Music & Film

What Questlove Has to Say About Today's Food-Obsessed Culture

In a new book, the bandleader and hip-hop star stirs up music and cooking

Cab Calloway called the zoot suit “the ultimate in clothes.”

A Brief History of the Zoot Suit

Unraveling the jazzy life of a snazzy style

In 1968, the Beatles ventured to the foothills of the Himalaya for a spiritual retreat.

Smithsonian Journeys Travel Quarterly: India

How the Indian City of Rishikesh Influenced the Beatles' <i>White Album</i>

A meditation retreat in 1968 offered the British rock group heightened awareness and peace of mind

Ennio Morricone, "Il Maestro"

Travel the World With Ennio Morricone's Evocative Film Scores

Celebrate the maestro's first Oscar with a musical trip across the continents

On his property, Jones County’s J. R. Gavin points out a site that was a hide-out for Newt Knight. “The Confederates kept sending in troops to wipe out old Newt and his boys,” says Gavin, “but they’d just melt into the swamps.”

The True Story of the ‘Free State of Jones’

A new Hollywood movie looks at the tale of the Mississippi farmer who led a revolt against the Confederacy

Did ADHD Play a Role in George Gershwin’s Eclectic Style?

The composer himself seemed to see a link between his restlessness and his art

In 1972, Ray Charles visited Richard Nixon in the Oval Office

Breaking Ground

Ray Charles Returns to the White House

The blind king of soul once sat down with Richard Nixon, now his music will be performed by a host of musicians for Barack Obama

Scarlett Johannson plays an Esther Williams-type star in the Cohen brothers film, 'Hail, Caesar!'

Who Are the Real Hollywood Figures Behind 'Hail, Caesar!'?

Eddie Mannix, the film’s big studio fixer, was an MGM producer with a mean streak

New Software Can Actually Edit Actors' Facial Expressions

FaceDirector can seamlessly blend several takes to create nuanced blends of emotions, potentially cutting down on the number of takes necessary in filming

How Zildjian Cymbals Made It From the Ottoman Empire to Now

In 1622, Avedis Zildjian, an Armenian metalworker in Turkey, melted a top-secret combination of metals to create the perfect cymbal, still in use today

Suffragettes form a part of Emily Davison's funeral procession through London. She was a fellow campaigner who was trampled to death when, as a protest gesture, she tried to catch the reins of King George V's horse as it ran in the 1913 Epsom Derby.

Women Who Shaped History

The True History of Suffragette

Emily Wilding Davison was a tireless and ingenious activist for the cause of women's suffrage in Britain

Bill Cherry, one of the headlining acts during the week.

Go Behind the Scenes at America's Most Lucrative Elvis Presley Tribute Contest

Get all shook up with the winners of this year's Tribute to the King

How the Phonograph Changed Music Forever

Much like streaming music services today are reshaping our relationship with music, Edison's invention redefined the entire industry

Brown bears in Alaska’s Katmai

Why Robert Redford Loves America's National Parks

The famed actor and director celebrates the great outdoors of the United States in a new documentary

“I just wrote my best song,” Paul Simon told Art Garfunkel.

How "The Sound of Silence" Became a Surprise Hit

The Simon and Garfunkel song catapulted the duo to stardom

Richard Dreyfuss on Being Bernie Madoff

The versatile actor opens up about playing the banker in a new television miniseries and his close encounters with sharks and space aliens

A Stormtrooper Mask

Austria

These Are the "Star Wars" Exhibitions You Are Looking For

Grab your light saber and celebrate the art of the movie series at museums around the world

Sponsor: National Portrait Gallery

These Actresses Were Never Nominated for an Oscar But Can Still Earn Your Vote

The National Portrait Gallery will hang the winner on its walls this winter

Sinatra on the radio

Listen to Never-Before-Released Tracks From Frank Sinatra’s Earliest Years on the Radio

You haven’t heard Ol’ Blue Eyes quite like this

In 1856, a Nantucket sailor sketched the killing of his crew’s “100-barrel” prize.

How Nantucket Came to Be the Whaling Capital of the World

Ron Howard's new film "In the Heart of the Sea" captures the greed and blood lust of the Massachusetts island

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