Channing, Lansbury, Henderson and More to Donate Career Memorabilia to National Museum

By Andrew Gans
17 Jan 2008

Ten legends from stage and screen will donate objects from their award-winning careers to the National Museum of American History, which is part of the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C.

A by-invitation-only ceremony will be held Jan. 29 at the El Portal Theatre in North Hollywood, CA, to unveil the various donations. The museum will receive items from Carol Channing, Phyllis Diller, Tippi Hedren, Florence Henderson, Angela Lansbury, June Lockhart, Rose Marie, Julie Newmar and Esther Williams.

The 5 PM event will feature remarks by the museum's director Brent D. Glass, entertainment curator Dwight Bowers and the starry donors.

Items being donated to the National Museum of American History follow:

Carol Channing: Diamonds gown worn as Lorelei and her 1964 Tony Award for Hello, Dolly!

Phyllis Diller: Her personal library and collection of jokes

Tippi Hedren: The original scripts with notes for Hitchcock's "The Birds" and "Marnie" as well as for Chaplin's "The Countess From Hong Kong."

Florence Henderson: The TV Land Pop Icon Award

Angela Lansbury: Mame's dressing gown (donated by Stephanie Troulman) and bugle from Broadway and the typewriter from "Murder She Wrote" (co-donated by Universal Studios)

June Lockhart: Her Tony Award for her role in For Love or Money

Rose Marie: The Baby Rose Marie dress and shoes from "Baby Rose Marie the Child Wonder," a dress from The Dick Van Dyke Show and her signature black hair bow.

Julie Newmar: The Catwoman outfit from "Batman."

Esther Williams: Her two MGM career scrapbooks.

The Entertainment Collections at the National Museum of American History, according to a press statement, "preserve a dazzling array of artifacts that presents the history of American life through the brightly-colored perspectives of theater, film, radio, television, puppetry, circuses, carnivals, and popular music."