Film Details

Longtime independent filmmaker Les Blank, who died in April at age 77, was a cultural ethnographer who celebrated regional American food and roots music in a series of acclaimed documentaries. He directed over 40 films in a career that spanned five decades. Tonight, as a tribute, we present his two works that are on the Library of Congress' National Film Registry for being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant." Chulas Fronteras is a spirited snapshot of conjunto or norteño music of the Tex-Mex border and features such performers as Flaco Jiménez and Lydia Mendoza. Garlic… is a flavorful celebration of the “stinking rose,” and features interviews with chefs, fans, and historians.