Tracy K. Smith was appointed the Library’s 22nd Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry on June 14, 2017 and began serving on September 13, 2017. Her mission the Library's chief poet is to bring poetry to rural areas. "I wanted to go into the more rural communities that don’t have programming on a consistent basis, where people’s lives are equally affected by the kinds of questions and memories that poems can draw upon. If writers and scholars are only talking to each other, we’re missing out on a … [Read more...]
Collection Spotlight: Archive of Recorded Poetry and Literature
April 4, 2018 by Leave a Comment
The Archive of Recorded Poetry and Literature at the Library of Congress contains recordings of poets and prose writers participating in literary events at the Library’s Capitol Hill campus as well as sessions at the Library’s Recording Laboratory. As of April, 2018, there are 200 artists represented the digital collection. There is a biography for each artist and each of those links to one or more recordings featuring readings and commentary on their work. Happy poetry month! Collection … [Read more...]
Collection Spotlight: Women Photojournalists
March 19, 2018 by Leave a Comment
Below you will find links to biographies, images, and more resources related to women photojournalists from the Library of Congress. Late 1800s and early 1900s Jessie Tarbox Beals (1870-1942) bio Ladies Behind the Lens Library of Congress Blog November 29, 2016 Birches at the Sprague Smith Studio (source record | curator note) More Jessie Tarbox Beals photographs Photographs by Jessie Tarbox Beals in New York newspapers historical newspaper coverage of Jessie Tarbox … [Read more...]
Collection Spotlight: Sonia Sotomayor
March 13, 2017 by Leave a Comment
Sonia Sotomayor received a B.A. from Princeton University and a J.D. from Yale Law School where she served as an editor of the Yale Law Journal. She served as Assistant District Attorney in New York County, then litigated international commercial matters in New York City at Pavia & Harcourt. President George H.W. Bush nominated her to the U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York in 1992. President Bill Clinton then nominated Sotomayor to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second … [Read more...]
Collection Spotlight: National Press Club Luncheon Speeches 1954-1989
October 19, 2016 by Leave a Comment
The National Press Club, with more than a century of history behind it, is known for its luncheon gatherings that have featured U.S. presidents, visiting world leaders, and other prominent persons to address the media members and answer questions about current affairs. Now, with the collection Food for Thought: Presidents, Prime Ministers, and Other National Press Club Luncheon Speakers, the Library of Congress provides online access to digital recordings of the National Press Club lunchtime … [Read more...]
Today in History: Samuel H. Gottscho and William H. Schleisner
June 21, 2015 by Leave a Comment
Today in History–June 21–the Library of Congress features Samuel H. Gottscho and William H. Schleisner. On this date in 1934, Samuel Herman Gottscho snapped a photograph of the north facade of the Nebraska state capitol in Lincoln. A photography enthusiast, Gottscho was a traveling salesman for 23 year before becoming a professional photographer in 1925 at the age of fifty. His son-in-law William H. Schleisner joined him in the business in 1935. Find out more by visiting the Today in … [Read more...]
Collection Spotlight: Katherine Dunham Selections
February 18, 2015 by Leave a Comment
This collection contains moving and still images, highlighting the dancer’s early explorations as an anthropologist observing movement types and dance forms in Haiti, Trinidad, Martinique, and Jamaica as well as Dunham performing and teaching. Collection resources Images Videos Notes on Dunham's Work Katherine Dunham Timeline Katherine Dunham: A Life in Dance article Additional Dunham resources A Life in Dance: Dunham Created New Forms in Choreography Library of Congress … [Read more...]
Collection Spotlight: Civil Rights History Project
May 20, 2014 by Leave a Comment
The Civil Rights History Project collection is a direct result of the 2009 Civil Rights History Project Act. This law mandated the Library of Congress and the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture (NMAAHC) to conduct a survey of existing civil rights oral-history collections and enhance these collections by recording new interviews with people who contributed to the movement. This collection features new oral histories focused on the recollections of previously … [Read more...]
Collection Spotlight: Sports Byline USA
April 30, 2014 by Leave a Comment
This Library of Congress online collection offers audio recordings of a selection of Sports Byline USA radio program. This radio series has featured interviews with athletes, coaches, trainers, managers, owners, writers and other sports figures since 1988. Auto racing Jimmie Johnson 2011 Baseball Hank Aaron 03-05-1999 Jose Canseco 03-07-2005 Mickey Mantle 1994 Willie Mays 05-25-2000 Basketball Charles Barkley 2007 Elgin Baylor 09-09-1997 Bill … [Read more...]
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