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Category: Library Work and Employees

Bernie Taupin, Carla Hayden and Elton John stand onstage in front of a red grand piano

Elton John & Bernie Taupin: Rocking the Gershwins

Posted by: Neely Tucker

Sir Elton John and Bernie Taupin accepted the Library's 2024 Gershwin Prize for Popular Song during a tribute concert last night in Washington, as a star-studded lineup saluted them by performing some of their biggest songs. Garth Brooks and Joni Mitchell (both prior Gershwin honorees) performed, as did Annie Lennox, Billy Porter, Brandi Carlile and Charlie Puth.

Brooding pen and ink sketch of a man in late 19th century apparel, with topcoat and long cloak, walking past a streetlight on a foggy eetlight at dusk. A bat flies in the background

Crime Classics: Richard Harding Davis Gets Lost “In the Fog”

Posted by: Neely Tucker

“In the Fog" is the latest Library of Congress Crime Classic to be republished. This 1901 novella is by Richard Harding Davis, the influential war correspondent, author and playwright. He might be largely forgotten now, but Davis was a Renaissance man of his era, as renowned for his battlefield escapades, famous friends and good looks as he was for his literary and journalistic success. "In the Fog" takes place in Victorian London and was, like many of Davis' books, a bestseller.

Womens History Month: Filling in the (Almost) Lost World of Maggie Thompson

Posted by: Neely Tucker

Margaret Virginia “Maggie” Thompson spent most of her life in tiny Waynesburg, Pennsylvania, more than a century ago. When a Library genealogist came across Thompson's long-lost scrapbook recently, she set out to solve a mystery: Who were the other people pictured in her scrapbook?

Bright daylight photo of a woman holding a child, standing in front of a display booth, watching a female Library technician point out something on a display board

Library Conservation Specialists Help Save Books, Artifacts After Disasters Around the World

Posted by: Wendi Maloney

Since a disastrous 1966 flood in Florence, Italy, Library conservation specialists have advised disaster victims around the world about how to salvage their damaged books and artifacts. One of the most recent emergencies was a 2023 flood in Vermont. A Library team spent just over two weeks in the region.

George Gershwin leans foward onto a table, smiling and wearing suit and tie. Black and white head and shoulders photo.

Gershwin’s “Rhapsody” at 100; Still Capturing the American Character

Posted by: Neely Tucker

George Gershwin’s “Rhapsody in Blue,” a rapturous burst of music that has become a motif of the nation’s creative spirit, turns 100 today. It was first performed in New York on the snowy Tuesday afternoon of Feb. 12, 1924. Commissioned and premiered by the popular conductor Paul Whiteman at a concert designed to showcase high-minded …