Take Two translates the day’s headlines for Southern California, making sense of the news and cultural events that affect our lives. Produced by Southern California Public Radio and broadcast from October 2012 – June 2021. Hosted by A Martinez.
Last week, twenty-five movies were added to the National Film Registry of the Library of Congress. The films were recognized as "cultural, historical or aesthetic cinematic treasures."
The list included familiar titles like "Saving Private Ryan," Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory" and "The Big Lebowski." But it also included some lesser known ones, like the 1976 drama "Please, Don't Bury Me Alive!" ("Por Favor, No Me Entierren Vivo!")
The film was directed by Efraín Gutiérrez and historians consider it the first Chicano feature film.
"Please, Don't Bury Me Alive!" will now be preserved for future generations in the Library of Congress, but it was almost lost to history soon after its release.
Professor Chon Noriega, director of the UCLA Chicano Studies Research Center, and director Efraín Gutiérrez join Take Two to talk about the film, how it was recovered, and its place in American film history.