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At the Smithsonian

What Did the FAO Schwarz Catalog Look Like in 1911?

Old photos from an FAO Schwarz 1911 catalog provide a glimpse at past holiday toys

Emma Thompson captures the flinty Mrs. Travers brilliantly, from her tightly-curled hair to the “No No No” mantra she barks endlessly at the Disney creative team.

How Did P.L. Travers, the Prickly Author of Mary Poppins, Really Fare Against Walt Disney?

Historian Amy Henderson searches for the spoonfuls of sugar-coated truth in the new film, “Saving Mr. Banks”

"Cloud Music" scans the skies about the Smithsonian American Art Museum's Lincoln Gallery and turns the clouds (and occasional flock of birds) into sound.

If Clouds Could Make Music, What Would it Sound Like?

How an engineer, video analyst and musician created a pioneering artwork that makes music from the sky

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LISTEN: Smithsonian Folkways Re-releases Anthology of Indian Classical Music

This Mick Jagger-approved album includes Ravi Shankar and Ali Akbar Khan’s first recordings released in the West

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Listen to Classic Holiday Music From Around the World

Go around the world this holiday with Smithsonian Folkways—no reindeer or sleigh required

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Watch A 1,400-Pound Right Whale Skull Arrive At the Smithsonian

A rare specimen from an endangered species is donated to the Natural History Museum’s collections

Student Olivia Persons of George Washington University jumped at the chance to help the National Museum of Natural History develop a new education facility.

A New Education Lab Called Q?rius Aims to Be the Mother of All Curiosity

It’s a quirky way to spell curious, but at Natural History’s Q?rius, the kids are lining up to get in

Before Miley, Bob Fosse Elevated the Sleaze in Dance to an Art Form

The choreographer and director sparked this curator’s imagination with his trademark razzle dazzle

The Natural History Museum is open today

DC Museums are Open, Zoo Closed

Music Great Carlos Santana signs a condolence book for Nelson Mandela on Dec. 6 at the National Museum of African Art.

Join Carlos Santana, Thousands of Others in Remembering Nelson Mandela at African Art

Visitors to Smithsonian’s National Museum of African Art can sign a condolence book in honor of Mandela

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How the Language of Dance and Movement Transcends Cultures

The award-winning choreographer and Lion King dancer talks about his plans for a new work celebrating Omani and East African cultures

Eliot Elisofon in Kenya, 1947, by an unknown photographer.

Meet the Real “Most Interesting Man in the World”

On view at African Art, a retrospective of Eliot Elisofon, who drank scotch and was allowed to touch the museum’s art

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Smithsonian Holiday Festival: Movies, Music, Shopping and More

Josh Brolin stars in Spike Lee's 2013 remake of the Korean cult classic Oldboy.

The Smithsonian’s Curator of Asian Film on Where Spike Lee’s Oldboy Fails

The Sackler Gallery’s curator Tom Vick wonders why Hollywood directors and producers even bother remaking films when the originals were so excellent

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Watch: The Air Force Band Turns the National Air and Space Museum Into a Concert Hall

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Panda Cub Gets a Name. Bao Bao

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Are Snowflakes Really Unique and Other Questions From Our Readers

You asked, we answered

Carlos, by Joseph Rodriguez: a sense of ownership of the city

Witnessing the Latino Experience at the American Art Museum

A voluminous new exhibition highlights Latino art as American art

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Doug Aitken is Redefining How We Experience Art

The artist uses video, music, mirrors, railroad cars, even entire buildings to create works that make every viewer a participant

From the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian

There’s a 1,200-year-old Phone in the Smithsonian Collections

One of the earliest examples of ingenuity in the Western Hemisphere is composed of gourds and twine

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