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Who Are the DeBolts? And Where Did They Get Nineteen Kids?

Name: Who Are the DeBolts? And Where Did They Get Nineteen Kids?
Director: John Korty
Released: 1977
Duration: 72 min

Representation Score

5.5/10

Fair

1977

Not Rated

Director

John Korty

Runtime

72 minutes

Average Rating

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New Showbiz Analysis

John Korty’s documentary offers a humanistic perspective on a non-traditional family structure. It successfully provides meaningful visibility to children with severe disabilities and explores the complexities of international adoption. However, the film is rooted in the social norms of 1977, focusing on a conventional heterosexual marriage and traditional gender roles. Ultimately, it disrupts the idea of a homogeneous family while remaining tied to the era's social frameworks.

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Category Breakdown

Does Who Are the DeBolts? And Where Did They Get Nineteen Kids? have LGBTQ+ representation?

Minimal

The film focuses on a traditional nuclear family without representing non-straight gender identities or same-sex relationships.

How does Who Are the DeBolts? And Where Did They Get Nineteen Kids? portray gender?

Fair

Dorothy DeBolt is shown taking charge of a complex household. Despite emphasizing traditional maternal roles, the film highlights her leadership in managing the home.

How racially and ethnically diverse is Who Are the DeBolts? And Where Did They Get Nineteen Kids??

Fair

The inclusion of war orphans from various backgrounds through international adoption adds multicultural elements to the American household. This disrupts a purely homogeneous family depiction.

How does Who Are the DeBolts? And Where Did They Get Nineteen Kids? represent religion and culture?

Good

The film examines fluid kinship through the lens of geopolitical instability and systemic adoption needs, challenging the notion of a standard Western family unit.

Does Who Are the DeBolts? And Where Did They Get Nineteen Kids? include disability representation?

Good

The documentary gives significant visibility to individuals with severe physical and cognitive impairments, integrating their experiences into the central family dynamic.

Present on Screen

Gives significant visibility and a leading role to individuals with severe physical and cognitive disabilities.
Challenges conventional Western family models through the lens of international adoption.
Explores complex, cross-cultural integration within a domestic American setting.

Limited or Absent

Depicts traditional maternal caretaking and gendered domestic labor.
Does not represent non-straight gender identities or same-sex family structures.
Focuses centrally on a conventional heterosexual nuclear family.

Official Synopsis

Who Are the DeBolts? And Where Did They Get Nineteen Kids? is a 1977 documentary film about Dorothy and Bob DeBolt, an American couple who adopted 14 children [12 at the start of filming], some of whom are severely disabled war orphans -- in addition to raising Dorothy's five biological children and Bob's biological daughter. The film won an Academy Award for Best Documentary in 1978. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive in 2007.

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