Blue and Gray on the silver screen
Lincoln Presidential Library presents evening of Civil War movies Oct. 8, from ‘Gone with the Wind’ to ‘Lincoln’
 

[October 07, 2015]  SPRINGFIELD -- The Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum will look back at 100 years of movies about the Civil War on Oct. 8 with a free event exploring Hollywood’s evolving messages about the war.

Historian Mark DePue will trace that evolution with film clips featuring stars like Vivien Leigh, John Wayne, Clint Eastwood, Denzel Washington, even Elvis Presley and Marilyn Monroe.

The doors open at 6 p.m. Visitors can tour parts of the museum before the presentation begins at 6:30 at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Museum, 212 N. Sixth Street, Springfield. Reserve your seat by visiting www.presidentlincoln.illinois.gov  and clicking “special event reservations.”

Movies have told stories about the Civil War practically from the film industry’s birth. They include epics like “Gone with the Wind, war stories like “Gettysburg,” comedies like “The General” and westerns like “The Horse Soldiers.”

But the movies’ attitudes have changed dramatically over the decades.

For years Hollywood presented a largely pro-Southern version of the war, reflecting the “Lost Cause” interpretation so prevalent in post-war history and literature. “Birth of a Nation” and “Gone with the Wind” both reflected this view. Today, movies like “Glory” and “Lincoln” present a much different view of the war.

The Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum – now celebrating its 10th anniversary – is home to an unparalleled collection of Lincoln documents, photographs, artifacts and art. The museum combines scholarship with showmanship to immerse visitors in Lincoln’s life and times.

For more about the library and museum, visit www.presidentlincoln.illinois.gov.

[Chris Wills, Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum]