This month, we’ve curated a selection of films to entertain and inspire you through these difficult times. Get to know Julia Child, one of America’s most iconic chefs with: Julia: America’s Favorite Chef. Follow the improbable journey of Charley Pride, legendary country music superstar. Learn about one of America’s greatest choral music directors, Robert Shaw. Get inspired by the stellar performances of four country music outlaws in Highwaymen: Friends Till The End. The Pulitzer Prizes will be announced on May 4 this year and so we’ve made available our film that tells the story of the remarkable man behind the prestigious prizes — Joseph Pulitzer: Voice of the People. Holly Near used music and songwriting to promote social justice. Follow her journey in the film Holly Near: Singing for Our Lives.
The Highwaymen: Friends Till the End
Frequently referred to as “the Mount Rushmore of country music,” The Highwaymen – Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings, Johnny Cash, and Kris Kristofferson – were American country music’s first bona fide supergroup, an epic quartet comprised of the outlaw country genre’s pioneering stars. Produced and directed by four-time Emmy Award-winner Jim Brown (American Masters – Pete Seeger: The Power of Song; Billy Joel: A Matter of Trust), the documentary features vintage performances, and rare, behind-the-scenes footage of life on the road.
Julia! America’s Favorite Chef
She was prone to say things like “Horray” and “Yum, yum.” Her early culinary attempts had been near disasters, but once she learned to cook, her passion for cooking and her devotion to teaching, brought her into the hearts of millions and ultimately made her an American icon. Directed by Marilyn Mellowes.
Charley Pride: I’m Just Me
American Masters – Charley Pride: I’m Just Me traces the improbable journey of Charley Pride, from his humble beginnings as a sharecropper’s son on a cotton farm in segregated Sledge, Mississippi to his career as a Negro American League baseball player and his meteoric rise as a trailblazing country music superstar. Directed by Barbara J. Hall.
Robert Shaw: Man of Many Voices
Narrated by David Hyde Pierce, American Masters: Robert Shaw – Man of Many Voices traces the journey of one of America’s greatest choral music conductors. Renowned for his interpretations of classical music’s choral masterpieces, Robert Shaw (April 30, 1916 – January 25, 1999) had no formal training yet inspired generations of musicians with the power of music. Known as the “dean of American choral singing,” Shaw’s career spanned six decades.
Joseph Pulitzer: Voice of the People
American Masters – Joseph Pulitzer: Voice of the People explores the remarkable man behind the prestigious prizes. A Jewish immigrant from Hungary, Joseph Pulitzer began as a gifted journalist before becoming a successful publisher and businessman. Pulitzer was famous in his own time for his outspoken and cantankerous editorial voice and his newspapers’ striking illustrations, visual style, national circulation and financial success.
Holly Near: Singing for Our Lives
An outspoken political activist and singer-songwriter, Holly Near’s music and life story illustrate how song can have the power to send a clarion call and influence the course of social justice. For the last 40 years, Near has worked on global social justice coalition-building in the women’s and lesbian movements. Holly Near: Singing for Our Lives explores the life and work of this talented performer whose virtuoso vocals and songwriting inspire generations of people working to “bend the arc of justice forward.”