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THIS WEEK’S NEW EPISODE
This week’s guest is Woody LaBounty, the CEO & President of San Francisco Heritage. Although SF Heritage advocates for historic preservation all over the city, its offices are in the insanely gorgeous Haas-Lilienthal House. And you can visit the house, too, every Wednesday and Saturday! We talk about what makes this house museum different from so many others, the big thing people get wrong about the Haas family, and how SF Heritage uses the house to tell the story of the city in microcosm. Plus, the most important question: Is the house haunted?
Find the podcast on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify — or find your favorite app here! A full transcript of this episode is available here.
BEHIND THE SCENES
😞 A shameful confession
CC BY-SA 2.0 / Julien Chatelain
I was just back at the Haas-Lilienthal House yesterday, shooting some of the B-roll you see in the video version of the episode, and I was reminded of something embarrassing. I used to live [Rob Lowe voice] literally five minutes away from this house, and I never went inside, until I made this episode.
As I’ve discussed before in this space, I didn’t realize how much I enjoyed going to museums until the places that were shut down during the height of COVID-19 reopened. Before every vacation since then, I’ve spent a not insignificant amount of time browsing Google Maps & Atlas Obscura for interesting museums, and I have almost always found something cool.
One topic I hope to explore more in future episodes is a problem that museums have in common with podcasters and writers and all other media: Discovery. In a world of abundant options for things to educate you and entertain you, how do you get through to people in your own community and beyond? Woody has some great ideas in this week’s show and I hope you’ll take a listen.
— Eric
THANK YOU TO OUR SPONSOR, GROMMET
Here’s Why Experts Say to Ditch Your Old Cutting Boards
Before you prep another meal, here’s what you need to know:
Plastic boards shed microplastic particles into your food with every cut.
Wooden boards trap moisture and food residue, the perfect breeding ground for hidden bacteria and toxic mold that transfers to your food.
IN MY INBOX
🎶 The Sound of Music, Black History, and Classic Cars
CC BY 2.0 / edwin.11
“Most Austrians – and Germans – still have never seen” The Sound of Music… but a new museum in Salzburg is bringing it to them anyway, telling the story of both the movie and the real von Trapps. [The Guardian]
Google Arts Y has a new tech demo called “The Talking Museum” that lets you converse and play games with nearly 200 3D objects. I haven’t had a chance to try it out now, but based on the promotional video, I wonder if the scale of these objects really comes through in the experience. [Google]
As it turns 10 years old, the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture is confident that it can continue on without political interference: “We have not changed any exhibitions. We haven't changed our language. We know that what we do is steeped in scholarship.” [ABC News]
“Museums are stepping forward as genuine partners in care,” helping visitors & staff cope with loneliness, anxiety, dementia, and more [MuseumNext]
A classic car museum in Bowling Green, Ohio is shutting down because no one knows how to maintain its collection anymore: “There are not many jobs in the car world that revolve around keeping ancient cars running… it’s not as lucrative as working in a commercial service bay where demand is high.” [The Drive]
THE GIFT SHOP
🎁 Anyone want to play cards?
Everyone who subscribes to this newsletter before November 10 has been entered into our Gift Shop Giveaway! (Full rules here)
(Not subscribed yet? You can do that right here.)
One of the prize packages will include this deck of playing cards from SF Heritage, featuring some of the most beautiful historic buildings of San Francisco. The winner will also get stickers, postcards, and maybe some surprise goodies!
💪 How to help the podcast:
Tell a friend: Forward this email to a museum lover in your life
Leave a review: On Apple Podcasts and/or Spotify
Before we go … this clip from last week’s episode about the California Radio Historical Society is doing numbers on Instagram. In case you missed it, here’s the history of the NBC chimes:
