Synopsis:

At the height of the McCarthy era, three blacklisted filmmakers set out to do the impossible—make a film independently of the major studios. Salt of the Earth (1954) is the only feature film ever purposely suppressed by the Federal government at every stage of production, from shooting, to editing, to distribution.

Salt of the Earth dramatizes the true story of a strike by the predominantly Chicano zinc miners of southwest New Mexico who are protesting unsafe work conditions and unequal wages compared to their white counterparts. When an injunction stops the men from protesting, the

traditional gender roles are reversed, and women find themselves on the picket lines while the men stay at home. Now over 70 years old, Salt of the Earth feels surprisingly contemporary in addressing issues of racial, economic, and gender inequality.

The story of the making of Salt of the Earth is as compelling as the movie itself. Nina Kleinberg relates the struggles of the film makers to produce and distribute the film and the efforts of the government and the Hollywood establishment to stop it. Throw in HUAC, the FBI, Howard

Hughes, and Grandpa Walton, and you have a story that needs to be told.

In 1992, the Library of Congress selected the film for preservation in the United States National Film Registry for being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant." Join us and find out why.

Presenter:

Many of you may remember Nina Kleinberg from her presentation here at the library in 2024 about the making of the film Casablanca.

Nina’s passion for film began in the late sixties. She attended the University of Southern California for graduate studies in cinema and worked in the film industry for about ten years before moving to Massachusetts for a new career. She realized as she attended movies with new

friends that she was seeing films in a completely different way than they were. So began the series she called "Film School 101.” They’d gather at a friend’s house, watch a film, share a potluck, and then she would give a presentation on how the film was made. Amherst Cinema

heard about her talks and invited her to present them for their audience. Since then, she has given many talks on film-making, film history, and film politics to both the Amherst audience and at universities and other wide-ranging locations.

SPECIAL SCHEDULE for Monday, Feb. 12:

1:00 pm - 2:45 pm: Showing of the actual Salt of the Earth, on the OLL Terrazzo.

Limited to ticket-holders for Salt of the Earth.

2:45 - 4:30 pm: BREAK

4:30 pm: Presentation: The Making of Salt of the Earth followed by Q&A with the Presenter