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The Strange Story of the Forever 1980s

Why the makers of today's popular culture are still so obsessed with the Reagan era.
Stereograph titled 'The Toucans' depicting three toucans and a snake amid plants and rocks

Stereographs Were the Original Virtual Reality

The shocking power of immersing oneself in another world was all the buzz once before—about 150 years ago.
Magazine comic image of soldiers in Vietnam.

Comics Captured America's Growing Ambivalence About the Vietnam War

Comics were able to reflect changing views on the conflict in a way few other popular culture forms could.

What Time Capsules, Meant for Future Americans, Say About How We See Ourselves Today

We used to fill our time capsules with fancy stuff. Now we put in junk.
A 1902 football game mid-play, with men from both sides rushing at each other

God and the Gridiron Game

America's obsession with football is nearly as old as the game itself.

Jump-Rope Songs Were Once a Cornerstone of American Folklore. Now It’s Memes.

The Library of Congress is turning to the internet for a new generation of shared culture.

The Mystique of the American Diner, From Jack Kerouac to “Twin Peaks”

Freedom, fear and friendliness mingle in these emblematic eateries.

Old West Theme Parks Paint a False Picture of Pioneer California

As the nation debates monuments and public memory, it’s important to understand how other cultural sites help people learn (false) history.
Picture of Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Grey in the film, "Dirty Dancing."

The Back-Alley Abortion That Almost Didn't Make it into 'Dirty Dancing'

For the 30th anniversary of "Dirty Dancing," we spoke to the film's screenwriter about her revolutionary decision to include a depiction of an illegal abortion.

Every Song of the Summer Since 1958

Each year there is one undeniable 'song of summer.'
Robert E. Lee monument.

Falling Out of Love with the Civil War

America's unconditional love of the Civil War has blinded us to its true meaning.

Think This Solar Eclipse Is Getting a Lot of Hype? You Should Have Seen 1878

The darkness of the eclipse lit up American minds more than a century ago.

From Boy Geniuses to Mad Scientists

How Americans got so weird about science.
partner

The Vietnam War That Never Goes Away

Popular theater productions and Hollywood movies about the Vietnam War have a continued place in popular culture and memory.

The TV That Created Donald Trump

Rewatching “The Apprentice,” the show that made his Presidency possible.

The Umpire Strikes Out: Baseball Music and Labor

The classic baseball hit "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" has a lot more to do with U.S. history than one might think.

Brian Tochterman on the 'Summer of Hell'

What E.B. White, Mickey Spillane, Death Wish, hip-hop, and the “Summer of Hell” have in common.

In 1947, A High-Altitude Balloon Crash Landed in Roswell. The Aliens Never Left

Despite its persistence in popular culture, extraterrestrial life owes more to the imagination than reality.
Katharine Hepburn, an iconic tomboy, cocking a gun in 1935.

Tomboys Were a Trend 100 Years Ago, but Mostly to Bring Up the Birth Rate for White Babies

Fear of diminishing broodstock got the gals going outdoors.
partner

How "This Land Is Your Land" Went From Protest Song to Singalong

Woody Guthrie’s “This Land Is Your Land” has lost a bit of its protest oomph—in part because of a decades-long denial of its later verses.
Great White shark

Blood in The Water: Four Dead, A Coast Terrified and The Birth of Modern Shark Mania

A series of deadly shark attacks by the Matawan Man-Eater shook New Jersey and prompted President Wilson to declare war on sharks.

The Syncopated Geography of Hip-Hop

Music scholar Katya Deve explores the history and geography of hip-hop.
People on a rollercoaster

Are We Having Too Much Fun?

In 1985, Neil Postman observed an America imprisoned by its own need for amusement. He was, it turns out, extremely prescient.

What the Guys Who Coined '420' Think About Their Place in Marijuana History

And how the term came to be code for pot-smoking in the first place.
William Gropper's map of American folklore.

A Popular '40s Map of American Folklore Was Destroyed by Fears of Communism

The government saw Red when looking at William Gropper's painting of the United States.

Chuck Berry Invented the Idea of Rock and Roll

The origins of rock and roll are unknown, but no one can deny the role Chuck Berry played.
Lin Manuel Miranda

Let’s Not Pretend That ‘Hamilton’ Is History

America's founders have never enjoyed more sex appeal, but the hit Musical cheats audiences by making democracy look easy.

The Notorious Night Biggie Was Murdered in Los Angeles

Shaq, Baron Davis, and Nick Van Exel reflect on The Notorious B.I.G., his murder, and the city they called home.
Alexander Hamilton

The Hamilton Hustle

Why liberals have embraced our most dangerously reactionary founder.
A still from a film western depicting a fictionalized version of volunteers at the Alamo.

What a 1950s Texas Textbook Can Teach Us About Today's Textbook Fight

Texas education officials have preliminarily voted to reject a Mexican-American history textbook that scholars have said was riddled with inaccuracies.

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