The Great Dictator [he] was terrified, not knowing what to expect next." The Margaret Herrick Library of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, in Beverly Hills, California, has a copy of "The Great Dictator" script. The library permits viewers of the script to read it and take notes, but prohibits photocopying of it. In 1997, "The Great Dictator" was selected by the Library of Congress for preservation in the United States National Film Registry as being "culturally, historically or aesthetically significant". In 2000, the American Film Institute ranked the film No. 37 in its "100 Years... 100 Laughs" list. The film
USS Dictator named "Dictator" on 1 April 1862, after John Ericsson requested it from the Assistant Secretary of the Navy, Gustavus Fox. "Dictator" was laid down by Delamater Iron Works, in New York, New York under contract with John Ericsson on 16 August 1862, and launched on 26 December 1863. The ship was commissioned on 11 November 1864, under the command of Commander J. Rodgers, with a crew 174. Construction problems with her powerplant kept her initial service relatively brief and inactive. Assigned to duty with North Atlantic Blockading Squadron, "Dictator" cruised on the Atlantic coast from 15 December 1864 until placed