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Posted by: Erin Allen
A Nobel prizewinner, a paleontologist, a taxidermist, an ornithologist, a field naturalist, a conservationist, a big-game hunter, a naval historian, a biographer, an essayist, an editor, a critic, an orator, a civil-service reformer, a socialite, a patron of the arts, a colonel of the cavalry, a ranchman … the list goes on. Add to that …
Posted in: Audiovisual, Collections, History, LC Web site, Manuscripts, Uncategorized, Video
Posted by: Erin Allen
Ayaka Isono lost her sight to a rare retinal disorder in 2001 at age 29 and, devastated, figured her career as a pianist was over. “I couldn’t see the score, I couldn’t work with conductors, I couldn’t play ensembles, I couldn’t write new music,” says Isono, who performed in chamber groups with some of the …
Posted in: Collections, Music, Uncategorized
Posted by: Jennifer Gavin
Comics and cartoons are well-loved because they’re funny. Most of us think of them as a break in the monotony of a working day, a light moment, a chuckle over our morning coffee. But for some, mirth is money. Those people tend to take their comics more seriously. Take, for example, the reaction to “The …
Posted in: Books, Collections, Events, History, Newspapers, Photos, Preservation, Uncategorized
Posted by: Erin Allen
A bat in the belfry? Maybe. A tree growing in Brooklyn? Sure. A light in the attic? Of course. But, a dirigible in the Library’s Jefferson Building? It happened. Walking the institution’s resplendent halls, you come across lovely murals, elaborate ornamentation, gilded embellishments, and, as it turned out the other day, two rather large balloons …
Posted in: Capitol Hill, Kluge Center, Thomas Jefferson Building, Uncategorized, Washington DC
Posted by: Erin Allen
O setting sun! though the time has come, I still warble under you, if none else does, unmitigated adoration. ~ Walt Whitman, “Song at Sunset” This picture was taken from the sixth floor balcony of the James Madison Building recently, as the sun set over Washington, D.C., bathing the sky in a lovely peach hue. …
Posted in: Capitol Hill, Photos, Pic of the Week, Uncategorized, Washington DC
Posted by: Erin Allen
You may recall reading about some early audio recordings of Alexander Graham Bell being recently recovered. Thanks to Library of Congress technology, these recordings and others can now have a new life. The following is a story by Mark Hartsell, editor of the Library’s newsletter, The Gazette, on how the institution is working to accomplish …
Posted in: Uncategorized
Posted by: Erin Allen
Soon all of Washington, D.C. will be blossom-crazy thanks to the upcoming National Cherry Blossom Festival – a signature event for the capital region – set for March 20 through April 27. This year, all the stops are being pulled out as the celebration marks the 100th anniversary of the gift of trees from Tokyo …
Posted in: Uncategorized
Posted by: Erin Allen
What do leaping frogs and composer Gioachino Rossini have in common? Well, thanks to today’s Google doodle the two are brought together rather comically – not only does today mark the cosmic anomaly of leap day but it’s also the 220th birthday of Rossini … or his 53rd, depending upon which way you roll. After …
Posted in: Audiovisual, Music, Today in History, Uncategorized
Posted by: Erin Allen
J. Edgar Hoover – former Library of Congress employee, longtime director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and a highly respected but feared individual – has been the subject of admiration and controversy alike. Some 40 years since his death, he has returned to the spotlight thanks to Clint Eastwood’s biopic “J. Edgar,” the DVD …
Posted in: Events, History, Manuscripts, Uncategorized, Video, Washington DC