Victor Hugo's 1831 novel The Hunchback of Notre Dame saved Notre Dame cathedral during a crucial period in French history. This is no exaggeration. In the early nineteenth-century, the historical and cultural value of surviving medieval architecture was ignored by the general populace. Efforts to update the Notre Dame cathedral, which included replacing its stained…
August 13, 1899: Birthday of iconic filmmaker Alfred Hitchcock
British filmmaker Alfred Hitchcock was born 124 years ago today on a Friday the 13th. That latter fact seems only fitting since Hitchcock’s style has forever become associated with suspense and terror. While his most well-known films came out in the 1950s and 1960s, Hitchcock’s career lasted from the early 1920s to the late 1970s…
Bastille Day
“Vive le 14 julliet!” This phrase is associated what English speakers call Bastille Day and the French call “Quatzore Julliet.” It is the anniversary of two early events of the French Revolution: the storming of the Bastille in 1789 and the Festival of the Federation, a mass gathering held in Paris the year after. The…
Selections from Marilyn Monroe’s bookshelf
Born 97 years ago today, Marilyn Monroe remains a twentieth-century icon, representing cinematic glamor and sadly often remembered more for her untimely death than her acting talent or her contributions to the Civil Rights movement. Another thing few realize about Monroe is that she was a passionate book lover with a personal library containing over…
George Lucas’s inspirations for Star Wars
It's often said that, "Good artists copy. Great artists steal." In the case of George Lucas and his collaborators on the long-running Star Wars series, it might be added that, "Great artists steal and synthesize." Lucas famously combined ideas from a variety of sources to craft his galaxy far, far away, taking everything from world…
Jazz Appreciation Month spotlight: John Coltrane
In honor of Jazz Appreciation Month (JAM), today we spotlight John Coltrane, a virtuoso and music pioneer whose artistry still resounds in American culture. Coltrane was born in his parents’ North Carolina apartment on September 23, 1926. In his teens, he learned to play the clarinet and the alto saxophone, and following his high school…
March 23, 1910: Birthday of filmmaker Akira Kurosawa
In 1910, film director Akira Kurosawa was born on this day in Tokyo, Japan. Rising to prominence in the post-WWII years and concluding his career in the early 1990s, Kurosawa is one of the most influential artists who ever lived. He is often considered the filmmaker’s filmmaker, inspiring a great many directors who would go…
July 4, 1776, Independence Day
In the United States of America, we celebrate July 4 as a reminder of the pivotal moment when the thirteen colonies declared independence from Britain, resulting in the birth of our country. In the aftermath of the conflicts in continental America, including the massive Seven Years War (French and Indian War), Great Britain controlled much…
The Beatles and Their Legacy
June 1, 2022 marks the 55th anniversary of the release of what many consider one of the greatest rock albums of the 20th century, the famous album Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, created by the famous rock group, the Beatles. The Beatles as most people know them when they toured throughout England and in…
Small Business Week
This year, May 2 through May 5, 2022, the United States Small Business Administration hosts the annual National Small Business Week. Small Business Week is usually held on the first full week in May to provide in-person sessions and webinars concerning topics for small businesses. These sessions include numerous topics and resources pertaining to creating…
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