| National Museum of American History

This Museum's popular entertainment collections hold some of the Smithsonian's most beloved artifacts. The ruby slippers worn by Judy Garland in The Wizard of Oz reside here, along with the Muppet character Kermit the Frog, and props from popular television series such as M*A*S*H and All in the Family. But as in many of the Museum's collections, the best-known objects are a small part of the story.

The collection also encompasses many other artifacts of 19th- and 20th-century commercial theater, film, radio, and TV—some 50,000 sound recordings dating back to 1903; posters, publicity stills, and programs from films and performances; puppets; numerous items from World's Fairs from 1851 to 1992; and audiovisual materials on Groucho Marx, to name only a few.

Deford Bailey spent fifteen years as a regular member of the Grand Ole Opry (1926-1941). In that time he established himself as one of the show's most popular performers and an influential harmonica player.

Description: Deford Bailey spent fifteen years as a regular member of the Grand Ole Opry (1926-1941). In that time he established himself as one of the show's most popular performers and an influential harmonica player. As a master of blues, jazz, and old-time country, Bailey was a vital link between older and more modern music styles. In 1974, he returned to the Opry stage as part of the "Old Timers' Reunion." He is most well-known for "Pan American Blues," a harmonica piece that sounds like a passing locomotive.
Location: Currently not on view

negative: 1973
print: 2003

maker: Horenstein, Henry

ID Number: 2003.0169.043
accession number: 2003.0169
catalog number: 2003.0169.043

Carl and Pearl Butler pose for photographs with fans.Currently not on view

Description: Carl and Pearl Butler pose for photographs with fans.
Location: Currently not on view

negative: 1973
print: 2003

Associated Name: Butler, Pearl; Butler, Carl
maker: Horenstein, Henry

ID Number: 2003.0169.090
accession number: 2003.0169
catalog number: 2003.0169.090

Henry Horenstein photographed Ricky Skaggs (b. 1954) several times as a member of Emmylou Harris's Hot Band and as a memeber of J. D. Crowe & the New South.

Description: Henry Horenstein photographed Ricky Skaggs (b. 1954) several times as a member of Emmylou Harris's Hot Band and as a memeber of J. D. Crowe & the New South. A multi-talented singer and instrumentalist, Ricky Skaggs's success helped inspire the new traditionalist movement, and was largely responsible for a back-to-basics movement in country music.
Location: Currently not on view

negative: 1980
print: 2003

depicted (sitter): Skaggs, Ricky
maker: Horenstein, Henry

ID Number: 2003.0169.020
accession number: 2003.0169
catalog number: 2003.0169.020

The first accordion was built in Germany in 1822. It took close to one hundred years before it was introduced into country music.Currently not on view

Description: The first accordion was built in Germany in 1822. It took close to one hundred years before it was introduced into country music.
Location: Currently not on view

negative: 1977
print: 2003

maker: Horenstein, Henry

ID Number: 2003.0169.027
accession number: 2003.0169
catalog number: 2003.0169.027

Currently not on view

Location: Currently not on view

depicted; performing artist: Baby Rose Marie
photographer: Seymour, Maurice
maker: Shapiro, Maurice

ID Number: 2006.0248.24
catalog number: 2006.0248.24
accession number: 2006.0248

Fred's Lounge was a well-known honky-tonk in the heart of Cajun country. The bar opened at 7 a.m. on Saturday mornings to host the droves of visitors who came to hear the local bands that played from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.Currently not on view

Description: Fred's Lounge was a well-known honky-tonk in the heart of Cajun country. The bar opened at 7 a.m. on Saturday mornings to host the droves of visitors who came to hear the local bands that played from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Location: Currently not on view

negative: 1977
print: 2003

maker: Horenstein, Henry

ID Number: 2003.0169.039
accession number: 2003.0169
catalog number: 2003.0169.039

Bartender Wanda Lohman, known as "Miss Wanda," worked at Tootsie's Orchid Lounge from 1960 to 1984. The walls of Tootsie's became a kind of community scrapbook. Tootsie, like her patrons, was a fan of country music.

Description: Bartender Wanda Lohman, known as "Miss Wanda," worked at Tootsie's Orchid Lounge from 1960 to 1984. The walls of Tootsie's became a kind of community scrapbook. Tootsie, like her patrons, was a fan of country music. She collected autographs, posters, record albums, and photographs. Patrons, family, and friends contributed their comments and added photos.
Location: Currently not on view

negative: 1974
print: 2003

maker: Horenstein, Henry

ID Number: 2003.0169.107
catalog number: 2003.0169.107
accession number: 2003.0169

For much of his career, Ernest Tubb, the "Texas Troubadour" was considered the ultimate honky tonk vocalist and stylist. Inspired by Jimmie Rodgers in the 1920s, Tubb sustained a musical career that at times also branched into film and television.

Description: For much of his career, Ernest Tubb, the "Texas Troubadour" was considered the ultimate honky tonk vocalist and stylist. Inspired by Jimmie Rodgers in the 1920s, Tubb sustained a musical career that at times also branched into film and television. No artist toured as much, or for as long as Ernest Tubb, who worked 150 to 200 shows each year between the early 1960s and 1982. No artist was kinder to his fans, and no fans were more loyal to their star. Ernest Tubb had one national fan club with a single president for its entire existence between 1944 and its deactivation in the early 1990s.
Location: Currently not on view

negative: 1973
print: 2003

maker: Horenstein, Henry

ID Number: 2003.0169.086
accession number: 2003.0169
catalog number: 2003.0169.086

For nearly 60 years, Breecher Ray "Bashful Brother Oswald" Kirby (1911-2002) was one of the most influential and talented dobro players in country music.Currently not on view

Description: For nearly 60 years, Breecher Ray "Bashful Brother Oswald" Kirby (1911-2002) was one of the most influential and talented dobro players in country music.
Location: Currently not on view

print: 2003

maker: Horenstein, Henry

ID Number: 2003.0169.048
accession number: 2003.0169
catalog number: 2003.0169.048

Photographer Henry Horenstein stands with Mother Maybelle Carter for photograph.Currently not on view

Description: Photographer Henry Horenstein stands with Mother Maybelle Carter for photograph.
Location: Currently not on view

negative: 1973
print: 2003

Associated Name: Horenstein, Henry; Carter, Mother Maybelle
maker: Horenstein, Henry; Rosenburg, Lewis

ID Number: 2003.0169.093
accession number: 2003.0169
catalog number: 2003.0169.093

Fans cover the hillside enjoying the performance of J.D. Crowe (b.1937) and his band, The New South.Currently not on view

Description: Fans cover the hillside enjoying the performance of J.D. Crowe (b.1937) and his band, The New South.
Location: Currently not on view

negative: n.d.
print: 2003

maker: Horenstein, Henry

ID Number: 2003.0169.009
accession number: 2003.0169
catalog number: 2003.0169.009

date made: 1957

depicted (sitter): Monroe, Marilyn
maker: Avedon, Richard

ID Number: PG.67.102.001
catalog number: 67.102.1
accession number: 270571

The youngest of the three Carter Sisters, Anita began performing with Mother Maybelle and the Carter Family at age four. She performed with her mother and sisters throughout her career, though she found success of her own during the 1950s.

Description: The youngest of the three Carter Sisters, Anita began performing with Mother Maybelle and the Carter Family at age four. She performed with her mother and sisters throughout her career, though she found success of her own during the 1950s. Anita (1933-1999) was the first to record the song "Ring of Fire," written by her sister June (1929-2003). It later became a hit for her brother-in-law Johnny Cash.
Location: Currently not on view

negative: 1973
print: 2003

maker: Horenstein, Henry

ID Number: 2003.0169.078
accession number: 2003.0169
catalog number: 2003.0169.078

Billy Bird, seen here autographing a paper plate, played with Ernest Tubb (1920-2001) and was a pioneer of the electric guitar.Currently not on view

Description: Billy Bird, seen here autographing a paper plate, played with Ernest Tubb (1920-2001) and was a pioneer of the electric guitar.
Location: Currently not on view

negative: 1973
print: 2003

maker: Horenstein, Henry

ID Number: 2003.0169.075
accession number: 2003.0169
catalog number: 2003.0169.075

Born Clarence Eugene Snow (1914-1999) and known as "The Singing Ranger," Hank Snow possessed one of the most distinctive voices and styles in country music.

Description: Born Clarence Eugene Snow (1914-1999) and known as "The Singing Ranger," Hank Snow possessed one of the most distinctive voices and styles in country music. Rooted in the folk songs of his native Canada, Snow's music included the "blue yodels" of his idol Jimmie Rodgers, cowboy songs, Tin Pan Alley standards, and songs written by himself and other Nashville tunesmiths. In 1951, he and Anita Carter hit the record charts with "Bluebird Island" and its B-side, "Down the Trail of Achin' Hearts."
Location: Currently not on view

print: 2003

maker: Horenstein, Henry

ID Number: 2003.0169.053
accession number: 2003.0169
catalog number: 2003.0169.053

Charlie Monroe, Bill Monroe's older brother, helped lay the groundwork for bluegrass music during their few years together. The brothers separated in 1938, after recording for only two years. Charlie continued to perform until he retired in 1957.

Description: Charlie Monroe, Bill Monroe's older brother, helped lay the groundwork for bluegrass music during their few years together. The brothers separated in 1938, after recording for only two years. Charlie continued to perform until he retired in 1957. Thanks to Jimmy Martin's persuasion, Monroe re-emerged in 1972 and performed again until his death in 1975.
Location: Currently not on view

negative: 1973
print: 2003

Associated Name: Monroe, Charlie
maker: Horenstein, Henry

ID Number: 2003.0169.105
catalog number: 2003.0169.105
accession number: 2003.0169

The Coopers welcomed Henry Horestein in their home, a great example of the accessibility of stars just thirty years ago. Wilma Lee (Leigh Leary, b. 1921) and Stoney Cooper (Dale Troy, 1918-1977) ranked as one of the great husband-wife teams in country music.

Description: The Coopers welcomed Henry Horestein in their home, a great example of the accessibility of stars just thirty years ago. Wilma Lee (Leigh Leary, b. 1921) and Stoney Cooper (Dale Troy, 1918-1977) ranked as one of the great husband-wife teams in country music. Their musical careers helped to bridge older and newer styles.
Location: Currently not on view

negative: 1974
print: 2003

maker: Horenstein, Henry

ID Number: 2003.0169.038
accession number: 2003.0169
catalog number: 2003.0169.038

Currently not on view

Location: Currently not on view

date made: 1967

depicted (sitter): Jefferson Airplane
maker: Powers, Mark James

ID Number: 2013.0222.25
catalog number: 2013.0222.25
accession number: 2013.0222

Silver print on mounted board by Will Connell from the book, "In Pictures." Paste-up of faces peering in "Casting" window.Will Connell (1898-1961) was an influential photographer, teacher and author in Southern California known for his often-satirical “modern pictorialist” style,

Description (Brief): Silver print on mounted board by Will Connell from the book, "In Pictures." Paste-up of faces peering in "Casting" window.
Description: Will Connell (1898-1961) was an influential photographer, teacher and author in Southern California known for his often-satirical “modern pictorialist” style, commercial photography work and mentorship of a generation of photographers. The National Museum of American History’s Photographic History collection received a donation of 11 prints of various subjects from Connell’s wife in 1963. This donation was followed by another, from Connell’s son, in 1977, comprised of the 49 prints published in In Pictures.; Connell was born in McPherson, Kansas, but moved to California soon after. As a young man in Los Angeles, Connell came into contact with the thriving California camera clubs of the 1910s and 1920s, and more importantly, the burgeoning Hollywood film industry. After a brief stint in the U.S. Army Signal Corps at the end of the first World War, Connell worked a variety of odd jobs while experimenting in amateur photography. Several motion picture studios hired Connell to photograph actors and actresses in the 1920s and 1930s, and he soon became a professional.; Connell’s glamour shots of stars such as Myrna Loy, as well as his growing body of art photography, reveal pictorialist influence, and his work was often exhibited at salons and exhibitions throughout the United States. In the 1930s, Connell began working as a photographer for magazines including the Saturday Evening Post, Colliers, Time and Vogue, started teaching photography at Art Center College and continued work at the Los Angeles studio he opened in 1925. Connell spent the rest of his life in Los Angeles, teaching, judging work, producing commercial work and writing, notably, his "Counsel by Connell" column in US Camera, which he authored for 15 years.; His first book, In Pictures, was published in 1937. Now considered a classic work of satire, the book featured montaged, often surreal images that mocked the Hollywood studio system and a public enamored with the motion picture industry. The photographs were published alongside a fictional account of a meeting of Hollywood moguls, written by several of Connell’s friends in the business. While the images appear to be a marked departure from Connell’s earlier soft-focus pictorialism, the sharp, poignant photographs nevertheless retain that movement’s emphasis on composition and communication of a message. In Pictures also pays homage to the film industry where the photographer cut his teeth – many of the images feature close-ups, characteristic stage lighting, and influence of the glamour of Hollywood’s Golden Age.; Connell, in his work and teaching until his death in 1961, is cited as an influence on an entire generation of photographers, including Dr. Dain Tasker (COLL.PHOTOS.000031). His 1949 book About Photography outlined an artistic philosophy that stressed a straight-forward, communicative style of photography and expressed the author’s belief that even the most commercial work can have artistic merit. A 1963 monograph in US Camera featured fond remembrances from friends Ansel Adams and Dorothea Lange, among others, who praised Connell for his warm personality and unique work.; Related Collections:; Dain Tasker collection, Photographic History Collection, NMAH; Will Connell collection, California Museum of Photography, University of California, Riverside, California; Will Connell papers, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California; Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Los Angeles, California; Art Center School Archives, Pasadena, California
Location: Currently not on view

date made: ca 1937

maker: Connell, Will

ID Number: PG.77.94.18
accession number: 1981.0549
catalog number: 77.94.18

date made: 1960

maker: Avedon, Richard

ID Number: PG.67.102.038
catalog number: 67.102.38
accession number: 270571

Loretta Lynn is a classic country singer whose life--from her autobiography, Coal Miner's Daughter--is a well-known story. She was one of the first stars to sing with a feminist point of view.

Description: Loretta Lynn is a classic country singer whose life--from her autobiography, Coal Miner's Daughter--is a well-known story. She was one of the first stars to sing with a feminist point of view. Her songs, like "Don't Come Home a-Drinkin' (with Lovin' on Your Mind)" and "The Pill," broke new ground in country music. Lynn (b. 1935) and Conway Twitty were named Vocal Duo of the Year by the Country Music Association for years in a row in the early 1970s.
Location: Currently not on view

negative: 1971
print: 2003

depicted (sitter): Lynn, Loretta
maker: Horenstein, Henry

ID Number: 2003.0169.011
accession number: 2003.0169
catalog number: 2003.0169.011

The program seller, "Black Cat" was a familiar face to many in Nashville.Currently not on view

Description: The program seller, "Black Cat" was a familiar face to many in Nashville.
Location: Currently not on view

negative: 1972
print: 2003

maker: Horenstein, Henry

ID Number: 2003.0169.059
accession number: 2003.0169
catalog number: 2003.0169.059

One of the most recognizable figures in country music, Porter Wagoner was known as the "Thin Man from West Plains, Missouri." He began recording music in 1954 after several years of singing on a local radio station. In 1961, Wagoner (b.

Description: One of the most recognizable figures in country music, Porter Wagoner was known as the "Thin Man from West Plains, Missouri." He began recording music in 1954 after several years of singing on a local radio station. In 1961, Wagoner (b. 1927) began to host his own country music television show, which was syndicated for 21 years.
Location: Currently not on view

negative: 1972
print: 2003

depicted (sitter): Wagoner, Porter
maker: Horenstein, Henry

ID Number: 2003.0169.022
accession number: 2003.0169
catalog number: 2003.0169.022

Norman Blake (b. 1938) ranks as one of the major bluegrass guitarists of the 1970s. Proficient with a variety of instruments, he played as a sideman to June Carter, Bob Dylan, and other artists.

Description: Norman Blake (b. 1938) ranks as one of the major bluegrass guitarists of the 1970s. Proficient with a variety of instruments, he played as a sideman to June Carter, Bob Dylan, and other artists. He played with Joan Baez in the recording of her hit, "The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down."
Location: Currently not on view

negative: 1974
print: 2003

Associated Name: Blake, Norman
maker: Horenstein, Henry

ID Number: 2003.0169.100
accession number: 2003.0169
catalog number: 2003.0169.100

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Popular Entertainment

DeFord Bailey

Fans with Carl and Pearl Butler

Ricky Skaggs

Accordian Player, Louisiana

Baby Rose Marie

"Hot Nuts" Fred's Lounge, Mamou, Louisiana

Tootsies' Bartender

Ernest Tubb signing autographs

Bashful Brother Oswald

Henry Horenstein with Maybelle Carter

J.D. Crowe & the New South

Marilyn Monroe and Arthur Miller

Anita Carter

Billy Bird

Hank Snow

Charlie Monroe

Stoney and Wilma Lee Cooper

Bill Graham Goes Off on Jefferson Airplane

Extras

Truman Capote and Perry Smith

Loretta Lynn

Program Seller

Porter Wagoner

Norman Blake