Latest news with #SmithsonianInstitution
CBS News
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- CBS News
Big Tex is stepping into history and out of Texas
His famous size-96 Lucchese boots are heading to Washington, D.C., where they'll be displayed at the Smithsonian Institution as part of a new exhibit. For the first time, this specific pair of boots will leave the Lone Star State to join "State Fairs: Growing American Craft," a year-long exhibition celebrating the rich cultural traditions of state fairs across the country. Opening August 22, 2025, and running through September 7, 2026, the exhibit will showcase iconic pieces of Americana. From Iowa's life-sized butter cow to a pyramid of 700 glass jars filled with preserved fruit. Texas, of course, had to go big. This marks just the second time in history Big Tex's boots have left Texas and the first time for his current pair. But Texans can rest easy: Big Tex won't be barefoot for long. He's set to receive a brand-new pair of boots before the 2025 State Fair of Texas kicks off in Dallas. Big Tex has been a larger-than-life figure since his debut at the 1952 State Fair of Texas. Initially created as a giant Santa Claus for the small town of Kerens, Texas, he stood 49 feet tall, made of iron pipe, papier-mâché, cloth, and rope. In 1951, fair officials purchased the giant Santa for $750 (roughly $500,00 today). And made some modifications to transform him into the cowboy greeter Texans know and love. He traded in his red suit for denim, a 75-gallon hat, and a pair of size 70 boots, which he eventually outgrew and upgraded to his now size 96 Lucchese boots. For more than 65 years, Big Tex has stood tall as a symbol of Texas hospitality and pride, welcoming millions of fairgoers each fall. Big Tex's boots aren't just functional, they're a work of art. In 2019, the State Fair launched its first-ever boot design contest in honor of that year's theme, "Celebrating Texas Creativity." Submissions poured in from across the state and beyond, but it was Keller artist Katie Sauceda who took home the prize. The winning design, created in collaboration with Lucchese Bootmaker, featured iconic Texas bluebonnets, the Alamo, armadillos, the Texas flag and more. In 2023, Big Tex got a fresh new look. Jessica Bonilla, from Irving, designed a sunset over the Texas landscape, complete with Texas animals and plants. Soon, those in Washington, D.C., will get a chance to admire those boots up close and experience a big piece of Texas pride for themselves. As for Big Tex? He'll be back on his feet in time to welcome everyone at the State Fair this year.
Boston Globe
3 days ago
- Politics
- Boston Globe
No, Mr. President, race is not a biological reality
But the fight over race in education is not confined to the classroom, and the embrace of perverse and offensive narratives is by no means restricted to the progressive left. Get The Gavel A weekly SCOTUS explainer newsletter by columnist Kimberly Atkins Stohr. Enter Email Sign Up In March, President Trump issued an executive order titled ' Some of what Trump objects to is indeed troubling. It is appropriate to be concerned about ideological litmus tests, Advertisement Yet buried in the executive order is a statement so wrongheaded that it should have set off alarms. In a section excoriating the Smithsonian Institution, the document condemns the museum because it 'promotes the view that race is not a biological reality but a social construct' and because it states 'Race is a human invention.' But race is a human invention, not a biological truth. For any educated person to claim otherwise is on par with claiming that diseases can be cured through bloodletting or that astrology is a reliable guide to the future. That the president of the United States would make such a claim in an official statement of policy is appalling. By now it is a firmly established scientific truth that race has within populations commonly categorized as racial groups. The differences between such groups are so few as to make them genetically indistinguishable. For all intents and purposes, in other words, the DNA of white people is impossible to differentiate from the DNA of Black people, Asian people, or Native American people. Of course there are physical variations among populations that originated at points far apart on the globe. But the idea that those variations are racial is a relatively recent fiction. It was not until the late 17th century that the notion that mankind could be sorted into distinct biological races first made its appearance. In Advertisement Today such taxonomies seem absurd. So does the view, If the president truly believes that race is a fixed biological reality, he is endorsing a view long discredited by science and rejected by Americans across the political spectrum. 'Racial criteria are irrational, irrelevant, [and] odious to our way of life,' asserted Thurgood Marshall on behalf of the NAACP in 1950. ' Marshall was speaking as a constitutional lawyer, but modern genetics has confirmed what scientists in the 1950s could only have surmised: Racial categories have no objective biological basis. That doesn't mean that race is meaningless, but that its meaning is social, not biological. It is a product of historical, cultural, and political forces. The concept of race was invented to categorize and rank human beings, often for purposes of domination and exclusion. Over time, those categories may have come to feel 'natural' or self-evident, but they are anything but. They are constructs, not codes etched in our genes. Advertisement It is deeply unsettling to see the White House resurrecting the idea that race is a fixed, objective, biological reality. Such thinking has an ugly pedigree. It undergirded slavery, segregation, and eugenics. It lent scientific respectability to white supremacy. It's the reason 'one-drop' rules existed and why anti-miscegenation laws once barred people from marrying across racial lines. It is not the language of truth and sanity — it is the language of race science and racial hierarchy. Trump may imagine that he is striking a blow against leftist dogma, but this isn't a left-vs.-right issue. The point has been underscored across the political spectrum — including by the Supreme Court's most conservative jurist. 'Race is a social construct,' Justice Clarence Thomas wrote in his 2023 concurrence in the landmark case of Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard. 'We may each identify as members of particular races for any number of reasons, having to do with our skin color, our heritage, or our cultural identity.' But that doesn't change reality, he continued. 'All racial categories are little more than stereotypes, suggesting that immutable characteristics somehow conclusively determine a person's ideology, beliefs, and abilities. Of course, that is false.' Clearly there are some human groupings that are genetically determined and have clear physical and reproductive markers — blood type, biological sex, Advertisement That is why the stakes here are so high. A government that treats race as a biological certainty is a government that legitimizes inequality and division. It is not 'Restoring Truth and Sanity to American History' to claim that people's character, capabilities, or civic status can be inferred from inherited traits. It is doing the opposite. And it opens the door to even more alarming policies. If race is 'real' in a biological sense, what follows? Race-based restrictions? Genetic profiling? The lionizing of historical figures with The president often casts himself as a fighter against political correctness and progressive overreach. But in this case, he isn't fighting back — he's reaching back, to a time when science was bent to serve bigotry. The right answer to racial dogma from the left isn't racial pseudoscience from the right. It is fidelity to truth, and to the ideal that all men are created equal. Jeff Jacoby can be reached at
New York Post
4 days ago
- Politics
- New York Post
Smithsonian exhibit monkeys around with the scientific evidence on human origins
The Trump Administration recently called out the Smithsonian Institution for pushing 'one-sided, divisive political narratives,' leading GOP Sen. Jim Banks last week to introduce a bill prohibiting the Smithsonian from promoting woke ideology, as The Post exclusively reported. But American history isn't the only domain in which the Smithsonian, with an ideological ax to grind, advances misinformation. The National Museum of Natural History's Hall of Human Origins vastly distorts the scientific evidence on human evolution, seeking to convince visitors that there's nothing special about us as human beings. 'There is only about a 1.2% genetic difference between modern humans and chimpanzees,' the exhibit starts, with large photos of a human and apes. 'You and chimpanzees [are] 98.8% genetically similar.' 6 The Trump Administration recently called out the Smithsonian Institution for pushing 'one-sided, divisive political narratives.' Shutterstock / Paulm1993 No doubt you've heard this statistic before because many science popularizers say the same thing. Yet it's been known for years that these numbers are inaccurate. Thanks to a groundbreaking April paper in the journal Nature, we know just how wrong they are. For the first time, the paper reports 'complete' sequences of the genomes of chimpanzees and other apes done from scratch. When we compare them to humans, we find our genomes are more like 15% genetically different from chimpanzees'. That means the true genetic differences between humans and chimps are more than 10 times greater than what the Smithsonian tells us. The museum distorts human origins in other areas, too. Again, the purpose is to diminish the exceptional place of humans in nature. 6 The David H. Koch Hall of Human Origins exhibit is seen at the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History in Washington. AP The museum's Human Origins fossil hall claims the ancient species Sahelanthropus tchadensis was an 'early human' that walked 'on two legs.' But leading paleoanthropologists sharply dispute this claim. A Nature article found that 'Sahelanthropus was an ape,' and many features 'link the specimen with chimpanzees, gorillas or both, to the exclusion of hominids.' A 2020 Journal of Human Evolution paper showed that Sahelanthropus' femur was like that of a chimp-like quadruped — in other words, it didn't walk upright, and it wasn't a human ancestor. 6 The Smithsonian exhibit presents ape-like australopithecines as 'early humans' who walked upright 'on the ground' much like us, but many scientists don't agree with this characterization, according to reports. Courtesy of Casey Luskin Similarly, the Human Origins exhibit presents the ape-like australopithecines as 'early humans' who walked upright 'on the ground' much like us. Some paleoanthropologists agree. But other scientists strongly disagree, pointing out that some australopithecines showed evidence of ape-like knuckle-walking and only limited capacity for running. Their upright-walking ability was likely best suited for walking along tree limbs, not 'on the ground' exactly like we do. Large questions remain about how they walked, and the Smithsonian gives no hint of the scientific controversy. 6 The museum had a display of *Australopithecus africanus* bust in 2010. Courtesy of Casey Luskin The museum's hominid reconstructions also humanize apes while ape-ifying humans. Australopithecus afarensis (the iconic 'Lucy') is portrayed thoughtfully gazing up at the sky, while Australopithecus africanus is presented smiling, perhaps at a friend's wry remark. Yet australopithecines had brains about the size of a chimp's, and there's no fossil evidence they were capable of abstract thought — or humor. We should remember the famed Harvard anthropologist Earnest Hooton's declaration that 'alleged restorations of ancient types of man have very little, if any, scientific value and are likely only to mislead the public.' 6 The exhibit asserts that humans and chimpanzees are '98.8% genetically similar,' but recently published research found our genomes are more like 15% different from chimpanzees. Courtesy of Casey Luskin The Smithsonian's exhibit also gives scientifically misleading support to the idea humans evolved slowly — saying 'we became human gradually,' much as Darwin imagined, from 'earlier primates.' Again, the result is to blur distinctions between us and other creatures. Yet the great Harvard evolutionary biologist Ernst Mayr acknowledged there is a 'large, unbridged gap' in the fossil record between the australopithecines and the first humanlike members of our genus, Homo. In his words, we're in a position of 'not having any fossils that can serve as missing links.' One scientific commentator even said this evidence calls for a 'big bang theory of human evolution.' Why doesn't the Smithsonian disclose any of this information? 6 July marks the 100th anniversary of the Scopes 'monkey' trial. AP This month is the centennial of the Scopes 'monkey' trial, remembered as a warning against hiding scientific information about human evolution. How ironic that 100 years later, the nation's premier science museum obscures scientifically objective data on the very same subject. To fail to correct this exhibit is to use taxpayer money to miseducate the public about a question of profound scientific, sociological, and philosophical importance. Casey Luskin is the Discovery Institute Center for Science and Culture's associate director and co-author of the book 'Science and Human Origins.' He holds a geology Ph.D. from the University of Johannesburg.
Los Angeles Times
5 days ago
- Politics
- Los Angeles Times
The fight to keep space shuttle Discovery at the Smithsonian: L.A. arts and culture this weekend
The Smithsonian Institution has faced pressure from President Trump since March when he issued his 'Restoring Truth and Sanity to American History' executive order, which demanded an end to federal funding for exhibitions and programs based on racial themes that 'divide Americans.' Amid Trump's headline-grabbing gambits to remake the landscape of American arts and culture into a more MAGA-friendly image, another challenge to the Smithsonian flew largely under the radar. In early April, Texas Senators John Cornyn and Ted Cruz introduced the Bring the Space Shuttle Home Act, which proposed to move the space shuttle Discovery from the National Air and Space Museum's Udvar-Hazy Center in Virginia to a spot near NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston. The act was folded into President Trump's One Big Beautiful Bill, which Trump signed into law on July 4. NASA gifted the Discovery to the Smithsonian in 2012 and it has been in Virginia ever since. Discovery launched on its maiden voyage in 1984 and flew 39 Earth-orbital missions — more than any other orbiter. The Smithsonian considers it a key part of its collection and issued a statement to Congress objecting to the proposed move. According to the Hill, the statement noted that 'the case against relocating the orbiter Discovery is both philosophical and practical … It would be unprecedented for Congress to remove an object from a Smithsonian collection and send it somewhere else.' In late June, the Houston Business Journal reported that the Smithsonian estimated the cost of moving Discovery to Texas would be between $300 and $400 million, far more than the $85 million cited by Cornyn and Cruz in Trump's massive reconciliation and spending package. Since the passage of of the bill, the fight over Discovery has heated up. Earlier this week, Rep. Joe Morelle, a Democrat from New York, introduced an amendment to keep Discovery at the Smithsonian. The Appropriations Committee agreed to the amendment, which now moves to the Rules Committee before going to the House floor for a vote. 'The forced removal and relocation of the Space Shuttle Discovery from the Smithsonian Institution's Air and Space Museum is inappropriate, wasteful, and wrong. Neither the Smithsonian nor American taxpayers should be forced to spend hundreds of millions of dollars on this misguided effort. I am grateful for the bipartisan support of my colleagues on this amendment and hope we can continue working together throughout the remainder of the Appropriations process to keep a treasured Smithsonian artifact where it belongs,' Morelle said in a statement sent to The Times. The Smithsonian did not respond to a request for comment on the evolving situation, or its quest to keep the Discovery in its collection. I'm arts and culture writer Jessica Gelt, hoping to orbit a positive news cycle someday soon. Here's your arts and culture roundup for this week. The Corpse FlowerThe infamously stinky plant, formally Titan Arum (Amorphophallus titanum), 'produces the largest unbranched inflorescence in the plant kingdom' and is known for its pungent aroma. 'Green Boy,' one of 43 corpse flowers in the Huntington's collection may have already blossomed by the time you read this, so be sure to check it out as the bloom lasts only 24-48 hours. 'It smells pretty bad,' Brandon Tam, the Huntington's associate curator of orchids,' told Times summer intern Aspen Anderson in her story on the event. But for those who prefer to avoid the full olfactory experience, there's a livestream.10 a.m.–5 p.m., closed Tuesday. The Huntington, 1151 Oxford Road, San Marino. Father John MistyJosh Tillman, whose Misty persona was described in a 2017 profile by Times pop music critic Mikael Wood as 'a convivial (if polarizing) chronicler of society's growing absurdity,' is joined by Lucinda Williams and Hamilton Leithauser for an eclectic evening of indie rock and folk.7 p.m. Friday. Greek Theatre, 2700 N. Vermont Ave. Phasmagorica: The Room Between WorldsLimited to nine audiences members at a time, this 'experiential paranormal encounter' proudly boasts that it is not a performance and does not use actors. Instead, sacred geometry, occult methodology, immersive light phenomena and 13 speakers of Dolby Atmos sound produce 'a fully-contained, tactile installation designed to provoke contact.' Guests are guided through a séance featuring spirit communication via arcane instruments and trigger objects, fortune-telling and psychological thresholds.7:30 and 9:15 p.m. Friday through Sunday. Heritage Square Museum, 3800 Homer St. Austin Powers triple feature Yeah, baby! The academy's 'Summer of Camp' series continues with the shagadelic trilogy of 'Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery' (1997), 'Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me' (1999) and 'Austin Powers in Goldmember' (2002). Director Jay Roach will be in attendance.2 p.m. Saturday. Academy Museum, 6067 Wilshire Blvd. Billy WoodberryThe MOCA Artist Film Series presents the L.A. Rebellion filmmaker's 2016 feature, 'And when I die, I won't stay dead,' a documentary on the life of Beat poet Bob Kaufman. Best known for 'Bless Their Little Hearts' (1983), Woodberry assembled archival footage and photos, interviews with Kaufman's contemporaries, and readings from Ruby Dee, Ossie Davis and others, plus a jazz soundtrack featuring Billie Holiday and Ornette Coleman.3 p.m. Saturday. Museum of Contemporary Art, 250 S. Grand Ave., downtown L.A. Queens of SoulThe peacocks and peahens will not be the only ones strutting and preening at the L.A. County Arboretum when the Pasadena Pops performs this salute to such divas as Aretha Franklin, Tina Turner, Whitney Houston, Alicia Keys, Adele and others, featuring hit songs such as 'Respect,' 'Proud Mary, 'I'm Every Woman' and 'Rolling in the Deep.'7:30 p.m. Saturday. L.A. County Arboretum, 301 N. Baldwin Ave., Arcadia. Black Pasifika: Deep Sea ProtocolsWriter, relational architect and guerrilla theorist Neema Githere hosts this program exploring the links between climate crisis and technology across Melanesia. Githere will provide context and discuss deep-sea protocols and the consequences of technological accelerationism on sea-stewarding peoples from the Swahili coast to Melanesia with their grandfather, Dr. Gilbert Githere, founder of the Mombasa-Honolulu Sister City society. The filmic essay 'AI: African Intelligence' by Manthia Diawara searches for a more humane and spiritual control of algorithms. Ahead of the program, from 10 a.m.–6 p.m., the time-based somatic works 'Oceanic Refractions' and 'Cries From the Moana' will be shown on monitors in LACMA's Smidt Welcome Plaza.6 p.m. Sunday. Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 5905 Wilshire Blvd. L.A. Phil at the Hollywood BowlIn a week of debuts, Italian conductor Daniele Rustioni, recently appointed principal guest conductor of the Metropolitan Opera, makes his Los Angeles Philharmonic bow leading the orchestra through Mendelssohn's 'Violin Concerto' (with soloist Veronika Eberle), selections from Berlioz and Liszt, and Respighi's 'Pines of Rome.' Two nights later, former Dudamel Fellow and current Boston Symphony Orchestra assistant conductor Anna Handler makes her first Bowl appearance, leading the Phil in the world premiere of Eunike Tanzil's 'Ode to the City of Dreams,' Mozart's 'Concerto for Flute and Harp' and Richard Strauss' 'Also sprach Zarathustra, Op. 30.' Mendelssohn, 8 p.m. Tuesday; Tanzil, Mozart and Strauss, 8 p.m. Thursday. Hollywood Bowl, 2301 N. Highland Ave. — Kevin Crust Times art critic Christopher Knight was thrilled to see the Los Angeles County Museum of Art's exhibit 'Realms of the Dharma: Buddhist Art Across Asia.' Currently installed in the temporary exhibition spaces of the Resnick Pavilion, the show consists of roughly 180 objects that have been in storage for years after being boxed up in preparation for the demolition of the museum's original campus and the debut of the new David Geffen Galleries. Catch the exhibit now, before it gets stowed away again, writes Knight, adding that it 'includes some of the most splendid sculptures and paintings' in the museum's permanent collection. Times classical music critic Mark Swed hopped a plane to Austria and headed for the small town of Bregenz, where a major arts festival that attracts more than 250,000 visitors in July and August and boasts a $31-million budget is hosted. The biggest draw at the bustling festival is opera, and the biggest show is a production staged each year on the Seebühne — a massive stage built directly on Lake Constance with bleachers to accommodate an audience of 7,000. 'This year's 'Die Freischütz,' Carl Maria von Weber's early 19th century opera about a huntsman who makes a very bad deal with the devil for a magic bullet, opened last week and runs through Aug. 17,' writes Swed. 'All 27 performances are expected to sell out as usual for the kind of spectacle that exists nowhere else.' Read all about the world-famous technical and artistic extravaganza, here. Johanna Burton is leaving the Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles, to become the new director of the Institute of Contemporary Art at the University of Pennsylvania, ICA Philadelphia announced Thursday. Burton became MOCA's first female director in 2021 after its recently named Artistic Director Klaus Biesenbach unceremoniously left his position for a job in Berlin. Burton's departure makes her the fifth director to leave MOCA since 2008. Burton will fill the role at ICA Philadelphia left vacant by Zoë Ryan who exited the museum to take over leadership at the UCLA Hammer Museum in Westwood after its longtime director Ann Philbin retired. MOCA did not respond to a request for comment about Burton's departure. Architect Paul R. Williams' L.A. building, Founders Church of Religious Science, is among five structures across the country picked to receive funding through the Getty Foundation's Conserving Black Modernism Initiative. Announced earlier this week by the foundation and the National Trust for Historic Preservation's American Cultural Heritage Action Fund, the money will support preservation plans for the buildings and further train caretakers in maintenance best practices. Another overarching goal is to increase public awareness of the architects' legacies and the buildings they created. The other four buildings receiving Getty funds are the ITC Administration Building in Atlanta, designed by Edward C. Miller; First Church of Deliverance in Chicago, an adaptive reuse project redesigned by Walter T. Bailey; McKenzie Hall in Eugene, Ore., designed by DeNorval Unthank Jr.; and Vassar College's 2500 New Hackensack building in Poughkeepsie, N.Y., by Jeh Vincent Johnson. Artist Amy Sherald has canceled her upcoming solo show, 'American Sublime,' at the Smithsonian's National Portrait Gallery, citing censorship after she was told the museum wanted to exclude a painting featuring a transgender woman holding a torch in a pose meant to evoke the Statue of Liberty. Sherald was told that the museum did not want to provoke a reaction from President Trump, who has brought anti-trans ideals into the federal government. In a statement to the New York Times, Sherald wrote, 'It's clear that institutional fear shaped by a broader climate of political hostility toward trans lives played a role.' The Ebell of Los Angeles has named Camille Schenkkan its chief operating officer. The nonprofit organization, which dedicates itself to 'inspiring women and fostering community through arts, culture and education,' was founded in 1894 and occupies one of the city's most storied historic buildings — a campus and theater designed in 1927 by architect Sumner Hunt. Schenkkan arrives at the Ebell from Center Theatre Group, where she served as deputy managing director. Republican members of the House Appropriations Committee introduced a proposal earlier this week to rename the Opera House at the John F. Kennedy Center for Performing Arts in Washington after the first lady, Melania Trump. — Jessica Gelt Marlee Matlin shared her favorite Sunday activities with The Times — including a stop for pizza in Eagle Rock (hint: it's a classic). See you there!
Time of India
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- Time of India
Jazz world mourns: Chuck Mangione dies at 84 — here's what we know about his final days
Chuck Mangione, the legendary jazz musician known for his hit song 'Feels So Good,' has passed away at the age of 84. During his illustrious 60-year career, he won two Grammy Awards and left a lasting impact on the music world. Mangione's music touched many through his Olympic contributions and even a memorable appearance on "King of the Hill." Jazz icon Chuck Mangione, best known for 'Feels So Good,' dies peacefully at 84 — remembered for his Grammy-winning music and timeless impact on jazz. Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Chuck Mangione's Olympic songs and early life inspired by jazz greats His song 'Chase the Clouds Away' was used during the 1976 Summer Games. He performed 'Give It All You Got' at the 1980 Winter Olympics closing ceremony in Lake Placid. Mangione's TV role and lasting impact on jazz music FAQs Legendary jazz musician Chuck Mangione has died at age 84, confirmed by a funeral home in Rochester, New York, in a statement released on behalf of his family. Chuck Mangione died peacefully in his sleep at his home in Rochester on Tuesday, July 22, a spokesperson said, as reported by of the rare jazz and pop mixes to become a hit, 'Feels so good', was his creation, skyrocketing to number 4 in the Billboard Hot 100 charts and holding on to the post for 25 straight was nominated for the Grammys 14 times in his 60-year stint in the music industry, winning two—one of them, 1977 hit 'Bellavia', he crafted for his mother. The other one, which he won in the category of Best Pop Instrumental Performance, was 1979 chart buster 'Children of Sanchez'.A maestro of both flugelhorn and trumpet, Chuck produced 30 plus albums throughout his career. His feathered band, tagged on his brown hat covering his long mane, was donated by him to the Smithsonian Institution, CNN had strong ties to the Olympics:Mangione was born and raised in Rochester, N.Y., and grew up listening to jazz legends with his brother Gap. His father often invited famous jazz artists like Carmen McRae and Art Blakey home for Italian dinners, which shaped Chuck's early love for music, as stated by the report by music, Chuck Mangione was also known for appearing as a cartoon version of himself on the TV show "King of the Hill." On the show, he acted as the celebrity spokesperson for Mega Lo Mart. Fans and friends said he was very happy and excited on stage and often stayed after concerts for hours to sign autographs for people who waited, according to 2012, Chuck Mangione was added to the Rochester Music Hall of Fame. His song 'Feels So Good' was used in TV shows and movies like Doctor Strange and Fargo. It was also in a famous Memorex commercial with Ella Fitzgerald. According to People, his music still inspires jazz fans, and many people irrespective of age enjoy his warm and smooth Mangione died peacefully in his sleep at his home in Rochester on July 22, 2025, at age Mangione is best known for his 1978 jazz hit 'Feels So Good' and winning two Grammy Awards during his 60-year music career.
