A LOOK INSIDE AMERICA'S ATTIC\The Smithsonian hits the road with an exhibit of national treasures,\from George's sword to Apollo craft.

Byline: Lori Moody Daily News Staff Writer

A gleaming 1948 Tucker sedan - seized four years ago during a drug investigation in South Pasadena - ranks as a national treasure, right up there with Dorothy's ruby slippers and a 3.3 billion-year-old moon rock.

They are among the select showpieces the Smithsonian Institution is taking on the road in a 12-city traveling show to celebrate its 150th anniversary. The museum has assembled more than 300 objects - many of which haven't been seen publicly for years - for "America's Smithsonian," which opens Friday at the Los Angeles Convention Center and continues through March 7.

"I hope (visitors) take away a great sense of pride," said project director J. Michael Carrigan. "This belongs to the American people. What we're doing, among other things, is we are trying to preserve this for as many generations as possible.

"In this kind of day and age, where people are moving as fast as they are, they're so used to television and all kinds of amusement parks and reproductions made of plastic. When they come in here, they'll see the real thing, the real Edison light bulb and the real Morse telegraph key and the real Singer sewing machine."

Organizers expect 500,000 to 750,000 people to visit the 50,000-square-foot exhibit in Los Angeles, which will feature objects culled from the institution's 16 museums and galleries, as well as its research facilities and the National Zoological Park in Washington, D.C.

"We're really trying to give people not just great things to see and a fun experience, but an understanding of what the Smithsonian is," Carrigan said.

Visitors will enter the privately funded exhibit through a 22-foot-high facade replicating the Castle, the original Smithsonian Building on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. The exhibit cost $8 million to put together, but that figure could go up as other venues are added.

The exhibit has been divided into three galleries: "Discovering," "Imagining" and "Remembering." Separate displays will be on hand by Discover Card, Intel and MCI Communications Corp. - sponsors of the show along with Trans World Airlines.

"The idea is we build up a dialogue with the audience, where we can begin a discussion of why should you collect, how do objects become treasures, why are they important to historians, how do historians use them, how does the Smithsonian use them," Carrigan said.

"Discovering" features dinosaur fossils; meteorites and minerals; artifacts from the 1804 Lewis and Clark expedition; the Wright EX Vin Fiz, a biplane that made the first U.S. transcontinental crossing; and the Apollo 14 command module.

The Imagining Gallery displays a side chair designed by architect Frank Lloyd Wright; jewelry, such as the Star of Bombay, a 182-carat blue star sapphire; and the 1948 Tucker sedan, one of only 51 ever made.

"It (the car) was certainly one of our more popular exhibits when it was on display," said Roger White, museum specialist on vehicles at the National Museum of Natural History in Washington, D.C. "There is something about the styling that is so futuristic it really grabs people's emotions."

The Remembering Gallery includes Kermit the Frog, a Richard Petty stock car, and Chris Evert's tennis racket.

"America's Smithsonian" also features a working carousel - $2 a ride - with animal figures that are reproductions of those in the National Museum of American History collection. Delivery of the objects in the exhibit was by truck or hand courier under tight security and climate-controlled conditions.

"Everything in here is either one-of-a-kind or priceless," Carrigan said. "It's very hard to put a value on it. ... If you lose or damage George Washington's sword, that's the only sword. This is the one he wore in battle. Things like that have special significance."

Some objects required special handling. Abraham Lincoln's top hat, believed worn to Ford's Theater the night he was shot by John Wilkes Booth, was shipped separately for display in a plexiglass case. And the first ladies' gowns were placed on soft body mannequins to reduce the chance of tearing.

Not all of the Smithsonian's precious artifacts went on the road. The 50-foot-long Star-Spangled Banner was considered too fragile to be taken down, while the Spirit of St. Louis plane was too delicate to dismantle and assemble for each stop. Also missing is the Hope diamond, for security reasons.

Then again, lots of items were left behind at the museums and galleries in Washington, D.C.

"We have 140 million objects at the Smithsonian, so we have plenty of stuff on the shelves there," Carrigan said. "I don't think we ever show more than 3 or 5 percent of what we have at one time."

THE FACTS

What: "America's Smithsonian."

Where: Los Angeles Convention Center, Yorty Hall, 1201 S. Figueroa St., downtown.

When: Friday through March 7.

Hours: 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily. The exhibit will close at 5 p.m. on certain days for special events.

Tickets: Admission is free, but tickets are required. To order in advance, call [phone]. There is a $3.50 service fee, payable by credit card, for each ticket ordered by telephone. Same-day tickets (no service charge) will be available at the convention center's box office. They will be distributed at 9:30 a.m. for morning admission, and 12:30 and 3:30 p.m. for afternoon admissions.

What else: Paid parking is available at the convention center. Interactive audio guides will be available in English and Spanish.

Information: [phone].

CAPTION(S):

PHOTO

Photo (1--3--Cover--Cover) HISTORY'S ROAD SHOW The Smithsonian brings America's national treasures to Los Angeles beginning Friday. (4--Color) It's heads up, right, as workers install a Mexican mask in a display case for the "America's Smithsonian" exhibit. (5--6--Color) Exotic animals glide around a working carousel, left. Creatures such as the dragon above are reproduced from the Smithsonian's holdings. (7--Color) Perhaps you saw the 1988 movie "Tucker The Man and His Dream," about a man's flawed attempt to build a futuristic car. Now you can see an actual 1948 Tucker, one of only 51 ever built. (8--Color) To enter the "America's Smithsonian" exhibit, visitors walk through a reproduction of the Castle, the original Smithsonian building on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. (9) Model jaws of a shark from the Pliocene Epoch, about 4.5 million years old, hold an outer row of actual fossilized teeth and inner rows of reproductions. (10) First lady Lucretia Garfield wore this gown to her husband's inaugural in 1881. (11) Among the artworks on display is Henry Moore's "Draped Reclining Figure" (1952-53). (12) Astronauts for the Apollo 15, 16 and 17 moon missions trained with lunar rovers such as this one. (13) Imagine it in Capt. Kirk's hand It's a phaser from the original "Star Trek" television series. David Crane/Daily News John McCoy/Daily News