Currently browsing: Americana
Americana means different things to different folks. Here at Great American Things, it means cool stuff that doesn’t fit into any other category. I guess we could have called it Miscellaneous, but “Great Miscellaneous Things” doesn’t tell you much, does it?
Americana: Duct Tape
What holds America together? Is it our shared history? Our common sense of purpose, of what it means to be Americans? Is it the founding...
Read MoreFilm Studio: Pixar
Hard to imagine how many films 20th Century Fox has made. Or MGM. Or Universal, Columbia, Paramount. But we know how many Pixar has made....
Read MoreKid Stuff: Weekly Reader
Since 1928, kids have looked forward to the day each week when they’d get their copy of Weekly Reader. It was created by York, Pa....
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Americana: Academy Awards
It was the boss of MGM, Louis B. Mayer, who came up with the idea. Like Andy Hardy – “Let’s put on a show!” He got...
Read MoreAmericana: Life Magazine
While there was an earlier (and a later) incarnation of Life magazine, this honor goes to the Henry Luce version (as in Time-Life)...
Read MoreAmericana: Hollywood Walk of Fame
It stretches for 15 blocks along Hollywood Boulevard, and three blocks of Vine Street. That’s 1.7 miles total, featuring more than...
Read MoreAmericana: Navy SEALs
There’s an old saying, “Don’t send a boy to do a man’s job.” Since their creation in 1961, the Navy SEALs...
Read MoreAmericana: Soda Fountains
Okay, those of you under 30 bear with me for a few moments. Long, long ago, before a Walgreens or CVS occupied every corner, communities...
Read MoreAmericana: The Plaza Hotel
When I made my first visit to New York City as an adult, I had a list of the sights I wanted to see as a first-timer. Like most people, I...
Read MoreAmericana: Stuckey's
What you see now, if you pass a Stuckey’s along the highway, is just one among many convenience/snack/confections stores along...
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