Upcoming Exhibit: The Scopes Trial in Literature and Film

The Riesenfeld Center is preparing for an upcoming spring exhibit celebrating the centennial anniversary of the Scopes "Monkey" Trial (1925). In telling the story of the historic trial, the exhibit will highlight some of the material from the rich Clarence Darrow Collection at the Center, including briefs from the appeal case, letters, debates, books, and other items related to the trial. 

Another area of the Darrow Collection that will be featured contains items relating to Inherit the Wind, a notable play that was loosely based on the Scopes Trial, which debuted in 1955. Inherit the Wind was the first of several plays written by Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee that addressed contemporary issues. In the early 1950s, they were inspired by the ongoing Communist paranoia and Hollywood blacklists, and they saw parallels to the theme of free speech in the Scopes Trial. While Inherit the Wind follows the story of the trial, many aspects of the true story are fictionalized. The names of the key players change (Clarence Darrow and William Jennings Bryan become Henry Drummond and Matthew Harrison Brady) and many of the exchanges are dramatized. Most notably, William Jennings Bryan, who argued for the prosecution, faces particular criticism, as Lawrence and Lee intentionally chose to target creationism, which Bryan adamantly defends. While in reality, Bryan died shortly after the trial due to health issues, in the play, Bryan dramatically dies after collapsing during his final speech.

Although the play received some criticism due to its dramatization of the Scopes trial, it became the longest running drama then on Broadway and was adapted into several movie versions. When the first film premiered in Dayton in 1960, John Scopes attended the premiere and promoted the film, noting that, “of course, it altered the facts of the real trial,” but “the film captured the emotions in the battle of words between Bryan and Darrow.”

On display in the exhibit will be several collection items connected to the play, including a first edition of Inherit the Wind inscribed by the authors to one of Darrow’s granddaughters. Other items trace the play’s popularity and connect to the movie versions that were made in 1960 and 1988. One interesting document from 1960 outlines the United Artists Corporation’s advertising campaign that aimed to reach a younger audience by hiring teenagers in large cities “to play up the movie for their local newspapers, radio and television stations, as well as for school publications and organizations.” The exhibit will also highlight several lobby cards, which would have promoted the movie ahead of its release in theatre lobbies, depicting scenes from the film. 

Inherit the Wind’s story also found relevance across the globe, and several items related to translated versions of the movie will also be on display. A lobby card in Spanish follows the same format as lobby cards from the original movie release, and a small Danish pamphlet provides photos from the movie in addition to information about the plot and cast. Another is a Czech movie poster, which features a stylized and impressionistic design. The Czech translation of the title, “Who Sows the Wind,” referencing Hosea 8:7 (“For they have sown the wind, and they shall reap the whirlwind.”), is boldly displayed and differs slightly from the English title. The original play's title, Inherit the Wind, is also drawn from a Bible verse, Proverbs 11:29 (“He that troubleth his own house shall inherit the wind”). The artistic titles, based on Biblical quotes, help to amplify the courtroom drama in the play and suggest Lawrence and Lee's viewpoint.

   - Sophia Charbonneau, Special Collections Assistant

Upcoming Exhibit: The Scopes Trial Centennial

This year, the Law Library and Riesenfeld Center will celebrate the 100th anniversary of the Scopes "Monkey" Trial, which remains one of the most storied courtroom dramas in American history. Dubbed at the time "the trial of the century," the case drew intense national attention and its legacy still has impact today. The trial pitted a Tennessee law that prohibited the public school teaching of Darwinian evolution against the First Amendment. The legal battle involved several of the most famous lawyers and political figures of the day, including Clarence Darrow and William Jennings Bryan, prominent heavyweights who provided counsel to the defense and prosecution, respectively. At the center of the trial was the young high school teacher, John T. Scopes, who was willing to be indicted for violating the law in order to test the constitutional issues that it raised.

The eight days of trial, in the sweltering July heat of Dayton, Tennessee, resulted in victory for the prosecution. Although Scopes was convicted of a misdemeanor in Rhea County court (later overturned on a technicality in the state's Supreme Court), the storm created by the trial brought the influence of literalist interpretations of the Bible into sharp focus, while stimulating scientists and others to argue vocally on behalf of evolution. For the attorneys on the prosecution and defense, the trial also provided a spotlight for their extraordinary tactical skills and courtroom oratory. 

Among the lawyers who shaped the trial, Clarence Darrow occupies a special place at the University of Minnesota Law Library and Riesenfeld Center, which holds more than 1,000 letters to and from the legendary defense attorney, as well as case materials, speeches, writings and other material about Darrow's life and career. The Darrow Collection at the Riesenfeld Center, and the Darrow Digital Collection showcasing these holdings, provides a rich trove of letters, books, and printed debates related to the Scopes Trial, together with briefs from Scopes's appeal case, expert witness statements, and many other treasures from the Center's collections.  

 

Beyond documents and publications related to the case, the exhibit will also feature items produced by the national media frenzy that surrounded it. Humorous cartoons flooded newspapers and often mocked the anti-evolutionist cause, though also skewered the reductionism of evolution. In the cartoon by H. T. Webster (1885-1952), from Life Magazine, Bryan is lampooned for his denials of Darwinism. In another cartoon, Webster satirized a “fan” letter castigating his portrayals of evolution. His cartoons portraying the anxieties of modern life were popular in the early to mid-20th century, and he was known for several syndicated comics that appeared across the country. 

Popular music was another beneficiary of the Scopes Trial. The 1920s shellac record, pictured here, features “The John T. Scopes Trial” by Vernon Dalhart (1883-1953) with the refrain, “the old religion’s better after all.” Dalhart was one of country music’s first major recording artists, who recorded on Thomas Edison’s label. His music, featuring vivid storytelling, marked the beginning of country music's commercial rise in the 1920s, drawing on folk and bluegrass traditions. In similar fashion, Billy Rose and Clarence Gaskill’s “You Can’t Make a Monkey Out of Me” (1925), made light of Darwinism with lines like: “there's no chimpanzee in my pedigree, and you can't make a monkey of me.” The songs took to the airwaves and enjoyed public appeal.

Viewers will be invited to explore the background and context that produced the trial, the important legal issues that it raised, and the arguments, strategies, and responses that played out in the courtroom. In addition, the exhibit will treat some of the interesting cultural and legal legacy of the trial, discovered in everything from theatrical and cinematic adaptations, to cases that continue to raise questions concerning the role of religion in public education.

   - Ryan Greenwood, Curator of Rare Books and Special Collections