March 30-31, 2024: March 2024 Recap

[A Recap of the month that was in AmericanStudying.]

March 4: National Park Studying: Yosemite: For the Department of the Interior’s 175^th birthday, a National Park series kicks off with six figures who helped shape Yosemite.

March 5: National Park Studying: Blackstone River Valley: The series continues with two interesting comps for one of our newest Parks.

March 6: National Park Studying: Everglades: The very American story of the woman who helped save the ‘Glades, as the story tours on.

March 7: National Park Studying: Mesa Verde: Two distinct but complementary sides to a foundational AmericanStudier moment.

March 8: National Park Studying: Acadia: The series concludes with a few telling moments in the Maine Park’s Franco-American history.

March 9-10: National Park Studying: National Historic Parks: A special weekend post on a few of the many great National Historic Parks—with many more in a Saturday Evening Post column linked at the end!

March 11: NeMLA Reflections: Opening Address: A series on the latest great NeMLA conference kicks off with the opening speaker’s multilayered public scholarly work.

March 12: NeMLA Reflections: NeMLA Reads Together: The series continues with two takeaways from the latest example of NeMLA’s wonderful community endeavor.

March 13: NeMLA Reflections: My Panel on Nostalgia & the 50s: Three of the many excellent conversations I got to be part of on Vaughn Joy’s panel on “nostalgic extremism.”

March 14: NeMLA Reflections: Guilty Pleasures Panels: Two interesting throughlines from a pair of provocative interconnected sessions.

March 15: NeMLA Reflections: Community Connections: The reflections conclude with three ways NeMLA 2024 connected to its host city.

March 16-17: NeMLA Reflections: A Special Organization: A weekend tribute to a few of the reasons why NeMLA is such a special organization.

March 18: American Magic: Fakir of Ava: In honor of Houdini’s 150^th birthday, a MagicStudying series kicks off with three ways the first famous American magician paved the way for the profession.

March 19: American Magic: Thurston and Kellar: The series continues with a pair of magicians who help us think about competition and collaboration.

March 20: American Magic: Orson Welles: Two ways to AmericanStudy a fascinating last act in a legendary career, as the series tricks on.

March 21: American Magic: Penn & Teller: Three telling influences on one of the most famous magic acts of the last half-century.

March 22: American Magic: 21^st Century Evolutions: The series concludes with a handful of contemporary talents who reflect how magic has evolved.

March 23-24: American Magic: Harry Houdini: On Houdini’s 150^th, three lesser-known layers to our most famous magician.

March 25: What is Game Show Studying?: 30s and 40s Origins: For Jeopardy!’s 60^th anniversary, a Game Show Studying series kicks off with three stages in the genre’s experimental early decades.

March 26: What is Game Show Studying?: Quiz Show Scandals: The series continues with three ways to contextualize the fixing scandals that dominated the game show world in the late 50s.

March 27: What is Game Show Studying?: Dating Games: A more straightforward and a more subtle context for a pair of groundbreaking dating games, as the series plays on.

March 28: What is Game Show Studying?: Deal-Making: AmericanStudies contexts for three generations of deal-making shows.

March 29: What is Game Show Studying?: Jeopardy!: The series concludes with two ways the legendary game show echoes the genre’s histories, and one way it stands out.

April Fool’s series starts Monday,

Ben

PS. Topics you’d like to see covered in this space? Guest Posts you’d like to contribute? Lemme know!