.

The weather delayed arrivals, so the program started fifteen minutes late. Following a performance of Sibelius’ Finlandia by the fledgling Arkansas State Symphony Orchestra, Mayor J. V. Satterfield, Mrs. Joseph T. Robinson, Mrs. Grady Miller (the Senator’s sister-in-law and a member of the Auditorium Commission) and D. Hodson Lewis of the Chamber of Commerce participated in a brief ribbon cutting ceremony. Mrs Robinson cut the ribbon on her second attempt (once again proving that nothing connected with getting the building open was easy).

The ceremony was originally set to be outside of the building but was moved indoors due to the inclement weather. The ribbon cutting took place on the stage with the ribbon stretched out in front of the curtain. The opening remarks were broadcast on radio station KGHI.

Though he had previously discussed how he had voted against the auditorium in 1937 before entering public life, the mayor’s remarks that evening were appropriately gracious, statesmanlike and a testament to the effort he had invested to get it open upon becoming mayor. “We hope you have a very pleasant evening and hope further that it will be the first in a long series which you will enjoy in this, your auditorium.”

Tickets for the event, advertised as being tax exempt, were at four different pricing levels: $2.50, $2.00, $1.50 and $1.00.

The estimated attendance was 1700. Following the ribbon cutting, the main performance took place. The headliner for the grand opening was the San Francisco Opera Ballet accompanied by the new Arkansas State Symphony Orchestra (not related to the current Arkansas Symphony Orchestra). The featured soloist with the ballet was Zoe Dell Lantis who was billed as “The Most Photographed Miss at the San Francisco World’s Fair.”

At the same time that the gala was going on upstairs in the music hall, a high school basketball double-header was taking place in the downstairs convention hall. North Little Rock lost to Beebe in the first game, while the Little Rock High School Tigers upset Pine Bluff in the marquee game.

20140215-172047.jpg

Little Rock Look Back: Basketball Comes to Robinson Auditorium

Entrance to Robinson off Garland Street. Used to attend basketball games.

Entrance to Robinson off Garland Street. Used to attend basketball games.

While Joseph Taylor Robinson Memorial Auditorium is known today as a performance and meeting venue, in its early days it was also the home to sports. Seventy-four years ago tonight the first basketball game was played at Robinson.

One of the first regular activities which took place in the lower level exhibition hall was a series of boxing and wrestling matches.  Building on the success of this, basketball came to the convention hall in January 1940.

A series of games featuring Little Rock High School and North Little Rock High School were announced by Coach Earl Quigley to take place from January 11 through February 16, the official opening day for the facility.

At that time, neither high school had a gymnasium; therefore both schools played their basketball games on their school auditorium stages with fans seated in the audience. The convention hall offered a regulation size floor (made of pecan block parquet) with seating for over 1,300 people along the sidelines and in the balcony.  The first men’s basketball game in Robinson Auditorium took place between the Little Rock High School Tigers and the North Little Rock High School Wildcats on January 11, 1940.

The Tigers lost the game before a crowd estimated to be 1,300.  Earlier in the evening there had been an exhibition between two women’s basketball teams.  The cost for admission to the games was 35 cents for the reserved seating and 25 cents for general admission.

Little Rock Look Back: Woodrow W. Mann

IMG_3231Future Little Rock Mayor Woodrow Wilson Mann was born on November 13, 1916, in Little Rock.

In 1955, he ran as the Democratic nominee for Mayor of Little Rock and defeated two term incumbent Pratt C. Remmel, a Republican.  He took office in January 1956 and immediately set about to make a lot of changes.  In addition to revitalizing the City’s bus system, and removing some color barriers at City Hall, he oversaw the dismantling of the copper dome on top of Little Rock City Hall (as opposed to the repair of the dome championed by Mayor Remmel).

Mayor Mann was caught up in a grand jury investigation into purchasing practices at City Hall as well as within the City government in North Little Rock.  Partially in response to this, Little Rock voters approved a new form of government in late 1956.  Mayor Mann opposed the switch to the City Manager form and refused to set the election for the new officials but was ultimately compelled to do so.

He was also Mayor during the 1957 integration of Little Rock Central High School.  He sought to keep the peace and to broker a deal between President Dwight Eisenhower and Governor Orval Faubus.  His powers within the city were, no doubt, hampered because of his lame duck status as Mayor.  In November 1957 following the election of the new City Board of Directors, he chaired his last City Council meeting and left office.

Because of ill will toward him due to the Central High crisis and grand jury investigation, Mayor Mann felt it would be difficult to maintain his insurance business in Little Rock. He moved to Texas in 1959 and remained there the rest of his life.  He died in Houston on August 6, 2002.

Orval Faubus, Language of Segregation – topic of UALR talk this evening

ualr logoDr. Lisa M. Corrigan, Assistant Professor of Communication and Chair of the Gender Studies Program at the Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences at the University of Arkansas will be the features speaker this evening at the UALR Cooper Honors and Gender Studies Program Lecture.  She will deliver a lecture entitled “Orval Faubus and the Language of Segregation:  Sexualized Violence and Racial Anxiety during the Little Rock Crisis.”

Dr. Corrigan uses the Orval Faubus Collection at the University of Arkansas to examine the rhetorical strategies embraced by the former Arkansas governor during the desegregation of Central High School.  In examining Faubus’ public speeches and private correspondence at the height of the desegregation crisis, her lecture will cover how he sought to control the rhetorical situation in Little Rock and how racial anxiety was articulated as sexual anxiety.

The program will take place at 6pm in the Dickinson Hall Auditorium on the UALR campus.  At 5:30 there will be a reception.

LR Film Fest Presents Reel Civil Rights Film Festival – Gideon’s Army

gideons_slab_540As a part of its year round programming schedule, The Little Rock Film Festival is proud to announce the 2013 Reel Civil Rights Film Festival – in proud partnership with the Little Rock Central High School National Historic Site.

The festival was originally founded by Spirit Trickey, daughter of one of the Little Rock Nine. The dates of the festival are centered around the anniversary of the desegregation crisis at Little Rock Central High that took place on September 25th, 1997.

Little Rock’s importance in American civil rights history makes our city the perfect place to hold the Reel Civil Rights Film Festival,” says LRFF Executive Director Craig Renaud. “The Little Rock Film Festival is proud to help grow the Reel Civil Rights Film Festival into one more reason why Little Rock is becoming the next great Southern City.”

The Reel Civil Rights Film Festival runs from September 26 through September 28.  All films are screened at Historic Arkansas Museum.

Tonight’s film is Gideon’s Army.  It starts at 6pm.  It is a documentary which follows three young, committed Public Defenders who are dedicated to working for the people society would rather forget. Long hours, low pay and staggering caseloads are so common that even the most committed often give up.

In 1961 Clarence Earl Gideon was arrested for stealing soda and a few dollars from a pool hall.  He could not afford an attorney and was convicted after representing himself at trial.  Gideon appealed his conviction to the Supreme Court, which, in a unanimous decision, ruled that the right to counsel in a criminal case is fundamental to the American system of justice. 

More than 12 million people are arrested in the United States each year.  Fifty years after the landmark Gideon v. Wainwright case, most of them will be represented by one of the United States’ 15,000 public defenders.

An official selection of the U.S. Documentary Competition at the 2013 Sundance Film Festival, GIDEON’S ARMY follows a group of idealistic young public defenders in the Deep South, where lawyers face particularly difficult challenges due to high bonds, minimum mandatory sentencing and a culture that is traditionally “tough on crime.”  Directed by fellow attorney Dawn Porter, GIDEON’S ARMY follows two young lawyers as they prepare their cases for trial.

The film premiered on HBO in July.  It has previously been featured at many prestigious film festivals including Sundanace and Tribeca.

Central High Integration 56th Anniversary Event This Evening

centralentranceIt was 56 years ago today that the Little Rock Nine entered Little Rock Central High School and finally started their school year.  Each year this date is commemorated both at Little Rock Central High as well as by the National Park Service through its Little Rock Central High National Historic Site.

In keeping with the anniversary day of the 1957 Little Rock Central High School crisis, the National Park Service will be honoring Little Rock’s own Annie Abrams (who also celebrates a birthday today), a nationally recognized civil rights activist.  She will be lauded for her service to Little Rock and for her dedication to movements around the United States of America.

In the spirit of the work done by activists worldwide fighting for freedom and putting their lives on the line, the Park Service is presenting keynote speaker, Myrlie Evers-Williams. She is the widow of civil rights activist Medgar Evers who was assassinated in the driveway of his home in Mississippi 50 years ago. Evers-Williams will address the accomplishments of her late husband and the work she continues as an agent for social justice.

Tonight at the Kendall Center on the campus of Philander Smith College, Annie Abrams, Reena Denise Evers-Everette (daughter of Medger and Myrlie Evers), and Myrlie Evers-Williams will receive the Soul of Humanity Award, given in recognition of outstanding commitment and service to social justice and lifelong action in the struggle for civil rights.

The program is free and open to the public.  It will take place at 6pm at the Kendall Center on the campus of Philander Smith College.