On Hammerstein and Sondheim
How Hammerstein mentored Sondheim.
Five to Rule Them All: An Excerpt
David Bosco explains the development of the U.N. Security Council in this introduction to his latest book, Five to Rule Them All.
John Muir and the National Parks
Donald Worster looks at the new Ken Burns documentary.
The Prophecy: Vietnam At War
An excerpt from Vietnam at War.
The Tea Party Movement and its Controversial Roots in American History
Elvin Lim looks at the tea party movement.
When Justice and Politics Part Company
Elvin Lim’s weekly column.
Why David Sometimes Wins
An excerpt from Why David Sometimes Wins.
On This Day In History: In Memory of Blind Willie McTell
A post in honor of this great musician.
How Barack Obama can Pacify the Ghosts of Anti-Federalism to Advance the Health-care Debate
Elvin looks at the health-care debate through a historical lens.
Chop Suey: An Excerpt
An excerpt from Andrew Coe’s Chop Suey: A Cultural History of Chinese Food in the United States.
John Dillinger Goes to the Movies
Author Elliott J. Gorn looks at John Dillinger films.
Gypsy Rose Lee Entertained Troops in Her Own Style
A look at Gypsy Rose Lee.
Talking About Health Care
Elvin Lim looks at Obama’s actions to support his health care plan.
Is it true what they said about John Dillinger?
I’m reasonably sure that most American boys who reached adolescence in the 1960s knew Dillinger’s dick. It was enormous, preserved in formaldehyde at the Smithsonian Institution. Friends of mine who grew up on the east coast told me years later that on high school trips to Washington, the boys would spread out and look for it.
Why Empathy is Important
Elvin Lim’s weekly column.
The Beach Boys and Mythic California
An excerpt from Golden Dreams: California in an Age of Abundance, 1950-1963 by Kevin Starr.