Each year, the National Film Registry selects 25 films to be preserved for posterity by the Library of Congress. dirty dancing, starring Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Gray is one of the latest additions.

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Library of Congress

It’s the most wonderful time of the year for classic film lovers and preservationists. The National Film Registry, part of the Library of Congress, announced Tuesday the latest films it plans to archive for posterity.

This year some of the most famous films are being added: Dirty Dancing, Beverly Hills Cop, Uptown Saturday Night, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, The social network, And Spy children.

Every year 25 films are added to the register. Typically, it’s a mix of blockbusters, obscure but important independent films, and historical footage, all chosen to highlight the depth and breadth of American film.

“Films reflect our nation’s history and culture and must be preserved in our national library for generations to come,” Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden said in a statement. “This is a collective effort by the film community to preserve our cinematic heritage.”

This is the first time a Star Trek film has been included on the list, thanks in part to enthusiastic lobbying by fans. (Although the selection is made by the National Film Preservation BoardNominations from the public are encouraged as part of the process.)

Star Trek II: The Wrath of KhanIt was released in 1982, starring Ricardo Montalban as the titular villain. In a press release, the Library of Congress noted that the film is often considered the best of the six original Star Trek films. It is also among five films selected this year with prominent Hispanic artists or themes, including American Me, Mi Familia, Spy Kids, and the first Cheech & Chong film added to the registry, Dissolved in smoke.

“The level of improvisation we brought to these films gave them a spontaneity,” says fellow filmmaker Cheech Marin spy children, said in an interview with the Library of Congress.

Other selections reflect significant contributions from black directors including Compensation, Ganja & Hess, Uptown Saturday NightAnd Zora Lathan student films. A little seen film from 1981 will about a former basketball player struggling to overcome addiction, is “widely considered the first independent feature film directed by a black woman, Jessie Maple, a pioneering cinematographer and director,” according to the Library of Congress.

And two films this year represent deaf culture and characters. Patty Duke and Anne Bancroft won Oscars in 1962 for their roles as Helen Keller and Annie Sullivan The miracle worker. And the 1999 film Compensation was chosen, among other things, for its groundbreaking narrative approach.

“After casting deaf actress Michelle A. Banks, director Zeinabu Irene Davis and screenwriter Mark Arthur Chéry modified the film to include sign language and title cards to make it accessible to both deaf and hearing viewers,” said the Library of Congress Compensation in a statement. “The film’s relative silence and use of ornate title cards also serve as a tribute to the black filmmakers of the silent era, to which Davis nods as she sends the characters to the theater to see William Foster’s.” The railway porter (1913), probably the first feature film by a black filmmaker.”

To qualify for registration, films must be at least 10 years old. The National Film Register was launched in 1988 and now includes 900 films.

Below is the complete list of films selected for the 2024 National Film Registry in chronological order:

Annabelle serpentine dance (1895)
KoKo’s Earth Control (1928)
Angels with dirty faces (1938)
Yankees pride (1942)
Invaders from Mars (1953)
The miracle worker (1962)
The Chelsea Girls (1966)
Ganja & Hess (1973)
The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974)
Uptown Saturday night (1974)
Zora Lathan student films (1975-76)
Dissolved in smoke (1978)
will (1981)
Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982)
Beverly Hills police officer (1984)
Dirty dancing (1987)
Common Themes: Stories from the Quilt (1989)
Powwow Highway (1989)
My own private Idaho (1991)
American I (1992)
My family (1995)
Compensation (1999)
Spy children (2001)
No country for old men (2007)
The social network (2010)