Lafayette: The Lost Hero, on which Laura Auricchio serves as a historical consultant, will air on PBS on Monday, October 4 at 10:30 PM with repeat air times throughout the week. This documentary explores the much-forgotten legacy of Marquis de Lafayette, a French citizen who migrated to America in support of the Revolution. Once, he was amongst the most highly regarded and famed men in America, but his memory has dimmed with time. Over 30 American towns, as well as the nearby Lafayette Street, were named in his honor. Why has memory of the once-beloved Revolutionary War hero faded? The documentary untangles this mystery, and uncovers his critical role in building American democracy.
Professor Auricchio was invited as a consultant on this film because of her current book project, provisionally entitled The Marquis, under contract with Alfred A. Knopf and due for release in 2012. Her book is a visually-informed biography of Lafayette, in which she examines the role of the period’s burgeoning print, visual, and material cultures and how they contributed to Lafayette’s rise to celebrity.
For more information on the documentary, please visit: http://www.thedocumentarygroup.com/featuredProject.php?pid=68
-Rebecca Nison
