Margaret Herrick Library

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Margaret Herrick Library
Academy02.jpg
Fairbanks Center for Motion Picture Study, where the library is housed
Margaret Herrick Library
34°03′38″N118°22′36″W / 34.0605°N 118.3767°W / 34.0605; -118.3767
Location333 S. La Cienega Boulevard
Beverly Hills, California, U.S., United States
Type Research library
Established1928
Collection
Items collectedBooks, screenplays, periodicals, photographs, production records, correspondence letters, drawings, and advertising materials [1]
Access and use
Access requirements
  • Core Collection Reading Room – no appointment required
  • Special Collections Reading Room – appointment required
CirculationOn-site use only
Population servedStudents, film historians, and industry professionals [1]
Other information
Budget$24.6 million (2024) [2]
DirectorMatt Severson [3]
Employees70 (2021) [4]
Website oscars.org/library

The Margaret Herrick Library is the main repository of print, graphic and research materials of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). The library contains a digital repository of historical materials, including those relating to the Academy Awards ceremonies. It is located in Beverly Hills, California. [5] [6] The library is governed by the Academy Foundation Board. [7]

Contents

Collection

The Margaret Herrick Library has a diverse collection including screenplays, movie production records, correspondence and other materials pertaining to film studios, production companies, individuals, and professional organizations. [8] The library holds books, screenplays, and files of clippings, posters, photographs, copies of periodicals, costume and production and costume sketches, sheet music and musical scores, and advertising materials, including press books and lobby cards. [9]

History

The original research library (named the Academy Library) was established in 1928, a year after the founding of AMPAS. [7] [10]

In 1936, Margaret Herrick began serving as the head librarian, holding her position until 1943. Dedicated to AMPAS' mission of broadening the film industry's educational and cultural outreach, Herrick was responsible for establishing the library as a world-class research institution. In 1947, Herrick was responsible for the first acquisition of an archival collection: the William Selig collection. [7] In 1952, Herrick negotiated to have the Academy Awards televise their broadcast, which allowed for the awards ceremony and the library to become financially independent from the major Hollywood studios. [7] She was promoted to executive director in 1945, which she served until her retirement in 1971. At her retirement ceremony, the institution was renamed the Margaret Herrick Library. [10] [11]

Since its inception, the Academy library had offices in the Roosevelt Hotel. [7] In 1975, after occupying rented space across the city, the Academy moved its office spaces and its library to a seven-story building in the Beverly Hills business district. However, the library's collection began to outgrow its storage place. A year later, the city of Beverly Hills abandoned its namesake Waterworks building in favor of obtaining its water supply from the Los Angeles Metropolitan Water District. [12]

By 1987, the building had suffered structural damage and was vandalized with graffiti. The building was targeted for demolition by the City Council, but was spared when a Superior Court judge ordered the city to prepare an environmental impact report. Meanwhile, members of the Academy toured the derelict building, and considered it as a potential new site of the library. [13]

In 1988, the Academy and the city of Beverly Hills signed a 55-year lease agreement to renovate the building into a new location for the library, on a rehabilitation budget of $6 million. [12] [14] Frances Offenhauser, an architect, led the restoration project. The open-spaced interior was left almost intact while the vandalism on the building's exterior was removed. [13] In January 1991, the library reopened at its current location, the Fairbanks Center for Motion Picture Study. [15] [16] [17]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 "Library Homepage". Margaret Herrick Library. Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Archived from the original on January 16, 2024. Retrieved May 21, 2024.
  2. ↑ "Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and its affiliates—Consolidated Financial Statements: Years Ended June 30, 2024 and 2023" (PDF). Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. p. 36. Archived (PDF) from the original on January 24, 2025. Retrieved September 23, 2025.
  3. ↑ Philips, Kendall (host) (May 29, 2023). "Paying a Visit to the Margaret Herrick Library". WAER (Podcast). Pop Life. Archived from the original on May 29, 2023. Retrieved May 21, 2024.
  4. ↑ Simon, Lindsey (April 13, 2021). "Lights, Camera, Library: Behind the Scenes at the Motion Picture Academy Archives". I Love Libraries. American Library Association. Archived from the original on April 13, 2021. Retrieved May 21, 2024.
  5. ↑ Lewis, Hilary (February 18, 2015). "Oscars: Who Came Up With the Name "Oscar" and More About the Statuette's History (Video)". The Hollywood Reporter . Retrieved February 3, 2016.
  6. ↑ Osborne, Robert (February 17, 2015). The Origin of Oscar. Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Retrieved February 3, 2016– via YouTube.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 "Margaret Herrick, Film History Trailblazer". Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences . September 22, 2015. Archived from the original on March 21, 2017. Retrieved February 3, 2016.
  8. ↑ "Collections". Margaret Herrick Library. Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Archived from the original on January 16, 2024. Retrieved May 21, 2024.
  9. ↑ "Margaret Herrick Library". Academy Museum of Motion Pictures. Archived from the original on May 21, 2024. Retrieved May 21, 2024.
  10. 1 2 "Margaret Herrick, The Academy's First Librarian". I Love Libraries. American Library Association. November 30, 1999. Archived from the original on March 21, 2017. Retrieved September 23, 2013.
  11. ↑ "The Margaret Herrick Library: Everything To Know Before You Visit". A.frame. Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. May 16, 2022. Archived from the original on February 22, 2024. Retrieved May 21, 2024.
  12. 1 2 "Oscars' Brand-New Library". Chicago Tribune . February 17, 1991. Archived from the original on May 21, 2024. Retrieved May 21, 2024.
  13. 1 2 Garcia, Kenneth J. (January 22, 1991). "Plant Makes Comeback as Film Library". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on January 17, 2024. Retrieved May 21, 2024.
  14. ↑ "Beverly Hills Waterworks Building / Fairbanks Center for Motion Picture Study". Los Angeles Conservancy . July 14, 2020. Archived from the original on November 14, 2020.
  15. ↑ Kinder, Larry Sean (2010). "The Margaret Herrick Library: Library of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences". Community & Junior College Libraries. 16 (4): 264–266. doi:10.1080/02763915.2010.526475. S2CID   62169148.
  16. ↑ "Film Library to Move". Los Angeles Times . August 10, 1990. Archived from the original on May 21, 2024. Retrieved May 21, 2024.
  17. ↑ "Annual Report 1990-1991". Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (1991): 2. 1991.

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