Ann Arbor, 1900-1975: A Woman's Town [QuickTime]
http://www.si.umich.edu/CHICO/aawomen/index.html
Bringing together the perspectives of 13 different women, this site contains video clips from two different documentaries that tell about the colorful history of Ann Arbor. Assisted by the Cultural Heritage Initiative for Community Outreach at the University of Michigan, the brief video clips feature these women talking about the topics such as the civil rights movement during the 1960s and 1970s, as well as conversations about spiritual life in the community. The interviews are searchable by subject and by each individual person. For persons seeking a broader contextual setting for some of the subjects discussed, a timeline of African-American history rounds out the site. [KMG]
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The Quest for Immortality: Treasures of Ancient Egypt [QuickTime, RealPlayer]
http://www.nga.gov/exhibitions/2002/egypt/index.htm
This new online exhibit from the National Gallery of Art will be a real treat for those with a passion for the ancient civilization of Egypt. Focusing on the ancient Egyptians notion of immortality, the site utilizes a variety of audio and visual material to bring the visitor into the experience of the exhibit. Using the QuickTime application, visitors can take an interactive tour of the Tomb of Thutmose III, which provides a detailed explication of the symbolic importance of the objects and hieroglyphs in the tomb. Visitors can also experience streaming slideshows that feature the narration of various experts regarding different objects, or if they desire, they can read the transcript instead. The site also has a link to the exhibition's gift shop and different brochures produced in association with the exhibit. [KMG]
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Bob Hope and American Variety
http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/bobhope/
One of the most enduring legends of American film, stage, and screen receives an excellent tribute on this online exhibit from the Library of Congress, dealing with his 70 year career, and more broadly, the enduring legacy and history of vaudeville in the United States. Different sections of the site include an essay on the early life of Bob Hope, the story of American vaudeville in the first decades of the 20th century, and documentation on Bob Hope's prodigious service abroad for the United Service Organization (USO). One of the most compelling sections of the site is titled Faces of Bob Hope, which contains dozens of the portraits and good-natured caricatures of the visage that Bing Crosby often referred to as "The Ski Slope." Another useful section contains information about Mr. Hope's voluminous joke file (over 85,000 pages), along with several scanned images of these pages. [KMG]
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Centropa: Jewish Heritage in Central and Eastern Europe
http://www.centropa.org/mainpage/main.asp
A nonprofit organization based in Vienna, Austria, the Centropa group is headed up by a team of historians, educators, photographers, and other artists and scholars. The site contains a number of different oral history and photographic archives, in addition to sections dealing with contemporary Jewish life in the region and around the world. The basic search options within each of these sections allows visitors to choose a country of interest and to highlight certain themes (such as religious figures or personal letters), so that the results will be customized appropriately. An advanced search option allows visitors to look for materials based on family surname and city. The site concludes with a section that offers suggestions for eating in different restaurants around Eastern Europe and with travel tips for the area compiled by Ruth Ellen Gruber, who has published three books on Jewish Europe. [KMG]
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BBC Learning
http://www.bbc.co.uk/learning/courses/
The BBC Learning Web site (last mentioned in the May 5, 1995 Scout Report), is now providing a series of short online learning courses for persons hoping to gain a helpful introduction to a number of topics. Current courses include Becoming Webwise; How to be a Gardener; and several on history, including Victorian Britain. Particularly helpful are the short courses in German, French, Italian, and Spanish. All of the different language courses are accompanies by audio and video clips so that users will have more a comprehensive and holistic understanding of the language in context. For those looking for an introduction to a number of subjects, these learning tools will prove quite valuable. [KMG]
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The Hermitage: The Home of Andrew Jackson
http://www.thehermitage.com/
The Ladies Hermitage Association has assembled a variety of material dealing with one of the most beloved Presidential homes in the United States -- the Hermitage, the palatial home of "Old Hickory." Divided into several key sections, the site contains material on planning a visit to the home, upcoming events at the house, future programs, current exhibits, and the archaeological research in progress on the grounds. Also linked to the site are the previous incarnations of the current site, which also feature information on the former slave community and plantation operation associated with the Hermitage in the 19th century. [KMG]
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Ohio Exploration Society
http://www.ohioexploration.com/
Frequently updated, the Ohio Exploration Society site is devoted to documenting the history and development of numerous sites of cultural importance, including cemeteries, Indian mounds, parks, and other aspects of the built environment. Extensive photo documentation is offered on the site, with commentary on each of the locales that provides background information about the history of each site. For those who may be interested in joining the Ohio Exploration Society, membership information is provided, along with a Code of Conduct for those interested in the expeditions. The site is rounded out by a selection of links that deal with exploring different parts of Ohio. [KMG]
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