Harold Ramis, Dan Akroyd, Bill Murray, Ernie Hudson “Ghostbusters” 1984 Photo Courtesy Columbia Pictures / The Hollywood Archive
Ivan Reitman’s 1984 horror comedy “Ghostbusters,” starring Bill Murray and Dan Aykroyd has been included in the National Film Registry for 2015.
Reitman states, according to Variety, “Making ‘Ghostbusters’ was one of the great joys of my life,” “It’s an honor to know that a movie that begins with a ghost in a library, now has a spot on the shelves of the Library of Congress. It’s humbling to be part of a collection of extraordinary films that I have loved all my life.”
“L.A. Confidential,” “Shawshank Redemption” and “Top Gun” are also among the 25 films that the Library of Congress’ named to its National Film Registry for 2015.
One of the earliest film recordings and the oldest surviving copyrighted motion picture, which was produced by Thomas Edison’s team of inventors is also on the list of significant films. Recorded in 1894, “The Sneeze” became synonymous with the invention of movies.
Acting Librarian of Congress David Mao announced on Wednesday the annual selection of 25 motion pictures to be named to the National Film Registry of the Library of Congress. These films, which epitomize the diversity and richness of the nation’s cinematic heritage, have been identified as motion pictures that deserve to be preserved because of their cultural, historic or aesthetic importance.
Mao stated, “Selecting a film for the National Film Registry recognizes its importance to cinema and America’s cultural and artistic history. The registry is an invaluable way to advance public awareness of the richness, creativity and variety of our nation’s film heritage.”
According to the rules, the films must be at least 10 years old. The Librarian makes the annual registry selections after conferring with the members of the National Film Preservation Board (NFPB) and Library film staff, as well as considering thousands of public nominations. The public is urged to nominate titles for next year’s registry at the NFPB’s website.
The films named to the registry include Hollywood blockbusters, documentaries, silent movies, animation, shorts, independent and experimental motion pictures. This year’s selections, spanning the period 1894-1997, bring the number of films in the registry to 675, which is a small fraction of the Library’s vast moving-image collection of 1.3 million items.
Films Selected for the 2015 National Film Registry
Being There (1979)
Black and Tan (1929)
Dracula (Spanish language version) (1931)
Dream of a Rarebit Fiend (1906)
Eadweard Muybridge, Zoopraxographer (1975)
Edison Kinetoscopic Record of a Sneeze (1894)
A Fool There Was (1915)
Ghostbusters (1984)
Hail the Conquering Hero (1944)
Humoresque (1920)
Imitation of Life (1959)
The Inner World of Aphasia (1968)
John Henry and the Inky-Poo (1946)
L.A. Confidential (1997)
The Mark of Zorro (1920)
The Old Mill (1937)
Our Daily Bread (1934)
Portrait of Jason (1967)
Seconds (1966)
The Shawshank Redemption (1994)
Sink or Swim (1990)
The Story of Menstruation (1946)
Symbiopsychotaxiplasm: Take One (1968)
Top Gun (1986)
Winchester ’73 (1950)
Established by the National Film Preservation Act of 1988, the National Film Preservation Board works to ensure the survival, conservation and increased public availability of America’s film heritage, including: advising the Librarian on its recommendations for annual selections to the National Film Registry, apprising the Librarian of changing trends and policies in the field of film preservation, and counseling the Librarian on ongoing implementation of the National Film Preservation Plan.
For more about the National Film Preservation Board visit the NFPB official website.