The Harold B. Lee Library started off Fall Semester 2024 with a new exhibit at its front doors, "Hollywood at BYU."
“We wanted to highlight some of the best things that we have to offer, how actors, ... directors and producers have donated their materials to BYU for our preservation and for future generations to do research with," Brian Wages, history, political science and government librarian, said.
The exhibit's materials include papers, promotional materials, letters and personal films from Hollywood's golden age.
“It doesn’t always make obvious sense why BYU would have some of these, but we have shown that we have an interest in bringing these materials here of that part of history that documents classic Hollywood cinema,” Ben Harry, media arts history and audio visual materials archivist, said.
However, the library exhibit is merely a small fraction of all of the Hollywood memorabilia BYU has access to.
“One of the Hollywood history treasures we have in Special Collections are the musical scores and hand notations that Max Steiner did for ‘Gone With the Wind,’ ‘King Kong’ and ‘Casablanca,’” Harry said.
All of these artifacts are available for library goers to see. The "Hollywood at BYU" exhibit is meant to introduce viewers to BYU's Special Collections, as well as inspire them to mindfully consume media.
“One of the things we wanted to highlight was the shared experience of film going and film experiencing, that shared experience is something that can’t be replicated in any other way,” Wages said.
This shared experience is possible just a couple floors below the exhibit through the library's monthly film series.
The "Hollywood at BYU' exhibit will be available to visit on the third floor of the HBLL, every day from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. until spring 2025.