Dept. of "Wow!" (Robot Division)

The inspiration for the automaton in Brian Selznick's lovely book The Invention of Hugo Cabret belongs to the Franklin Institute and may be seen in operation here. The F.I. urges readers to nominate it to the Robot Hall of Fame.

In the book, Hugo restores an automaton and is surprised to learn the identity of it's creator -- a man he knows, with a hidden history. Selznick's illustrations -- movie stills, of a sort -- move the story along.