Stephen King has described The Dark Tower as his "Jupiter." The epic series, inspired in part by Robert Browning's poem, "Childe Roland to the Dark Tower Came", has spanned 22 years, 7 books and nearly 4000 pages. The first book in the series, The Gunslinger, begins with a simple, memorable declaration, "The Man in Black fled across the desert, and the gunslinger followed."
posted on Apr 18, 2008 - View this thread

Riffing on the 1970s as the "Me Generation," Esquire Magazine once referred to the 1980s as the "Re Generation," making the case that all of our popular music, fashion, etc was being recycled from previous decades. They had no idea. Since then, the flood of entertainment has deposited many more sedimentary layers of pop culture. Today, musicians and music videos mine these condensed strata of modern media as raw materials, producing works of hyper-compressed cultural references. Case in point: The Scissor Sisters' "Comfortably Numb", Justice's "DVNO", and The Darkness' "I Believe in a Thing Called Love."
posted on Apr 15, 2008 - View this thread

World's worst tattoo? World's worst tattoo.
posted on Apr 8, 2008 - View this thread

Y'all think whatever you want about Michael Jackson now, knaamean? But on this day back in 1983, Motown 25: Yesterday, Today, Forever was being taped before a live audience. Since he was no longer contractually tied to Motown, MJ planned to attend but not perform at the function; he was finally able to negotiate a solo spot singing a non-Motown song. Thriller had been released more than a year prior; Billie Jean had been the Number One single on Billboard's Top 100 for two weeks. It was time for a Pop Culture "Do you remember where you were when...?" moment. And then came the moonwalk.
posted on Mar 25, 2008 - View this thread

Marvel vs. the BMI (one-link, but fun.)
posted on Mar 4, 2008 - View this thread

Bill Bixby haiku from 1994. [via]
posted on Dec 30, 2007 - View this thread

The Katzenjammer Kids* are 110 years old this month, the world's longest running comic. Watch 1918's Policy & Pie (pt. 2), rare animation by creator Rudolph Dirks who lost the strip to William Randolph Hearst in a court case. The strip was taken over by Harold H. Knerr, but Dirks retained rights to the characters and produced a rival cartoon under The Captain & the Kids for Pulitzer papers for several decades. Five artists followed Dirks and Knerr creating the strip for Hearst.
posted on Dec 27, 2007 - View this thread

From about 1875 to the 1940s, cigarette cards spurred tobacco sales. Sets offer a glimpse into the popculture of the times, spanning newsmakers, cinema celebrities, and sports stars; cute illustrated subjects, like "frisky" and children with rosy cheeks; handy info like air raid precautions, first aid, and amusing tricks; and neat stuff like famous escapes, exotic races, and figures of speech. Browse more fun sets of vintage images.
posted on Dec 11, 2007 - View this thread

Child-bearing machines, net café refugees and bottom-biting bugs: Top 60 Japanese buzzwords of 2007.
posted on Nov 19, 2007 - View this thread

Pop Life Art and its associated blog focus on celebrity art, heavy on the rock stars. One of my happy discoveries is Martin Mull's collection of collages, but I bemoan the lack of any wildlife art from Radar O'Reilly. If you're a pop culture junkie, here's a little advice on celebrity art collecting from an expert.
posted on Nov 19, 2007 - View this thread

Before there were videogames, growing up in England in the late 1960s though the 70's we had Action Transfers. The Letraset company branched off its division of hand set rub-on transfer fonts into full blown action scenes, with Cowboys & Indians, famous historical battles, Vikings, natural disasters & more. This collector has dozens of sets, scanned in high resolution & never used.
posted on Sep 30, 2007 - View this thread

For many kids, the space age made its TV debut years before Sputnik with 1950's TV space serials.
1950 - Space Patrol - The Hidden Treasure of Mars. (Part two)
1954 - Rocky Jones' Space, Space Ranger - Rocky's Odyssey. (Chapters two, three)
1954 - Flash Gordon - Deadline at Noon and Akim the Terrible.
posted on Sep 24, 2007 - View this thread

From hair styles and hotpants to bellbottoms and boots, this site has amassed a massive fashion photo collection of groovy celebrities and swingin' stars from the '60s and '70s.
posted on Sep 9, 2007 - View this thread

We're drowning in quirk. It is the ruling sensibility of today’s Gen-X indie culture, defined territorially by the gentle ministrations of public radio’s This American Life; the strenuously odd (and now canceled) TV sitcom Arrested Development; the movies of Wes Anderson; Dave Eggers’s McSweeney’s Web site; the performance art, music, and writing of Miranda July; and the just-too-wacky-to-be-fully-believable memoirs of Augusten Burroughs. It’s been 20 years of beneficent, wide-eyed gazing upon the oddities of our fellow man. David Byrne probably birthed contemporary quirk around 1985— halfway between his “Psycho Killer” beginnings with the Talking Heads and his move to global pop—when he sang the song “Stay Up Late”: “Cute, cute, little baby / Little pee-pee, little toes.” (As it happens, Byrne appeared on July’s recent book tour.) Jon Cryer’s “Duckie” Dale in Pretty in Pink came a year later, and quirk was on its way.
posted on Sep 5, 2007 - View this thread

What, no Bill & Ted? NY Magazine's interesting and diverse (or at least conversation-engendering) list of the top 15 pop-culture "duos" of all time. They cleverly narrowed down the list by eliminating non-equals (e.g. Batman & Robin), duos within groups (e.g. Spock & Kirk), & romantic couples (e.g. Mork & Mindy). Fans of classic comedy duos might be disappointed (they're also missing the most dynamic duo in the history of mankind).
posted on Aug 14, 2007 - View this thread

Lindsay Lohan, America's Dream Girl*, has been a potent pop culture event ever since her rise to fame in Disney's 1998 remake of Parent Trap. As the first red haired child ever hired by Ford Modeling Agency at the age of 3, Lohan clearly had her young eye aimed at Hollywood. Her breakout role came with the 2004 release of Mean Girls. Skyrocketed into the public consciousness, Lohan quickly released two pop albums and pumped out classic films such as Herbie: Fully Loaded and Georgia Rule. With Britney Spears's descent into oblivion and Paris Hilton's problems with the law, Lohan appeared ready to supplant Britney as The It Girl. But with her rocky personal life and her love of night clubs, the party scene, strawberry quick, and after problems with her studio, and running low on cash, people wondered, could Lohan turn her life around? Sadly, that appears to be a no. After being charged with a DUI on Thursday for an accident in May, Lohan was charged with another DUI (and cocaine possession) Monday morning after chasing another car. A story is quickly unfolding involving a fired assistant, bad damage control, a bar at a rehab center, prison chic, more bad parenting and a request for privacy / denial of drug possession. Mugshots were also released. Is she the next Pete Doherty?
posted on Jul 25, 2007 - View this thread

When Fangirls Attack is a compilation of articles and essays about women in comics.
posted on Jul 4, 2007 - View this thread

Skeptoid: Critical Analysis of Pop Phenomena was born in October, 2006 to help fight the good fight against the overwhelming majority of noise in the media supporting useless alternative medicine systems, psychics preying upon the vulnerable, the erosion of science education in the classroom, xenophobia of advanced energy and food production methods, and generally anything that distracts attention and public funding from scientific advancement. Episodes feature such prominent MeFi discussion material as organic food myths, blood for oil, chiropractics, and SUVs. Links are to podcast transcripts. Full episode guide.
posted on May 24, 2007 - View this thread

Mariah Carey album covers in Saudi Arabia. These appear to be genuine, not a hoax (although the album covers on the Megastar website don't appear to have been changed). From the comments on the post: Actually, I think she looks better in the covered up pictures. Via Mini ZuD.
posted on Apr 21, 2007 - View this thread

You love pop culture trivia quizzes. Am I wrong?
posted on Apr 3, 2007 - View this thread

In 1997, a geeky little boy from New Mexico became one of the first major web celebrities when he reached out to meet his future girlfriend. He talks about the impact that this unexpected celebrity had on his life. Apparently, after years of eschewing the web, he's all grown up and he's looking for "bois" on MySpace (sound is NSFW). (via szanalmas, possibly NSFW).
posted on Mar 12, 2007 - View this thread

Lobby Card Invasion. A searchable collection of a wide variety of lobby cards for all kinds of interesting films. [via PCL LinkDump]
posted on Jan 27, 2007 - View this thread

12 months of George Petty pinups. And 16 more. Hell, have 5 pages worth. More about the Petty Girl, an advertising and pop culture icon with an often unfinished look who made her first appearance in Esquire in 1933 and whose elegant line quickly became famous. [via Bibi's Box, which has lots more Petty and pinup links] [warning: busty pinup girls]
posted on Jan 18, 2007 - View this thread

The UKs Celebrity Big Brother provokes a diplomatic incident after bullying and alleged racism in the Big Brother house. At the center of the furor are Shilpa Shetty, massive bollywood film star, and Jade Goody, a previous Big Brother content famous for being a previous big brother contestant and her odd views on geography. Both Jade and Shetty are now up for eviction, with the formerly popular Jade being widely expected to be evicted. She could face trouble on the outside, where already an anti-bullying charity she represents has dropped her. Meanwhile Shetty has become favorite to win.
posted on Jan 17, 2007 - View this thread

"Can I ask you what your favorite commandment is?" Woody Allen interviews Billy Graham. Part 2. YouTube single-link FPP.
posted on Nov 3, 2006 - View this thread

Japan in America: the Turn of the Twentieth Century - an exhibit of ads, cartoons, art and other popculture artifacts from the decades leading up to WWI. (image menu is at the bottom of the page)
posted on Sep 9, 2006 - View this thread

Darwin Awards - The Movie! If it bombs, the reviews should be comedy gold.
posted on Aug 7, 2006 - View this thread

"And on the rare occasion when nonwhite heroes were included, names like Black Panther and Black Lightning telegraphed the difference" (NYT). Nonwhite and non-traditional superheroes aren't new, but a "lesbian socialite" Batwoman is. How about "The Great Ten," a "Chinese government controlled superteam" also to be featured in the ongoing "52" Series from DC comics (an alternate superverse bereft of A-league stars like Batman and Superman)? When I was a kid, it was pretty shocking to know of at least one gay superhero (and a Canadian to boot), but I wasn't aware that there were actually so many. Of course, the irrepressible Stan Lee claims he created the first gay superhero in the persona of Pvt. Percival Pinkerton. (Previous mefi discussion of Pavitr Prabhakar, the "Indian Spiderman" here.)
posted on Jun 1, 2006 - View this thread

Dan Goodsell (of the unbelieveably great - and previously linked - Tick Tock Toys) has been keeping a blog for the last six months or so covering a variety of subjects (including his webcartoon, Mr Toast), but largely focused on U.S. pop culture ephemera of the 50's though the 70's, with a ton of great stuff.
posted on May 29, 2006 - View this thread

Ben Frost is a painter, performance artist and illustrator who currently lives in Australia. His work explores themes of alienation, dispossession, and perversity that exists behind the facade of contemporary western society. By subverting mainstream iconography from the advertising, entertainment and political spectrum he creates a visual and conceptual framework that is bold, confronting and often contraversial.
posted on Feb 5, 2006 - View this thread

Retrocrush is celebrating the Year of the Dog with a tribute to the 100 greatest dogs of pop culture history. (via presurfer). Is your favorite famous canine on the list?
posted on Feb 4, 2006 - View this thread

More 60's Euro Pop
posted on Feb 1, 2006 - View this thread

Unbelievably ass kicking playlist of french pop culture hits from the 60's. Featuring the ever zany Brigitte Bardot, Jaques Dutronc, France Gall, Serge Gainsbourg, and more. (via)
posted on Jan 31, 2006 - View this thread

Hel Looks. Street fashion from Helsinki, Finland. You're probably familiar with Japanese street style, and how they're dressing in Shibuya, but what are things like on the other side of the world? Some Hel fashions look familiar. Very familiar. Some recall the 'world between the wars'. Shemagh are popular, although not for the head. Sometimes just...eek! If Death Metal marries Neko Musume, in which religion will the kittens children be raised? Of course this is Helsinki: "When I dress up the most important thing is not to be cold!" [via]
posted on Dec 1, 2005 - View this thread

Donavan Freberg (son of Stan) appeared in Encyclopædia Britannica's 1980s commercials and became something of a pop culture icon (and target). But before pitching reference books, he had a surprisingly eccentric childhood, not even getting a name until he was five. In the meantime, he has done other things and, of course, started blogging. Also, he likes the ladies (NSFW).
posted on Nov 21, 2005 - View this thread

Old Haunts :: A Halloween Bonanza!
posted on Oct 31, 2005 - View this thread

White plastic chairs - Jens Thiel blogs his research of the ubiquitous chair we all love to hate for an upcoming monobloc monograph and museum exhibition. The first chair emerged midcentury, devil spawn of a noble heritage. Today, some fear the monobloc population rivals or exceeds that of humans. Some view the chair as art, others see their place in history, but I agree with the wag who dubs them tupperware containers for lard butts.
posted on Aug 2, 2005 - View this thread

"Fascinating is the word I use for the unexpected." One Man Safari is a daily updated treasure chest of interesting and infinitely pretty pictures, from the days that were.
posted on Jun 18, 2005 - View this thread

I am 8 bit is a celebration of the pixelated graphics of 80s videogames, at LA's Gallery Nineteen Eighty Eight. A hundred artists have produced paintings, sculptures and designs inspired by the two-dimensional imagery of the pre-PlayStation era. The exhibition runs from April 19 until May 20. More information, including highlights from the gallery, appear at Game Informer. It remains to be seen if the other ninety-nine artists can match the quality of Sean Clarity's exceptional reworking of the cover to NES classic Excitebike.
posted on Apr 3, 2005 - View this thread

JoeMyGod implores his queer peers: What's the Gayest Thing You've Ever Done? • ''That is SO gay! I've been thinking about that expression a lot lately. What does it mean? Is it a playground epithet that is simply in vogue with the grown-ups? Or is it a sign that gay culture is so integrated into the pop culture that even the hets now see the evidence of homo-style in their everyday lives, and make jokes about it?" A followup to the original post, Part II: Flaming Son of "Gay, Gayer, Gayest"
posted on Feb 4, 2005 - View this thread

What do Captain Marvel and the dad from "My Three Sons" have in common? This guy knows. In fact, he knows more about The Captain (not that other Captain Marvel -- there is a difference) and his entire superheroic family than anyone else on the planet. You may think your obsessions are impressive, but you've got nothing on Walt Grogan.
posted on Feb 4, 2005 - View this thread

Welcome to Scrappyland. A site devoted to a long-lost cartoon character from the 1930s.
posted on Jan 27, 2005 - View this thread

The 50 Most Loathsome People of 2004 Funnier than The NYP 50 Most Loathsome New Yorkers. And you're in it, to boot.
posted on Jan 20, 2005 - View this thread

Bubbles the Artist! If you've been looking for a Pee Wee Herman dinner plate, a greeting card featuring Paul Lynde, or a painting of John Belushi drinking himself to death, then look no further. (If you love crappy disco midi files, you'll want to keep your speakers turned up.)
posted on Dec 30, 2004 - View this thread

Community Values, Corporate Profit and Pornography
"Popular culture isn't popular because members of the "tax-hiking, government-expanding, latte-drinking, sushi-eating, Volvo-driving, New York Times-reading, body-piercing, Hollywood-loving left-wing freak show" (to borrow a line from a campaign ad this year) are the only customers. It's because there is an unquenched thirst for it, and the corporate profiteers (who are members of and contributors to both political parties) see a nationwide market for it." What will we tell the children?
posted on Dec 21, 2004 - View this thread

Squeal Like a Pig dot com - Online home of actor Bill McKinney, best known as the villain from Deliverance. There's not much on the site but there is Real versions of three tracks from Bill's album, Love Songs From Antri.
posted on Dec 1, 2004 - View this thread

In the late 90s, I used to buy a magazine called Gadfly. They ceased publication in 2001. Today I found out that the editor has a blog and he appears to be republishing some of Gadfly's contents in an attempt to get people to buy back issues. Read interviews with George Plimpton, Emmylou Harris, Ben Marcus, and The Wachowskis. Don't like interviews? There's also articles on Lou Reed, Anais Nin, Brian Wilson, Jack Nitzsche, Lester Bangs, and people you may never have heard of. Their film coverage was also almost always interesting.
posted on Sep 8, 2004 - View this thread

Pac-Mondrian! Art hits the arcade. Play the classic game while enjoying the Piet Mondrian-style background. Who says art isn't fun?
posted on Jul 13, 2004 - View this thread

So, why don't you like doing interviews? Modest Mouse's Isaac Brock takes the piss. [wmv]
posted on May 16, 2004 - View this thread

Origami Kaiju
Make your own Godzilla and Friends
posted on Mar 30, 2004 - View this thread