Objects And Memory

Encore Monday, Sept, 11, 2023 at 11 p.m. on KPBS TV (not in the PBS App)

In recognition of the anniversary of September 11

What things mean the most to us? How do otherwise ordinary items come to symbolize experiences, aspirations and identity? "Objects And Memory" is about the otherwise ordinary things in our homes and museums that mean the most to us because of their associations with people and experiences. The film shows how we preserve the past and speak to the future through objects that have been transformed into irreplaceable conveyers of experience, aspiration, and identity.

Guided by Frank Langella's narration and set to the music of Philip Glass, the film examines items recovered or offered in response to 9/11, the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing, and the Vietnam War, along with stories of people who find them important.

In presenting meaningful physical symbols—those that speak, those that reach out, and those that heal — and their stories in the unusually dramatic setting of their retrieval, "Objects And Memory" is ultimately about the things we value most.

Without the objects, the stories would lack vibrancy; without the stories, the objects would lack significance. Taken together, the images of the objects, the memories they evoke and the stories of their collection take the viewer on a journey where the commonplace is transformed into the remarkable and where the stuff of history is highly personalized.

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Suzan Vitti, dubbed "The Entenmann's Lady" for delivering donated baked goods to first responders at the World Trade Center's ground zero, wears a jacket to which rescuers pinned their collar brass (police precinct ID's, etc.) in appreciation of her efforts.

Courtesy of Brian Danitz and Jonathan Fein

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Mike Telesca, retired Battalion Chief with FDNY'S Safety Battalion, eventually recovered his beloved helmet which he lost when the World Trade Center's south tower collapsed.

Courtesy of Brian Danitz and Jonathan Fein

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Jane Thomas, Collections Manager, Oklahoma City National Memorial, holds Murray, her companion as she went through the debris from the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building (Oklahoma City bombing site) and items left behind on the fence surrounding it.

Courtesy of Brian Danitz and Jonathan Fein

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A piece of metal recovered from the Twin Towers.

Courtesy of ©Jonathan Fein and Brian Danitz

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A rubber duck left at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.

Courtesy of ©Jonathan Fein and Brian Danitz

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A "shrine" erected on the site of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.

Courtesy of Brian Danitz and Jonathan Fein

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A baseball and flower left at the vietnam Veterans Memorial.

Courtesy of ©Jonathan Fein and Brian Danitz

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A crushed steering wheel recovered at the Fresh Kills Landfill in Staten Island where debris was taken by barge from the collapsed Twin Towers.

Courtesy of Brian Danitz and Jonathan Fein

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A World Trade Center whistle recovered from the rubble.

Courtesy of Brian Danitz and Jonathan Fein

This film is not currently available on demand.

Credits: An EVER production | Jonathan Fein and Brian Danitz.