Filler Words and Floor Holders: The Sounds Our Thoughts Make
So, well, okay, um, like, you know, right?
Sammy Davis Jr.’s Conversion Mishegoss
Sammy Davis Jr.'s conversion to Judaism in 1960 was met with skepticism, derision, and, yes, jokes by the members of the groups he claimed and embraced.
Batman: A Hero or a New ‘Mr. Hyde’?
The parallels between Bruce Wayne/Batman and Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hyde are examined through the lenses of Gothic literature and psychological symbolism.
Are Video Games Like Novels?
Video games as interactive storytelling? Maybe not at first glance, but as Eric Hayot explains, the interplay between game and narrative is real.
The Short but Influential Run of Ebony and Topaz
The 1927 art and literature magazine only ran for a single issue, but “proved an integral component of Harlem Renaissance cultural production."
The Laugh Track: Loathe It or Love It
The use of a laugh track began with radio, and was taken up by the new medium of television in 1950. Both viewers and critics have loathed it ever since.
Russia and the Soviet Union: A Syllabus of Background Readings
These readings from our archive provide context for the developing conflict in Ukraine.
Drafting a Constitution: Thurgood Marshall in Kenya
In 1960, before his nomination as a US Supreme Court justice, Thurgood Marshall helped frame the constitution that would serve a new country.
How Film Ads Were Part of the Fight Against Segregation
In the Jim Crow era, Black film theaters were left out of the "first-run" distribution channels. Theater owners used creativity to attract their audiences.