PRESERVING HISTORY AND PHOEBE CATES' BREASTS, TOO: Library of Congress Announces 2005 National Film Registry Selections

Librarian of Congress James Billington announced the institution's annual selection of 25 motion pictures to be added to the National Film Registry, bringing the total number of films placed on the preservation list to 425.

This year, films include the Gene Hackman vehicle The French Connection (1971), the groundbreaking Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1982), The Rocky Horror Picture Show (1975), the 1994 documentary Hoop Dreams, and the holiday classic Miracle on 34th Street.

The listing also adds several historical works for preservation, including the surviving footage from the 1910 boxing title fight between Jim Jeffries and Jack Johnson, the first African-American heavyweight champion.

Under the terms of the National Film Preservation Act (NFPA), the Librarian of Congress must name 25 "culturally, historically or aesthetically" significant motion pictures to the Registry each year.

NFPA legislation reauthorized the National Film Preservation Board, increased funding authorizations for the private sector National Film Preservation Foundation, and amended Section 108(h) of U.S. Copyright Law, so that for works in their final 20 years of copyright, libraries and archives now may make these works accessible for research and education if the works are not already commercially available.

For each title named to the registry, the Library of Congress works to ensure that the film is preserved for all time, either through the Library's massive motion picture preservation program or through collaborative ventures with other archives, motion picture studios and independent filmmakers. The Library of Congress contains the largest collections of film and television in the world, from the earliest surviving copyrighted motion picture to the latest feature releases.

For more information, visit the National Film Preservation Board website.

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FILMS SELECTED TO THE NATIONAL FILM REGISTRY LIBRARY OF CONGRESS - 2005

1)  Baby Face (1933)
2) The Buffalo Creek Flood: An Act of Man  (1975)
3)  The Cameraman (1928)
4)  Commandment Keeper Church, Beaufort (SC), May 1940
5)  Cool Hand Luke (1967)
6)  Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1982)
7)  The French Connection (1971)
8)  Giant (1956)
9)  H2O (1929)
10) Hands Up (1926)
11) Hoop Dreams (1994)
12) House of Usher (1960)
13) Imitation of Life (1934)
14) Jeffries-Johnson World's Championship Boxing Contest (1910)
15) Making of an American (1920)
16) Miracle on 34th Street (1947)
17) Mom and Dad (1944)
18) The Music Man (1962)
19) Power of the Press (1928)
20) A Raisin in the Sun (1961)
21) The Rocky Horror Picture Show (1975)
22) San Francisco Earthquake and Fire April 18, 1906
23) The Sting (1973)
24) A Time for Burning (1966)
25) Toy Story (1995)