Everything is a Primary Source

"Millennial Revivalism": Analyzing "90s Con" as a primary source I am glad to be joined by historian Briann Greenfield, PhD, author of Out of the Attic: Inventing Antiques in Twentieth Century New England to look forward to this weekend's first annual "90s Con" in Hartford, CT.  While nostalgia for 1990s pop culture is what drives this event (for which I am very excited to attend), it is not uniqu...

Episode 18:  "Yes, Chef!" Treating the career of a classically trained chef as a primary source Food, glorious food!  Food is the most delicious pop culture artifact, and this conversation was long overdue. Food has been the centerpiece and guiding force of my friend, Chef John Keller.  He was kind enough to lend his story to be the first time for this podcast in treating a life as a primary sourc...

Episode 17: "Where Everyday is Halloween" Dissecting Beetle House NYC as a primary source If everything is a primary source, then everyday can be Halloween, right?    Beetle House started as a Tim Burton-themed popup in 2016 but has rapidly become a fixture in New York City. I spoke with Nick Vincent Barbera , who portrays Jack Skellington at Beetle House, to analyze his workplace as a product of...

"Doomsday's Coming, 1981" Analyzing the Ramones' "End of the Century" (1980) album cover as a primary source The Ramones are my all time favorite rock group, so choosing the cover art to their 1980 album "End of the Century" to analyze as a primary source creates a nerding-out fiesta.  The cool, casual voice of my friend and music aficionado Kris is who you'll hear in between my blurting out of Ra...

**Super Bowl Sunday Extra** "In the Name of Love" Looking at U2's 2002 Super Bowl Halftime Show as a primary source Musical performances have the opportunity to convey the right ideas and feelings at the right time.  This was true in 1968 when James Brown performed at the Boston Garden the night after Martin Luther King, Jr. was killed, and it was true in 2002 when U2 played the Superdome during t...

Episode 14: "Commando, Involved Again" Dissecting 1985's "Commando" as a primary source  My friend, Professor Dan Hipp , is an accomplished cognitive psychologist and neuroscientist. So when I asked him to be a guest commentator on my podcast we, naturally, decided to discuss the 1985 Arnold Schwarzenegger action movie, Commando.  Treating this violent, catch phrase-laden shoot-'em-up as a primary...

Episode 13:"The Legend of Zelda" : Examining Francis Cugat's "Celestial Eyes" (1925) as a Primary Source I'm joined again by Andrew to look at how the cover art for 1925's The Great Gatsby is just as useful as a primary source of 1920s America as the book it graces.  Created fairly early in the history of graphic design, Cugat's painting was deeply intertwined with the story The Great Gatsby itsel...

Episode 12: "The Technicolor Rangers" Analyzing 1940's "Northwest Passage" as a primary source American movie audiences had their share of historical pictures to sort through by the end of the 1930s.  Many fillms during the Great Depression displayed figures from American history overcoming obstacles and hardships as a way to inspire moviegoers in their own difficult times.  But as war clouds gath...

Episode 11: "Fortune Tellers! How Droll!" Taking a look at Disney's Robin Hood (1973) as a primary source Oo De Lally!  Adi and I talk and dissect a shared favorite, Disney's 1973 animated feature Robin Hood .  Was its recycled animation a cost-cutting measure reflective of the company's restructuring in the era, or is it telling of something else?  How is this retelling of the English folk tale p...

Episode 10: Memorials, monuments, and markers tell us more about those who made them then they do of their subjects.  While recently touring around our home state of New Hampshire, my family and I were attracted to Milford and what Atlas Obscura , the ultimate guide to destination primary sources, describes as the 1838 "Grave With a Grudge" in the Elm Street Cemetery.   But I couldn't help but pay...

Episode 9: "I Saw the Sein": Opening up our eyes to seeing "Seinfeld" (1989-1998) as a primary source w/ Kyle Hello, New Year.    What's the deal with all these podcasts? Kyle returns to talk all things Seinfeld --its inception, influence, place in television history--but most importantly for this podcast, what does its success tell us about the society and culture in the era in which it was made?...

Episode 8: "Eric & Erin Lasso the Moon" Looking at the 1986 Colorized "It's A Wonderful Life" (1946) as a primary source  Erin the Tie Dyed Librarian drops in on the Podcast to talk about the colorized version of 1946's It's A Wonderful Life .  We discuss the motivations behind the update forty years after the movie's original release and how that reflects the society, culture and economics of...

Episode 7: "Merry Christmas, Mein Friend" Looking at "Snoopy's Christmas" by the Royal Guardsmen (1967) as a Primary Source Just like Snoopy, I'm flying solo for this episode where I analyze this seemingly campy song about the Red Baron sparing the cartoon dog's life because he is overcome by the spirit of the season.  It seems out of place when we hear it on the radio a lot this time of year in t...

Episode 6: "Holy Cow!" The 1991 novelization of "Home Alone" analyzed as a primary source  When I grow up and start podcasting, I'm recording alone!    By early 1991 I was the last kid in America who had not seen Home Alone in the theater.  With the VHS release still almost a year away, salvation came in the form of steel cases on wheels that is the Scholastic Book Fair where I purchased the movie...

Episode 5: "Piggy Pudding?!" Analyzing "John Denver & The Muppets, A Christmas Together" as a primary source w/ Adi Author Adi Rule joins to comment on a mutual Holiday favorite, "John Denver & The Muppets, A Christmas Together" on vinyl.  What can this charming collaboration tell us about the entertainment industry, consumers and audiences in late 1970s America?  Is it as mainstream as it...

Episode 4: "What Goes Up May Neverland" Analyzing the story of "Peter Pan" as a primary source w/Erin After seeing a stellar local stage production of Peter Pan  Erin the Tie Dyed Librarian talks with me about all things Neverland.  The 1904 play by JM Barrie, the Disney film and Broadway musical of the 1950s, and other subsequent interpretations and uses of the story and characters are analyzed t...

Episode 3:  "Johnny Cage's Paint Buckets" Analyzing Mortal Kombat (the movie) (1995) as a primary source w/Kyle  Pop culture enthusiast, long-time friend and all-around great guy Kyle joins to talk about how the 1995 Mortal Kombat movie not only tells us about American society of the 1990s, but may have done more than its source material video game in advancing the title into the mainstream.

Episode 2:"Breaking Some Eggs" Analyzing Batman (1989) as a Primary Source w/Andy  In light of (another) new Batman movie being released soon, we go back to 1989 to look at a time when a dark and brooding Caped Crusader was a new concept. Guest commentator Andrew C. joins Eric Paul in addressing how 1989's Batman is an excellent primary source of the late 1980s.

Episode 1: The Everything is a Primary Source Podcast is introduced and explained.