KCTV 5Million feet of film preserves KC history at American Jazz Museum

Count Basie and Kansas City jazz go hand in hand.

Most people might know about the historic 18th and Vine Jazz District, but many may not know about the true treasures that can be found inside the American Jazz Museum.

Behind the scenes, a good chunk of the city's history is preserved on more than a million feet of celluloid.

More than a million feet of film was acquired by the city in the 1980's, and the job of preserving it lies with the American Jazz Museum.

Greg Carroll is the CEO of the museum, and it is his job to take history, restore it and put it on display.

"The museum is a repository of one of the largest jazz film collections in the world ... outside what you would find at the Library of Congress," said Greg Carroll with the American Jazz Museum.  "It's important not only for Kansas City... It is important for jazz. The music needs to have a home ... needs to have a brick and mortar space that preserves its history."

Carroll said the American Jazz Museum is that brick and mortar place.

It is inside the John Baker collection one will find pieces of history they can't put a price tag on. Some 700 hours dating from the 1920s through the 1970s.

Baker was an attorney from Ohio, but was also described as a "compulsive film collector." Carroll said Baker made it clear that he wanted at least part of his collection to wind up in Kansas City.

"Every time they would roll off a new film or soundie, he would call them and say 'I'd like a copy of that' ... so it got to a point where they would just send him a copy," said Carroll.

Carroll said it is like digging up a treasure.

Zach Hoskins spends his days preserving those precious films.

"Archiving is not exciting work. It is not sexy work. There is a lot of digging through minutia," said Hoskins.

Some of the films were theatrical shorts, some were shown on TV at the time, and others were shown in bars and clubs. Their preservation is a tedious task.

"When we got these films they were stuffed away in cardboard boxes.  It was like someone had moved or gotten ready for a garage sale," said Hoskins.

Most of the films are kept in the caves under strict quality control alongside films from Warner Brothers and Paramount. Some of them are at the museum, kept in coolers where their restoration takes up most of Hoskins' day.

"One of the things we have had to do is clean them up a little bit and go through with white gloves and get some of the dirt off the film itself," said Hoskins.

The job, while difficult, is also incredibly expensive.

It costs about $25 per foot to restore the film. With more than a million feet of film, the museum is looking at a price tag of at least $25 million and a good 20 years to finish the job.

"But those moments where you are able to find something no one has seen for 50 years ... that is what makes it worthwhile," said Hoskins.

The museum hopes to eventually start traveling exhibits as a way to generate income for the project, and until then they will continue to rely on donors and the occasional grant.

For the people behind the scenes, it is what has been accomplished so far that brings such satisfaction.

"Those of us who weren't lucky enough to have seen Count Basie in person, it is pretty amazing to have that opportunity. It is the closest we will get - short of a time machine," said Hoskins.

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