Enshrined Forever
This DVD and teacher's guide by Dame Betty Rose is the culmination of more than 60 years of incredible scholarship. The story of the making of Enshrined Forever is astonishing, and Betty's dedication to the project is daunting. We are blessed to count her as one of us.
I wrote it as a bride in 1941 for a group of friends who met to read papers and to serve luncheon to each other once a year without fail. One time we wrote about our American Presidents. I chose Abraham Lincoln. My grandson Averell Rose, then age eleven, went to Washington with me to make copies of lithographs from the Lincoln Library. Averell is now thirty. It was to be a small inexpensive book - not a lot of books - just one paperback with pictures pasted on the pages.
A friend in the printing business said, "Don't do that! Let me have the lithographs!
We will make them move. We will make a movie for you!"
Suddenly it was a whole new ball game. I was going to need people and costumes, a Director and also permission! Permission to make a movie inside the Lincoln Memorial. I found this to be a problem right away when my professional cameraman and J were politely invited to leave the Jefferson Memorial the first day.
It looked hopeless until the problem was solved through the accident of marriage, you might say. My niece Susan Porter Rose had connections with several well-known politicians in Washington. I said, "Susan, could you get me permission to make a movie inside the Lincoln Memorial?"
"Oh, Betty," she said, "That would take some doing."
I went to bed discouraged. Averell and I were staying with the Roses and around noon the next day Susan surprised me with, "We got permission. You can do it, but you must not talk to anyone nor ask anyone to move out of the way."
We were very careful. The most interesting thing about the whole experience was the expression on the faces of people reading the Gettysburg Address carved in marble on the wall. It was like looking into peoples' souls, all totally unaware they were on camera. There was the tall handsome black man, the Amish girl and two who were obviously teachers.
We have shown the movie several times for small Cleveland audiences -- once at the Church of the Covenant whose Choir and Organist performed the music live as union rules required -- and a few other times locally. Other than that, except for friends, the movie has never been shown.
The splendid new Lincoln Library in Springfield, Illinois has graciously put the movie and the Teachers Guide on their shelves. So now the NSCDA having officially endorsed both can make them accessible in whatever way they think best.
From a letter to Dame Sally Connelly, October 16, 2009
This DVD and teacher's guide by Dame Betty Rose is the culmination of more than 60 years of incredible scholarship. The story of the making of Enshrined Forever is astonishing, and Betty's dedication to the project is daunting. We are blessed to count her as one of us.
I wrote it as a bride in 1941 for a group of friends who met to read papers and to serve luncheon to each other once a year without fail. One time we wrote about our American Presidents. I chose Abraham Lincoln. My grandson Averell Rose, then age eleven, went to Washington with me to make copies of lithographs from the Lincoln Library. Averell is now thirty. It was to be a small inexpensive book - not a lot of books - just one paperback with pictures pasted on the pages.
A friend in the printing business said, "Don't do that! Let me have the lithographs!
We will make them move. We will make a movie for you!"
Suddenly it was a whole new ball game. I was going to need people and costumes, a Director and also permission! Permission to make a movie inside the Lincoln Memorial. I found this to be a problem right away when my professional cameraman and J were politely invited to leave the Jefferson Memorial the first day.
It looked hopeless until the problem was solved through the accident of marriage, you might say. My niece Susan Porter Rose had connections with several well-known politicians in Washington. I said, "Susan, could you get me permission to make a movie inside the Lincoln Memorial?"
"Oh, Betty," she said, "That would take some doing."
I went to bed discouraged. Averell and I were staying with the Roses and around noon the next day Susan surprised me with, "We got permission. You can do it, but you must not talk to anyone nor ask anyone to move out of the way."
We were very careful. The most interesting thing about the whole experience was the expression on the faces of people reading the Gettysburg Address carved in marble on the wall. It was like looking into peoples' souls, all totally unaware they were on camera. There was the tall handsome black man, the Amish girl and two who were obviously teachers.
We have shown the movie several times for small Cleveland audiences -- once at the Church of the Covenant whose Choir and Organist performed the music live as union rules required -- and a few other times locally. Other than that, except for friends, the movie has never been shown.
The splendid new Lincoln Library in Springfield, Illinois has graciously put the movie and the Teachers Guide on their shelves. So now the NSCDA having officially endorsed both can make them accessible in whatever way they think best.
From a letter to Dame Sally Connelly, October 16, 2009
