Smithsonian Channel · Ended

Stories from the Vaults

History · 2007

Last aired: S2 E7, Villains and Rogues · 2009-08-23

Ever wonder what's hiding behind the scenes of America's most renowned museum complex? Find out as host Tom Cavanagh ("Ed") takes you on an entertaining insider's tour of the private rooms, high-tech vaults, and cutting edge labs of the Smithsonian Institution, revealing some of the amazing artifacts and rarely seen treasures that visitors can't see. Follow along as Tom uncovers the history of each object-its origins, how it's being preserved and studied, and what it might tell us.

Cast

Tom Cavanagh Host

Season 2

Season 1 Season 2

E1 Let's Eat! 2009-07-12 · 27 min Join host Tom Cavanagh as he goes behind the scenes at the Smithsonian to cook Native American dishes with the executive chef of Mitsitam Cafe.

E2 Top Secret 2009-07-19 · 27 min Spies, missiles and the Hope Diamond. Unlock the mysteries hidden inside the Smithsonian vaults with host Tom Cavanagh.

E3 Nature's Vault 2009-07-26 · 27 min Tom Cavanagh takes you to the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute in Panama. Follow him as he tracks sloths, searches for clues to the creation of the Panamanian Isthmus, and rises 16 stories in a crane to research bug life atop the rainforest.

E4 Crystal Ball 2009-08-02 · 27 min Tom taps into the Smithsonian's vaults and labs to gaze into the future...as we envisioned it in the 1930s and as we look forward today. First, Tom visits the Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum to examine designers' visions of tomorrow via the 1939 World's Fair collection. Then, he heads to Panama to talk to scientists helping to preserve the future of the tropical rainforest.

E5 Going, Going, Gone 2009-08-09 · 27 min Host Tom Cavanagh joins the Smithsonian on a mission of "extreme conservation" to protect the best aspects of our world for future generations. See the amazing amount of work that goes into saving animals from the brink of extinction, preserving a provocative work of art, or reviving a genre of music.

E6 Sex 101 2009-08-16 · 27 min Research into sexuality is kicking at the Smithsonian. Explore the love letters of Jackson Pollock and Frida Kahlo, stories about "the birds and the bees," and laws of attraction between fiddler crabs.

E7 Villains and Rogues 2009-08-23 · 27 min Host Tom Cavanagh takes on the bad guys and digs up some pretty incriminating evidence from the Smithsonian vaults. His investigation unearths photographic evidence from the Crime of the Century, new details on America's first "Lone Gunman": John Wilkes Booth, and creepy facts about everyone's favorite natural villain, the snake.

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