Smithsonian Institution

🎊🎊Happy January! We are turning the page on the calendar to a new month full of free programs. Head to our website to learn more and let us know you're joining us: https://lnkd.in/eb9aJAuQ Highlights include: ✨ Free programs for visitors of all ages every Saturday ✨Free programs January 18 - January 20 celebrating Dr. King.

Though denied recognition by the American film industry for much of her career, actor and model Anna May Wong rose to fame as a box-office attraction and style icon while fighting for more authentic representations of Chinese Americans in Hollywood. From starring in silent films in the 1920s to earning acclaim on Broadway and in major films like “Daughter of the Dragon” (1931) and “Shanghai Express” (1932), Wong broke barriers. Still, since many Hollywood studios’ production codes restricted on-screen portrayals of interracial love, Wong was often disqualified from leading roles that would have advanced her career. Recognizing her work as a Chinese American groundbreaker in Hollywood, the Smithsonian continues to collect and share Wong’s legacy. In 2022, our Smithsonian National Museum of American History collected and later displayed a makeup box among other personal possessions that belonged to Wong and was donated by her niece, also named Anna. That same year, in 2022, our Smithsonian American Women's History Museum collaborated with the @unitedstatesmint on a quarter that featured Wong’s likeness as part of its American Women Quarters Program. Wong became the first Asian woman to be featured on U.S. currency. Wong was born on this day 120 years ago in 1905 in Los Angeles. 1: “Anna May Wong” by Carl Van Vechten, 1939. National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution. © Carl Van Vechten Trust 2: Anna Wong, niece of Anna May Wong, donated her aunt’s makeup case, cigarette case, and calling cards to our Smithsonian National Museum of American History in 2022. 3: Anna May Wong quarter, United States Mint's American Women Quarters Program, 2022.

Anna May Wong was the first Chinese American actress to become a major box-office attraction. Born Wong Liu Tsong in Los Angeles, California #OnThisDay in 1905, Wong earned critical acclaim as an actor. She landed her first roles in silent films, appearing in small parts of classics like “The Red Lantern” (1919) and “The Thief of Bagdad” (1924). Then, Wong successfully transitioned from silent films into talking pictures. Her role opposite Marlene Dietrich in “Shanghai Express” (1932) made her an international star. Wong found the American film industry limiting. As an Asian American, she was seldom cast in leading roles. By the 1930s, she was relegated to B pictures and went into semi-retirement not long after. In 1960, however, she claimed her place on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, just one year before her death. During her lifetime, she acted in more than 60 movies. 🎬⭐ 1. National Anthropological Archives. Edward S. Curtis, circa 1925. 2. “Anna May Wong” by Alice Pike Barney, ca. 1927. Smithsonian American Art Museum. Gift of Laura Dreyfus Barney and Natalie Clifford Barney in memory of their mother, Alice Pike Barney. 3. “Anna May Wong in ‘On The Spot'" (detail) by Joseph Grant, 1932. National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution. Gift of Carol Grubb and Jennifer Grant Castrup.

When asked where she came up with the bright colors in her quilts, Almira Buffalo Bone Jackson (Assiniboine [Stoney]) explained that she “dreamed the colors at night.” 🌙 A member of the Red Bottom band of the Fort Peck Assiniboine in Montana, Jackson was a prolific quilter. She learned to quilt from observing her mother-in-law, and, at one point, could finish a quilt in a day. Even well into her 70s, Jackson completed four quilts every month. She was also known for her other traditional skills such as drying deer, antelope, and vegetables for winter storage. Our National Museum of the American Indian is home to more than 20 of Jackson’s colorful quilts. 🧡: Almira Buffalo Bone Jackson (Almira Cox Jackson), Assiniboine (Stoney), 1917-2004, "Blue Sky Star," ca. 1968-1988. Wolf Point, Fort Peck Reservation; Roosevelt County; Montana; USA. Quilt, sewn, pieced, quilted, 234.2 x 195.0 cm 26/6322. 🩷: Almira Buffalo Bone Jackson (Almira Cox Jackson), Assiniboine (Stoney), 1917-2004, "Florence’s Quilt," ca. 1975-1981. Wolf Point, Fort Peck Reservation; Roosevelt County; Montana; USA. Quilt, sewn, pieced, quilted, 260.2 x 218.2 cm 26/6372. 💚 : Almira Buffalo Bone Jackson (Almira Cox Jackson), Assiniboine (Stoney), 1917-2004, "Spring Green Star," ca. 1968-1980. Wolf Point, Fort Peck Reservation; Roosevelt County; Montana; USA. Quilt, sewn, pieced, quilted, 238.2 x 221.0 cm. 26/6337.

#OnThisDay, President Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation. It read, "all persons held as slaves" within the rebellious states "are, and henceforward shall be free." #ANationsStory 📸 Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture.

Americans have been looking for a cure to the dreaded hangover throughout U.S. history. Explore a few of the 20th-century remedies for “over-indulgence” in food and alcohol in the collection of our Smithsonian National Museum of American History. 🍾 De Angelis Effervescent with Citrate of Magnesia (1904): “It is most efficient for stomach disturbances, acidity and gas. Best suited to reduce weight.” 🍻 Brioschi (1907): “A pleasant, quick acting, effective antacid relieving upset stomach, hyperacidity, fullness, sour stomach, heart ache and forms of distress due to over-indulgence in food or drink” 🍷 Emerson's Bromo-Seltzer (1906): “Remedy for nervous headache, neuralgia, brain fatigue, sleeplessness, over-brain work, depression following alcoholic and other excesses, mental exhaustion”

“A complete unknown, like a rolling stone...” Bob Dylan performed his song “Like a Rolling Stone” in front of a live audience for the first time when he famously “went electric,” backed by a full band, at the Newport Folk Festival in 1965. These photos from @smithsonianfolklife’s Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections capture him onstage during this set and at Newport that year. Fun fact: Bob Dylan made several recordings under the pseudonym Blind Boy Grunt. These recordings, released on two "Broadside Ballads" albums on Smithsonian Folkways Recordings, are available to hear. s.si.edu/40fkpGT 📸 by Diana J. Davies

From the desk of Smithsonian Secretary Lonnie G. Bunch III: Displayed in Tokyo in 1994, the “Smithsonian's America” exhibition gave Japanese visitors a taste of American culture. President Jimmy Carter was there for the opening. In his gracious way, he told the emperor of our pride in bringing a little of America to Japan.   Not only did we display Kermit and a 1955 Thunderbird convertible, we addressed the dark corners of American history. Known for his honesty, President Carter brought new voices and diversity into his administration and tried to make government “as good as the American people.”   This 1979 portrait of President Carter and First Lady Rosalynn Carter from National Portrait Gallery is a favorite of mine. Famed nature photographer Ansel Adams took it—and struck up a friendship with the Carters. The U.S. National Archives has the story behind the photo. https://bit.ly/4iNX1Y2

From the desk of Smithsonian Secretary Lonnie G. Bunch III: Reflecting on the memory of Richard Parsons, leader, businessman, and longtime supporter of our Smithsonian's National Museum of African American History and Culture, I am struck by a great sense of loss. Dick was a brilliant business leader but an even better mentor and visionary who, with Linda Johnson Rice, shaped the early years of the National Museum of African American History and Culture. In this photo, he is on the left at the museum's 2012 groundbreaking. As a new director, I benefited from Dick's wisdom gained over years of experience. When I worried, Dick helped find a way forward. Despite his enormous responsibilities, he made time to meet with me when I needed to lean on him as a guiding force. As a co-chair of the founding council of the National Museum of African American History and Culture, Dick's support meant the world to me. My condolences to his friends, family, and community.

Happy Kwanzaa! In 2004, the U.S. Postal Service commissioned artist Daniel Minter to design a new stamp to celebrate the African American and Pan-African holiday, founded in 1966. Minter’s illustration features seven figures in colorful robes that represent the holiday’s seven principles. Minter’s work is on view in our Smithsonian's National Museum of African American History and Culture’s first international touring exhibition “In Slavery’s Wake: Making Black Freedom in the World,” which opened on December 13. Swipe to see previews of the artist’s installation “Universe of Freedom Making” (2024) which weaves together constellations of Black liberatory actions and symbols. Looking for ways to celebrate #Kwanzaa this year? Join us in-person and online for: 🖤creative arts workshops at our Smithsonian National Museum of African Art on Dec. 26, 27, 30, and 31 ❤️daily family-friendly programming at our Smithsonian's Anacostia Community Museum from Dec. 26 through Jan. 1 💚an online celebration of Kuumba (Creativity) with Danielle Ponder from our Smithsonian's National Museum of African American History and Culture on Dec. 31 Credit: 37c Kwanzaa single, 2004, National Postal Museum. © USPS. All rights reserved. Detail of “The Universe of Freedom Making,” Daniel Minter, 2024, on view in “In Slavery’s Wake: Making Black Freedom in the World” at our Smithsonian's National Museum of African American History and Culture.