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| Something the Lord Made |
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| Date: |
August 24, 2006 |
| Time: |
6:30 - 9:30 p.m. |
| Location: |
Keck Auditorium, Charles R. Drew University,
1731 East 120th Street, Los Angeles, CA 90059 |
| Guest Speaker: |
Armando Gonzalez, M.D., Fellow of the American College of Cardiology |
| Medical Theme: |
History of Medicine, Cardiac Surgery, Blue Baby Syndrome, Tetrology of Fallot |
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Based on a true story, “Something The Lord Made” tells the absorbing tale of two doctors who bucked tradition and racial prejudice to revolutionize the medical world. The American south in the 1940s could be a fearsome place for anyone attempting to ply a well-meaning trade, as it was riddled with strictly-enforced racial boundaries. The two men in question--Dr. Alfred Blalock (Alan Rickman) and African-American lab technician Vivien Thomas (Mos Def)--work fastidiously on a new technique for helping babies with heart problems, and achieve some impressive, and innovative results. Under any other circumstances the men would have been exhilarated by their advances, and widely applauded throughout the medical profession. But the dark heart of the south causes innumerable problems for the brave pioneers, as the prejudices brought to bear on the men become unbearable. Moving and dramatic in equal measures, director Joseph Sargent's film is a bold retelling of a vital chapter in the history of the medical profession.
| Starring: |
Alan Rickman, Mos Def, Mary Stuart Masterson, Kyra Sedgwick, Merritt Wever, Doug Olear |
| Genre: |
Drama |
| Year: |
2004 |
| Run Time: |
1 hour, 50 minutes |
| Rating: |
not rated |
About the speaker: Armando Gonzalez, M.D., F.A.C.C. is originally from Houston (TX). He came to Los Angeles after completing medical school at Baylor in 1978, and currently practices as a clinical cardiologist in East Los Angeles. Dr. Gonzalez serves also as President and Founding member of Future Latino Doctors, Inc., a grass-roots and non-profit organization that aims to create a more culturally sensitive and diverse national healthcare system by increasing the number of minority healthcare providers.
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