The Vietnam War
The application period is now closed.
In partnership with the WETA Productions in Washington, D.C., the American Library Association (ALA) developed a programming kit for The Vietnam War, a film by Ken Burns and Lynn Novick, for public libraries. This kit included a programming guide and a copy of the full 18-hour documentary series on DVD, with public performance rights. This kit helped public libraries participate in a national conversation about one of the most consequential, divisive and controversial events in American history.
Fifty U.S. public libraries were selected through a competitive application process. The opportunity was open to all public libraries in the United States and U.S. territories.
In this immersive ten-part narrative, Ken Burns and Lynn Novick tell the epic story of the Vietnam War as it has never before been told on film. Visceral and immersive, the series explores the human dimensions of the war through revelatory testimony of nearly 80 witnesses from all sides — Americans who fought in the war and others who opposed it, as well as combatants and civilians from North and South Vietnam.
Ten years in the making, The Vietnam War includes rarely seen, digitally re-mastered archival footage from sources around the globe, photographs taken by some of the most celebrated photojournalists of the 20th century, historic television broadcasts, evocative home movies, and secret audio recordings from inside the Kennedy, Johnson and Nixon administrations. The Vietnam War features more than 100 iconic musical recordings from the greatest artists of the era and haunting original music from Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, as well as the Silk Road Ensemble featuring Yo-Yo Ma.
Funding credits: Bank of America; Corporation for Public Broadcasting; PBS; David H. Koch; The Blavatnik Family Foundation; Park Foundation; The Arthur Vining Davis Foundations; The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation; The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation; National Endowment for the Humanities; The Pew Charitable Trusts; Ford Foundation Just Films; Rockefeller Brothers Fund; and Members of The Better Angels Society: Jonathan & Jeannie Lavine, Diane & Hal Brierley, Amy & David Abrams, John & Catherine Debs, Fullerton Family Charitable Fund, The Montrone Family, Lynda & Stewart Resnick, The Golkin Family Foundation, The Lynch Foundation, The Roger & Rosemary Enrico Foundation, Richard S. & Donna L. Strong Foundation, Bonnie & Tom McCloskey, Barbara K. & Cyrus B. Sweet III, The Lavender Butterfly Fund.
Programming Kit Recipients
The 50 public libraries listed below received The Vietnam War, a film by Ken Burns and Lynn Novick programming kit, and implemented related programs in their communities.
Alabama
Irondale Public Library, Irondale
Alaska
Ketchikan Public Library, Ketchikan
Arizona
Chandler Public Library, Chandler
California
Palm Desert Library, Palm Desert
San José Public Library, San Jose
St. Helena Public Library, St. Helena
Colorado
Florida
Highlands County Library System, Avon Park
Georgia
Clayton County Library System, Jonesboro
Iowa
Carnegie-Stout Public Library, Dubuque
Mount Pleasant Public Library, Mount Pleasant
Illinois
Wauconda Area Library, Wauconda
Indiana
Eckhart Public Library, Auburn
Kokomo-Howard County Public Library, Kokomo
Kentucky
Boyle County Public Library, Danville
Louisiana
Terrebonne Parish Library, Houma
Massachusetts
Hingham Public Library, Hingham
Maryland
Enoch Pratt Free Library, Baltimore
Maine
Ellsworth Public Library, Ellsworth
Kennebunk Free Library, Kennebunk
Michigan
Peter White Public Library, Marquette
Minnesota
Thorson Memorial Library, Elbow Lake
Marshall-Lyon County Library, Marshall
Montana
Billings Public Library, Billings
North Carolina
Rowan Public Library, Salisbury
New Hanover County Public Library, Wilmington
Nebraska
New Jersey
Pemberton Community Library, Brown Mills
Princeton Public Library, Princeton
Franklin Township Public Library, Somerset
New Mexico
Octavia Fellin Public Library, Gallup
New York
Liverpool Public Library, Liverpool
Poughkeepsie Public Library District, Poughkeepsie
Oklahoma
Muldrow Public Library – Stanley Tubbs Memorial Library, Muldrow
Oregon
Coos Bay Public Library, Coos Bay
Multnomah County Library, Portland
Pennsylvania
Penn Area Library, Harrison City
Wyomissing Public Library, Wyomissing
Texas
Harris County Public Library, Houston
Midland County Public Library, Midland
Virginia
Central Rappahannock Regional Library, Fredericksburg
Massanutten Regional Library, Harrisonburg
Washington
Whitman County Rural Library, Colfax
Wisconsin
Kenosha Public Library, Kenosha