In the thirty-third episode of The Pop Culture Lens podcast, Christopher Olson (Seems Obvious to Me) and I welcome friend of the podcast Norma Jones to discuss the venerable pop culture brand that is Hello Kitty. In this episode, Norma and I position Hello Kitty not only as a pop icon but as a heroic … Continue reading Pop Culture Lens on Hello Kitty
Category: Text Analysis
Pop Culture Lens on They Live
In the twenty-third episode of The Pop Culture Lens podcast, Christopher and I welcome back friend of the podcast Joe Belfeuil to discuss John Carpenter's 1988 cult classic They Live and how the film seems as relevant if not more now. The short story the film is based on can be found on this website. … Continue reading Pop Culture Lens on They Live
Call for Contributors: Jazz Age Pop Culture
The Lost Generation: An Encyclopedia Editors: Bob Batchelor and Kathleen M. Turner The Lost Generation: An Encyclopedia (Rowman & Littlefield) brings to life the Jazz Age and the artists, writers, and influential figures that made it one of the nation’s most interesting and compelling periods. Since commentators often use the Lost Generation in comparison with … Continue reading Call for Contributors: Jazz Age Pop Culture
The Pop Culture Lens on Deltron 3030
I grew up in rural Northeastern Wisconsin. On a golf course. Country music was played in our high school gym's fitness center. Tractors would sometimes keep you from moving at good speed on county roads. Winters were not the only thing smothered in white. I grew up at the time when hip-hop and rap cultures … Continue reading The Pop Culture Lens on Deltron 3030
Podcast Episode #5: Planet of the Apes
In the fifth episode of The Pop Culture Lens podcast, Christopher Olson and I discuss one of my all time favorite pop culture texts: Planet of the Apes. I fell in love with this movie, this franchise -- as dorky as it got in the 1970s -- because of how many layers of meaning I … Continue reading Podcast Episode #5: Planet of the Apes
Genre Mashing in Professional Wrestling
After the event of this weekend, where normally we are only needing to remember our veterans but must now also remember those young men and women who died at the whim of a terrorist -- of a misogynist extremist -- I need to take a break from discussing fractured fandom and the sexist, and misogynist, … Continue reading Genre Mashing in Professional Wrestling
The Selling of Scientology
Blink and you missed it, it seems. For this past Super Bowl XLVIII, the commercials, as always, were a draw and a source of conversation and controversy. And while everyone is talking about Coca-Cola's "It's Beautiful" ad, and the right-wing reaction against it, a different ad caught my eye. http://youtu.be/5k0JEc0arOQ Here we have another attempt … Continue reading The Selling of Scientology
