Marblehead to screen documentary for charity

MARBLEHEAD – Elbridge Gerry continues to do Marblehead some good, even 196 years after his death, with a 2010 documentary entitled “Gerrymandering” that could help an area charity.The independently filmed documentary, which includes scenes filmed in Marblehead in July 2009, will be screened Thursday, Dec. 9 in the Abbot Hall auditorium at 6:30 p.m. After the showing the audience is invited to the Marblehead Museum, 170 Washington St., for hors d?oeuvres, cider or wine and a discussion of the film.The presentation – the film?s second Massachusetts showing – is co-sponsored by the Historical Commission, the Marblehead Museum and Historical Society, the Marblehead Arts Association, the League of Women Voters and other area organizations.Ticket prices will be $10, or $7 for seniors and students. Associate Producer Susan Bryant, who arranged the screening with selectmen, warned them that there is no guarantee that the film will generate enough revenue to cover the costs, but if it does the money will go to charity. She is consulting with her co-sponsors to choose a charity.Local history buffs may recall Gerry – the name is pronounced with a hard “g” like “Governor” – as a signer of the Declaration of Independence, a member of the Continental Congress from 1775-1780, a delegate to the Constitutional Convention in 1787, an advocate who refused to sign the Constitution because the Bill of Rights was not included in it. He served as vice president under James Madison until his death in November 1814, four months after his 70th birthday.