Wednesday, January 25, 2017

ANOTHER POST FROM MADAME TUSSAUDS IN WASHINGTON DC

I found a YouTube on part of the process for making a wax figure. The artist was working on a copy of Adele for London's Madame Tussaud. You can find that here

At the entrance you will find Olympic swimmer, Michael Phelps.


And then a very noble looking Piscataway Indian. I tried to take photos of every marker so that I could read them later.  I missed a few.  The one near this figure said, "The Piscataway Indian was the most powerful and numerous Native American Nation in the Chesapeake area. Traditional enemy was the Iroquois - the two tribes frequently fought over land.  First contact with English colonists in 1608 - later brought disaster.  By 1668 the Piscataway were confined to two reservations.  Some groups fled to Pennsylvania and Canada to escape, while others stayed and assimilated with the colonists, neglecting their Native American Roots.  Chief Turkey Tayac was the last to learn the Piscataway language orally from his family.  He helped reorganize the tribe in the 1970s after years of neglect."   Reading all these markers was a great history lesson for me and, as often happens when I visit various museums, makes me want to find out more.  A great place for children to visit.


While walking around the wax museum, I kept expecting one to have been replaced by a real human for a prank, and a hand to rest on my shoulder. A flight of fancy but you can stretch your imagination in that place.  Some figures were an amazing likeness to whomever they were portraying.  Others you could tell the difference, and then there were those where you wouldn't know if they were exact, because these historical figures are long gone, still bearing a striking likeness to the portraits we have all seen.  All had such incredible detail you couldn't help but admire the people who created them, right down to their clothing.  It would have been an experience to go through the process of each figure's creation.  Another thing I liked was that nothing was behind glass.  You could get up close and examine all the details. There were also chairs for you to sit next to them and have your photograph taken, as in this one with Gregg and Abraham Lincoln depicting the scene of his fateful night at the theater.


Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States.

"Facts: Standing at 6' 4", Abraham Lincoln was the tallest US president.  Lincoln was the first president to be born outside of the 13 original US colonies.  Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation was issued on January 1st, 1863."  If you would like to learn more, you can go to this link.


Here is Benjamin Franklin and Gregg is trying to copy his expression.  Did he succeed?  Benjamin Franklin was the oldest of the Founding Fathers and was 84 when he passed away.  His mother was from a puritan family, his father was a candle maker.  Benjamin was one of 17 children and a voracious reader.  I added this link for more info.


Here is a photo of Cuz and me crossing the Delaware, helping George with his navigation.  We did a great job!


Winston Churchill makes an appearance I am very happy to say.  I am quite fond of Winnie, as were my parents.  Check here for info. Has anyone seen The Crown on Netflix?  I have just finished watching and think the actor John Lithgow does a fantastic job of portraying him.  He is a marvelous actor.  In fact, all the actors, in my humble opinion, did a slendid job of each role they play.  It is an excellent series.  When I was in England in 2014 we visited the Churchill War Rooms in London, and in the gift shop I bought a replica of that same bowtie to give to our son. 


I have more from Madame Tussauds, but  will stop here and post another time.

53 comments:

  1. Great series, Denise, and I love especially the photo of you and your cousin. You look radiant! This does look great for people of any age. Thank you so much for sharing.

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    1. You are very welcome Linda and thank you for your sweet comment.

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  2. I am always fascinated by the range of people depicted in Madame Tussauds. Celebrities, sportsmen and women, inspirational people...

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    1. I am glad they cover such a wide range of well-known figures. This is a smaller display than in other places I have seen but I still enjoyed what I did see.

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  3. Hi Denise, I found these posts fascinating. Thank you for supplying the link on how the Adele figure was made... really incredible as to the fine details - real human hair even on the eyebrows! I loved how people can stand (or sit) next to the figures too. Just brilliant. Can see how you enjoyed yourselves. Cheers now :D)

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    1. It was amazing to see how those figures took shape. Happy you enjoyed the video Sue.

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  4. I didn't recognise your blog for a while. Nice! Good to see you back, and to read your enlightening post. It's many years since I visited Tussauds in the UK - where stands another model of Churchill - but I remember how much I loved it.

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    1. Thank you Francisco. A hug and a good week to you also.

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  6. This is so wonderful and lifelike , all of them

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  7. Hello, these are great images. What a neat exhibit. I like that you can pose with the different wax figures. Happy Wednesday, enjoy your day!

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  8. Amazing Churchill, and wonderful post! Not a word out of place, packed with cool info!

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  9. That looks like a fascinating place. I've never been. I would sort of like to help George row across the Delaware!!

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  10. You had a great time and passed on lots of information and made us think. Benjamin Franklin was much more than a president.

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  11. they are truly fantastic, the eyes in Church look like they could blink, love you in the boat and yes, Gregg did look like Ben.. I did not know he was one of 17 children.

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    1. I stared into many eyes and was amazed at all the detail. I will tell Gregg he succeeded :)

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  12. Glad you made it over the Delaware OK.

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  13. Some fun shots! I'm always reminded of the line, "so aside from all that, Mrs. Lincoln, how was the theatre?"

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  14. They are amazing!

    And so nice, that they even provide chairs, so people can "enter" the tableau.

    I was thinking that Lincoln didn't look like pictures. Then I thought, we only see black and white pics. Does this make a difference, in our perception, I wonder???

    Thank you for the tour, of someplace I won't see.

    Gentle hugs,
    Luna Crone

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    1. I will have to study some of those black and white photos and let you know.

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  15. Watching Adele being born was an amazing video! The head artists are so talented! Toward the end, it looked like he was painting a real woman and doing her makeup! Lincoln and Phelps and Churchill are all identical to the people! I love your tours, since I will never get there! I was in a very small wax museum once, at Natural Bridge, and it was so dark you could hardly see to walk! Tussauds looks very light and pretty. And the best part is they let you come right in and pose with them!! I told you earlier that I was born n D.C., but I always thought Tussauds was in London!

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    1. Hi Ginnie, I am so glad you enjoyed the video. Watching the process was so interesting. I hope to go to the Natural Bridge one day. I will remember the wax museum you mentioned.

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  16. As I can see there are a lot of interesting people there but they are different from those I saw in London..

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    1. I expect they have several members of the Royal Family in London.

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  17. Hi Denise, another really interesting post, you can get involved at your Tussauds by engaging with the exhibits, something we cannot do in London, Glad to see you managed to cross the Delaware without mishap! Sir Winston Churchill was such a wonderful man. Gregg managed to sit next to Abraham Lincoln, are you ready with the camera, could be Trump next??. All the best Regards John

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    1. Thank you TJ. The crossing was easy :) A wax figure of Trump had already been put into the exhibit. We visited before that happened.

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  18. Well, that Piscataway man is quite handsome! And I would not want to sit so close to Lincoln in that theater!

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    1. Very handsome :) The actual theater isn't too far away. I have never been inside though.

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  19. Thank you Linda. If it hadn't been for our family, it may have been another few years before we visited.

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  20. I never thought of looking on youtube...watching that sure makes one appreciate the figures even more. I would never have cared to see them till now, and after seeing these and hearing what you have to say plus that video...I would love to see visit and see them all.

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    1. I felt the same way Rose. Happy you enjoyed my post :-)

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  21. this reminds me of the hall of presidents at Disney. a lot of talent here. you look like you're having fun in that boat!
    hugs,
    Marie

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    1. I hope I can check that place out one day. I had a lot of fun :)

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  22. I went to the one in England when we visited. I had pictures of me with various celeb wax figures--for a while, it was my screen saver at work. SO many people came into my cubicle and did a double take. "You got your picture with Hugh Grant? SO COOL!" We're getting a Madame Tussauds in Nashville in the mall we go to all the time near the Opry. I'm SO getting my picture with wax celebs there once I reach my weight loss goal.

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    1. I wonder if the one you are talking about was the Madame Tussauds in London? I was there before I got married, so going back almost 45-50 years. Each one caters to the area they are in. It will be interesting to see the one in Nashville. Hope you'll do a post of it when the time comes :)

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  23. It's a good thing that Lincoln didn't know what was about to happen in the theater. Gregg looked a bit too happy so maybe the play was a comedy? And not sure that Gregg and Franklin could pass as brothers.

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  24. Thanks for taking us with you on your trip to Madame Toussauds! Interesting fact about Lincoln! Gotto tell my son that, because he is 6'4"
    Have a great weekend!

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    1. Glad you enjoyed it. You have a great weekend too.

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  25. We loved "The Crown" and thought John Lithgow did a great job portraying Winston Churchill. He was a great man; we all owe him much.

    The wax Museum was Interesting way to learn history.

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    1. Very happy you enjoyed The Crown Sallie and I agree wholeheartedly about Churchill yes I agree, the museum was a fabulous place to learn history, sowing the seeds for seeking more. Great place for kids.

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  26. Wow! I can't get over how many there are! You must have been there a long time.

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  27. I have heard so much about this museum. I marvel at the great work of creating these figures to look so like real ones. I too wouldn't want to miss taking photos of any one of these figures.

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