Stories in Action

“From Wharf Rats to Lords of the Docks,” a film about the life and times of controversial labor leader Harry Bridges, airs on PBS stations on September 6 and 7. The film is directed by Haskell Wexler, written by Ian Ruskin, with appearances by Elliot Gould and Edward Asner. Check your local listings for details.

Radio broadcast: “Broadway: Around the World in 30 Blocks,” a radio series about the cultures and cuisines along Sacramento’s most delicious street. The series airs on Capital Public Radio on the second Friday of each month through November 2009 during “Morning Edition.” Learn more about the project, listen to the segments and get recipes.

Television broadcasts:

“Inventing LA: The Chandlers and Their Times,” a Council-funded documentary about the L.A. Times family that transformed Los Angeles, airs nationally on PBS. October 5. Check your local listings. Read an interview with filmmaker Peter Jones in the latest issue of Network here (a downloadable pdf file).

“Going on 13,” a Council-funded documentary exploring the lives of four girls as they pass from childhood to puberty, airs on PBS stations in Sacramento, San Francisco, and San Jose in September. Check your local listings and visit Going on 13 for up-to-date information.

“From Wharf Rats to Lords of the Docks,” a film about the life and times of controversial labor leader Harry Bridges, airs on PBS stations on September 6 and 7. The film is directed by Haskell Wexler, written by Ian Ruskin, with appearances by Elliot Gould and Edward Asner. Check your local listings for details.

“Polk Street: Lives in Transition,” an exhibit of photographs and audio on the changing face of San Francisco’s Polk Street. Through August 25. Good Vibrations Polk Street Gallery, 1620 Polk Street (at Sacramento). More.

The grant guidelines for the 2009 round of funding for the California Documentary Project are now available. Applicants may apply for either a research and development grant or a production grant. The proposal deadline is October 1, 2009. Attend a proposal workshop to learn how to apply for a grant. The California Documentary Project supports film, radio and new media projects that document the California experience and explore issues of significance to Californians. Find out about previously funded projects.

Congratulations to Jim Leach, who was confirmed by the Senate today to be the Chairman of the National Endowment for the Humanities. The Council is NEH’s state partner. During his 30 years in the House of Representatives, Leach founded and was co-chairman of the Congressional Humanities Caucus, which advocates in the House on behalf of the humanities and seeks to raise the profile of humanities nationwide. Leach begins work at NEH next week. We wish him all the best and look forward to working with him in the months ahead.

Need an antidote for the summertime blues? Try the Don’t Knock the Rock festival in Los Angeles, a high-energy mix of film and music that runs every Thursday in July and August at the Silent Move Theater in Hollywood. The festival celebrates the rock ’n’ roll roots of Hollywood with classic and brand-new rock films containing quintessential music performances and live shows by fresh musical talents. Coming up this Thursday, July 2, at 8 pm is the Council-supported film “Chicano Rock,” the lively story of how young Mexican Americans in East Los Angeles created a new musical form — a blend of white rock, black soul and Latin rhythms.
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President Obama has announced that he intends to nominate Jim Leach, a former long-term Republic congressman from Iowa, to be head of the National Endowment for the Humanities. Leach was one of the first Republicans to endorse Obama’s candidacy. He is currently, a visiting professor of Public and International Affairs at the Woodrow Wilson School of Princeton University.

Journalist and oral historian Joey Plaster presents audio stories from 15 people who find their dreams and nightmares on San Francisco’s Polk Street. Come for a sneak preview of stories Plaster is fashioning into an hour-long radio documentary with famed producer Jay Allison. Thursday, June 18, 6:30-7:30 pm, 1217 Polk Street, between Bush and Sutter, San Francisco. More. The exhibit connected to the project – “Polk Street: Lives in Transition,”moves to Good Vibrations Polk Street Gallery on Thursday, June 25 (opening reception 6 to 7:30 pm), and runs there through the end of July. 1620 Polk Street at Sacramento. More.

Learn exciting ways to use the Council’s WeAreCA website at a workshop in Riverside or San Diego. The workshops are sponsored by the California History-Social Science Project and led by expert teachers. Find out more and register.