Library of Congress Founded
On April 24, 1800, President John Adams officially established the Library of Congress. It’s America’s oldest federal cultural institution, and one of the largest libraries in the world, with more than 171 million items.
Art
Birth of Raphael
Raffaello Sanzio da Urbino, better known as Raphael, is believed to have been born on either March 28 or April 6, 1483, in Urbino, Duchy of Urbino. Raphael produced a large number of paintings during his short life and is considered one of the great masters of his time.
Birth of Bradbury Thompson
Award-winning graphic designer J. Bradbury Thompson was born on March 25, 1911, in Topeka, Kansas. Thompson designed more than 100 US postage stamps and influenced countless others, making him one of the most prolific US stamp designers in history.
Happy Birthday Ezra Keats
Ezra Jack Keats was born on March 11, 1916, in Brooklyn, New York. Keats was a writer and illustrator of children’s books, most famously, The Snowy Day.
Birth of Harvey Dunn
Harvey Thomas Dunn was born on March 8, 1884, near Manchester, South Dakota. Dunn was influenced all his life by the South Dakota prairie where he was born. He once said that he preferred painting pictures of early South Dakota life to any other subject.
Birth of Dean Cornwell
Dean Cornwell was born on March 5, 1892, in Louisville, Kentucky. A prominent illustrator and muralist, his work became familiar to many Americans, appearing in books, advertisements, and World War II posters. He was known as the “Dean of Illustrators.”
Birth of Artist Winslow Homer
Winslow Homer was born on February 24, 1836, in Boston, Massachusetts. Largely self-taught, he was one of the most prominent painters of the 1800s.
Birth of Frederic Ives
Frederic Eugene Ives was born on February 17, 1856, in Litchfield, Connecticut. He developed the first successful half-tone process and invented the “Kromskop,” which projected three identical images through different colored filters to produce some of the first color photographs.
Pinocchio Premiers
On February 7, 1940, Pinocchio debuted at the Center Theatre in New York City. It was Disney’s second full-length animated feature film and the first to win a competitive Academy Award.