Titanic scholars contend that the demise of “the unsinkable ship” left more behind than a memory of April 15, 1912, as an important point in history. Through books, films, stories, and songs, the arch
Before she was a glamorous actress, before she was a war-time pin-up star, even before she was Carole Landis, she was Frances Lillian Ridste, an insecure young girl from Wisconsin. She was strikingly
Dark-eyed and distant Alma Rubens was one of the first female stars of the early feature film industry in the 1910s. She was a major star by 1920, but before the decade was over her screen career was
Phillips and Ruth Lee Thygeson were pioneers in medical research on external diseases of the human eye. Together, this husband-and-wife team shared a mutual story of extraordinary accomplishment inclu
Though Charles Chaplin is commonly remembered as a silent film comedian, it is not widely recalled that he continued to make movies long after the introduction of sound. His sound films have often bee
Over the past 60 seasons, the Los Angeles Dodgers have risen to the pinnacle of Major League Baseball, winning 21 National League pennants and 6 World Series titles. Amid the backdrop of Hollywood gli
After a century of reinvention and reinterpretation, Western movies continue to contribute to the cultural understanding of the United States. Western archetypes remain important emblems of the Americ
Before the Gold Rush of 1848–1858, Alta (Upper) California was an isolated cattle frontier—and home to a colorful group of Spanish speaking, non-indigenous people known as Californios. Profiting from
When the framers of the Constitution gathered in the summer of 1787, their deliberations were shrouded in secrecy. The Pennsylvania State House was locked, armed guards were posted and the 55 delegate
Reconsidering Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey in a post-millennial context, this informative study examines the making of the landmark film with a focus on its artistic and mythic pedigree. Ku
An existential necessity in Western culture, universities have stood for 900 years with their institutional structures essentially unchanged. They still serve three basic functions: educating the facu
In the early 20th century, immigration, labor unrest, social reforms and government regulations threatened the power of the country’s largest employers. The Amoskeag Manufacturing Company of Mancheste
Oregon and Washington have been leaders in the craft beer boom that began in the 1980s. The number of craft breweries and brewpubs in the U.S. has increased dramatically in recent years—almost 4700 we
In the early 1930s, the Motor City was sputtering from the Great Depression. Then came a talented Detroit Tigers team, steered by player-manager Mickey Cochrane, to inject new pride into the Detroit p
During the Cold War, the U.S. government began testing paranormal claims under laboratory conditions in hopes of realizing intelligence applications for psychic phenomena. Thus began the project known
For much of the past century, public discourse about gender and politics has been driven largely by progressive women—those voices on the left that support policies widely considered to be pro-women.
Across generations and genres, comics have imagined different views of the future, from unattainable utopias to worrisome dystopias. These presaging narratives can be read as reflections of their auth
Since the middle of the last century, views on gender norms have shifted dramatically. Reflecting these changes, storylines that involve cross-dressing and transgender characters have frequently appea
Blaustein (sociology and anthropology, East Tennessee State U., Johnson City) has written a study of the shared culture and language and revival of interest in both between Scotland and Appalachia. Ch
A messiah is an individual appointed by God to a specific task of importance, and elevated to a level of far greater authority than a prophet by leading (or claiming to lead) a group or movement. The