Performing Arts
The Worst Dinosaur Ever
There are plenty of awful movie dinosaurs, but the tyrannosaur in a 1990 rip-off of The Fly is the worst of all
September 17, 2012 |
By Brian Switek
What’s Their Bacon Number? Let Me Google That For You
If you've ever wondered what someone's Bacon number is, you now have to look no further than a quick Google search
September 17, 2012 |
By Rose Eveleth
Spielberg’s ‘Lincoln’ Nails the President’s Surprising, High Voice
For his new movie role as Abraham Lincoln, Daniel Day-Lewis obviously did his homework
September 14, 2012 |
By Colin Schultz
The World’s Oldest Color Movie Dates to 1901
A goldfish, a macaw, and some happy children were captured in color video from the early 1900s
September 13, 2012 |
By Colin Schultz
What We Do (And Don’t) Know About the Movie Muslim Innocence
Everything you thought you knew about Sam Bacile, the movie , and the riots, is probably wrong
September 13, 2012 |
By Rose Eveleth
How an Obscure Video Sparked International Protests
Sam Bacile's movie was hardly seen at all in the United States, yet it incited a string of riots and the assassination of an American ambassador
September 12, 2012 |
By Rose Eveleth
David Byrne Offers Advice on How to Enjoy Music
What is it about place that makes music special? The rock star dissects what he enjoys about what he hears, from opera to jazz to radio hits
September 12, 2012 |
By Seth Colter Walls
September Offerings on the Smithsonian Channel
The Institution's award-winning channel offers up a month of premium programs, featuring the Hope Diamond, Titanoboa and a rainforest exploration
September 05, 2012 |
By Guest Blogger
Los Texmaniacs Release New Album
What does jalapeno-spiced polka music sound like?
September 2012 |
By Aviva Shen
Yesterday’s Tomorrows: How a Smithsonian Exhibit I Never Saw Changed My Life
Meet the historians who pioneered scholarship of retro-futurism
August 15, 2012 |
By Matt Novak
The Scene of Deduction: Drawing 221B Baker Street
From pen-and-ink sketches to digital renderings, generations of Sherlock Holmes fans have undertaken to draft a version of the detective's famous London flat
August 14, 2012 |
By Jimmy Stamp
Happy Birthday to Alfred Hitchcock, the Master of Suspense
The master helped director shape both modern cinema, and the minds of a generation
August 13, 2012 |
By Rachel Nuwer
New Tech Identifies that Special ‘Je Ne Sais Quoi’ That Makes Paris Paris
Science provides an answer on what details in an urban street scene clue people in on what city it is from.
August 09, 2012 |
By Rachel Nuwer
A Modern Sherlock Holmes and the Technology of Deduction
A modern Sherlock Holmes requires a modern tool. Today, his iconic problem-solving magnifying glass has been replaced by the indispensable cell phone
August 02, 2012 |
By Jimmy Stamp
Sherlock Holmes and the Tools of Deduction
Sherlock Holmes’s extraordinary deductions would be impossible without the optical technologies of the 19th century
July 31, 2012 |
By Jimmy Stamp
1927 Magazine Looks at Metropolis, “A Movie Based On Science”
How filmmakers created a gorgeous, dystopian future
July 19, 2012 |
By Matt Novak
The Mystery of 221B Baker Street
Our series on Design and Sherlock Holmes begins with an investigation into the location of the famous detective's London flat
July 18, 2012 |
By Jimmy Stamp
The Year Ahead in Archival Films
A guide to the movies being preserved now that will be available in future months
July 17, 2012 |
By Daniel Eagan
Where Are the Great Revolutionary War Films?
You'd think the 4th of July would inspire filmmakers to great works, but for the most part, they have been unable to recreate the events that led to the founding of America
July 03, 2012 |
By Daniel Eagan
1931′s Remote-Controlled Farm of the Future
The farmer of tomorrow wears a suit to work and sits at a desk that looks oddly familiar to those of us here in the year 2012.
July 02, 2012 |
By Matt Novak


