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
Dictator of different kinds of regimes, such as military juntas, one-party states, dominant-party states, and civilian governments under a personal rule, have been described as dictators. They, in a sense, may hold left or right-wing views, or they may be apolitical. Originally an emergency legal appointment in the Roman Republic, the term "Dictator" did not have the negative meaning it has now. A Dictator was a magistrate given sole power for a limited duration. At the end of the term, the Dictator's power was returned to normal Consular rule whereupon a dictator provided accountability, though not all dictators accepted a return