AT THE SMITHSONIAN

Events June 15-17: Phillip Thomas Tucker, The History of American Glass, Father’s Day Performance

Kick off this Father’s Day weekend with these events for the whole family

June 14, 2012

Celebrate Father's Day with a performance by Jack Gladstone, Montana’s Blackfeet troubadour, honoring Olympian Jim Thorpe. Image courtesy of the American Indian Museum

Friday June 15: Book Signing: Phillip Thomas Tucker

Before the Tuskegee Airmen took to the skies during World War II, no African American military aviators had served in the United States armed forces. When faced with adversity and the restrictions of the Jim Crow Laws, this group of pilots flew with distinction. Between 1941 and 1946, 992 were trained at the Tuskegee Army Air Field in Alabama. This Friday, Phillip Thomas Tucker, prolific writer and historian will sign copies of his book Father of the Tuskegee Airmen, John C. Robinson. Copies of the book are available at the signing. One of the planes used by the Tuskegee pilots at Moton Field, the PT-13D U.S. Army Air Corps Stearman, is slated to go on display at the National Museum of African American History and Culture (NMAAHC) in 2015. Free. 12 p.m. to 5 p.m. American History Museum.

Saturday June 16: Developing Connoisseurship in American Glass

Even glass has a history—especially when it comes to the decorative arts. This Saturday, trace this art form from the Colonial period to the present. In this fascinating, all-day seminar, Glass historian and educator Mary Cheek Mills will unravel the mystery of one of the most-used materials in the decorative arts. Learn important details assessing glass color, weight, form, function, technique, decoration and more. Purchase tickets here. 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. S. Dillon Ripley Center.

Sunday June 17: Native Music: “Jim Thorpe: American Sunlight and Shadow”

In case you missed the memo, this Sunday is Father’s Day. What better present to give him than to spend some quality time? Bring him and the whole family to join Jack Gladstone, Montana’s Blackfeet troubadour, for an original multimedia musical performance honoring the enduring spirit of Native American athletes, especially Sac and Fox Olympian Jim Thorpe, who swept the Pentathlon and Decathlon events exactly 100 years ago at the Stockholm Olympics. This program is presented in support of the museum’s exhibition, “Best in the World, Native Athletes in the Olympics,” now on view through September 3, 2012. Seats are available on a first come, first served basis. Free. 3:30 p.m. American Indian Museum.