Mainbocher: Designer of the “Best Dressed Women in the World”

Mainbocher, alongside Cmdr. Aileen Griffin, arriving in Dallas, TX for the 1960 WAVES Reunion (NAID 6328623) It was July 1960 and the city of Dallas, Texas was playing host to thousands of Women Accepted for Voluntary Emergency Service, who were in town to celebrate the 18th National Reunion of their historic unit. Established in 1942, … Continue reading Mainbocher: Designer of the “Best Dressed Women in the World”

soldier in uniform w/sunglasses looks down on camera smiling, ticker tape and skyscrapers stretch above him

Don’t Rain on My Parade

New York City has seen many ticker-tape parades.  Presidents.  Prime Ministers.  Kings.  Queens.  Astronauts.  Sports figures and teams.  Politicians.  Even one musician.  All have ridden through the high rise canyon of the Big Apple as the ticker-tape and shredded paper floated down and people cheered. U.S. Army Private First Class White waves an American flag … Continue reading Don’t Rain on My Parade

The Godfather Shoots Abroad

This year we celebrate the 50th anniversary of the motion picture The Godfather.  Even before that movie saw its release, the studio began work on the sequel – The Godfather Part II.  Photography began in October 1973, and the picture came out in December 1974. Some of the action in Part II takes place in … Continue reading The Godfather Shoots Abroad

poster w/Rock Hudson, Elizabeth Taylor, James Dean shown standing in 3 columns with GIANT written below imposed over a sunset

Cutting “Giant” Down to Size

The 1956 motion picture Giant was exactly that.  Three hours and 17 minutes long.  Directed by George Stevens.  Filled with stars: Elizabeth Taylor. Rock Hudson. James Dean (in his last film). Sal Mineo. Dennis Hopper. Carroll Baker. Jane Withers. Chill Wills. Mercedes McCambridge. Rod Taylor.  Music by Dimitri Tiomkin.  “Giant” received 10 Academy Award nominations, … Continue reading Cutting “Giant” Down to Size

players and officials gathered at the 50 yd line for coin toss

Football Related Records in the National Register of Historic Places

Six-Man Football Team #43, Nov 1938 (NAID 57274602) Super Bowl LVI will be played this weekend (Go Team!).  The month of February is traditionally when the National Football League (NFL) Championship is played, along with the Pro Bowl, which marks the end of the NFL season.  There are a number of football-related records in the … Continue reading Football Related Records in the National Register of Historic Places

movie poster showing clouds w/silhouetted figures in foreground

International Reaction to the Motion Picture “On the Beach”

An earlier post discussed the 1959, United Artists release of the major motion picture On the Beach.  The movie was based on the 1957 novel of the same name by Nevil Shute.  To recapitulate - Both the book and the movie take place in a post-apocalyptic world.  The nuclear fallout resulting from World War III … Continue reading International Reaction to the Motion Picture “On the Beach”

Text Message Top 5 of 2021

Please enjoy this countdown of our most popular blog posts of 2021. Thank you for continuing to read the Text Message and we hope you join us for more stories, insights, and highlights from the textual records of the National Archives in 2022! #5 "Lucy, I'm Home!"... from the Army Armed Forces Newsmap, vol 1, … Continue reading Text Message Top 5 of 2021

Still image from the Covered Wagon.

There’s No Business Like Show Business: Hollywood Comes to the Wind River Indian Reservation, 1922–1925

Today’s post is by Cody White, Archivist at the National Archives at Denver and Subject Matter Expert for Native American Related Records. It is the early 1870s, on the expansive western plains. Starvation is gripping an unspecified tribe. The once plentiful bison, those that their elders assured them could never be wiped out, were in … Continue reading There’s No Business Like Show Business: Hollywood Comes to the Wind River Indian Reservation, 1922–1925

“Wait a Minute Mr. Postman” Post Offices on the National Register of Historic Places

This post is part of an ongoing “road trip” featuring records from the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) and National Historic Landmarks Program Records, 2013 – 2017 (National Archives ID 20812721), a series within Record Group 79: Records of the National Park Service. "Clustered Mailboxes help the mailman whose route takes him to the Malibu Lake … Continue reading “Wait a Minute Mr. Postman” Post Offices on the National Register of Historic Places

Richard Nixon and Elvis Presley in the White House

“Don’t Be Cruel”: Elvis Presley’s Visit to FBI Headquarters

Today’s post is by Megan Dwyre, Special Access and FOIA Program Archivist at the National Archives at College Park, MD. Many of us are familiar with this photo of Elvis Presley’s famous meeting with President Richard Nixon, which took place on December 21, 1970. It is the most requested image in NARA’s holdings and the … Continue reading “Don’t Be Cruel”: Elvis Presley’s Visit to FBI Headquarters