Here, on the Semiquincentennial of America, I found it fitting to write about Ken Burns, the filmmaker known for his documentary films and television series, many of which chronicle United States history and culture.
Ken Burns was born Kenneth Lauren Burns on July 29, 1953, in Brooklyn, New York, into a family that experienced both cultural richness and early tragedy, as his mother, Lyla Smith Burns, died of cancer when he was just eleven years old, an event that would later shape his sensitivity to themes of memory,
A specialized, propeller-driven vehicle designed to travel over snow and ice.
An aerosledge is a specialized, propeller-driven vehicle designed to travel over snow and ice, combining elements of a sled and an aircraft in its method of propulsion. Instead of relying on wheels or tracks, it glides on skis while being pushed forward by an exposed aircraft-style
A large inland lake located in the desert of southeastern California within the low-lying Salton Trough.
The Salton Sea is one of the most unusual geographic features in the United States, a large inland lake located in the desert of southeastern California within the low-lying Salton Trough. Today it appears to be a natural lake, but in reality it was accidentally created in 1905 when floodwaters from the Colorado River broke through
The true catalyst came in 1964 when California surfboard maker and boat builder Bruce Meyers introduced the Meyers Manx.
Dune buggies emerged in the United States during the mid-twentieth century as a uniquely playful fusion of automotive ingenuity, surplus parts, and a growing culture of beach recreation, particularly in Southern California. Their essential idea was simple: take a lightweight platform—
This is a series of posts that will talk about my favorite songs with female vocals. See if you agree with any of these!
“Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy” is a 1941 World War II–era jump blues/swing novelty song written by Don Raye and Hughie Prince and introduced by The Andrews Sisters in the Abbott and Costello film Buck Privates, with the trio’s tight harmonies and upbeat, horn-driven arrangement capturing a fictional story about a top boogie-woogie trumpet player
A cooperative cash discount system that would reward customer loyalty
The history of S&H Green Stamps begins in 1896, when Thomas Sperry and Shelley Byron Hutchinson founded the Sperry & Hutchinson Company in Jackson, Michigan, with the idea of creating a cooperative cash discount system that would reward customer loyalty. Operating under the formal corporate name Sperry & Hutchinson,
Flamboyant and futuristic style of mid-twentieth-century American commercial design.
Googie architecture is a flamboyant and futuristic style of mid-twentieth-century American commercial design that emerged in Southern California during the late 1940s and flourished through the 1950s and 1960s.
During World War II, she joined the Office of Strategic Services, the precursor to the CIA, serving in Washington, D.C., Ceylon, and China.
Julia Child was born Julia Carolyn McWilliams on 8-15-1912 in Pasadena, California, into a comfortable, socially prominent family that valued education and culture. Her father, John McWilliams Jr., was a Princeton-educated banker and land manager, and her mother, Julia Carolyn Weston, came from a Massachusetts paper company fortune. Tall, athletic, and spirited, Julia attended Smith College, graduating in 1934 with a degree in history.
The construction of a Stuckey’s pecan log roll is deceptively simple yet carefully balanced.
Stuckey’s pecan log rolls are among the most enduring confections in American roadside history, closely tied to the rise of automobile travel and the culture of the open highway in the twentieth century. The candy traces its origins to 1937 in Eastman, Georgia, when Williamson Sylvester “W.S.” Stuckey Sr., a local pecan farmer,
Pizza as it is now understood emerged in Italy, specifically in Naples.
The history of pizza is a long and layered story that stretches back thousands of years, long before the dish acquired its modern name or familiar form. In the ancient Mediterranean world, people regularly baked flatbreads topped with simple ingredients, a practice found among the Egyptians, Greeks, and Romans.
