Happy Birthday to Jack Sowards, Who Wrote a Great ‘Star Trek’ Film
It might be going too far to say that Jack B. Sowards *saved* Star Trek. But he sure threw the franchise a lifeline when he wrote the 1982 film Star …..
The Who2 Blog
Mark Gustafson Wins a Well-Deserved Oscar
Yes, yes, congrats to Michelle Yeoh and Brendan Fraser and The Daniels and all the famous names. But the real big winner of Oscar night 2023 is Mark Gustafson, director …..
Jimmy Carter Did His Bit
[Editorial note: Rather than read the post below, try this wonderful article by journalist James Fallows, a Carter speechwriter in the 1970s: An Unlucky President, And A Lucky Man. And …..
A Brief History of Black Names, From Perlie to Latasha
A scholar disproves the long-held assumption that Black names are a recent phenomenon.
James Cameron Got It Right Again
The whole Avatar thing is the biggest boondoggle in the history of cinema. Who cares? — A S Hamrah (@hamrahrama) September 24, 2022 A lot of Avatar 2 tweets …..
Who Was the First Black Child To Go To an Integrated School?
School integration is often thought of as something that took place in the 1960s. But the first Black student to desegregate a school by court order was an Iowa girl named Susan Clark in 1868.
New: Try the News Quiz from The Conversation!
A light-hearted tour through the week’s most interesting news stories published on The Conversation.
Charles Henry Turner: The little-known Black high school teacher who revolutionized the study of insects
The son of a formerly enslaved mother, Charles Henry Turner was the first to discover that bees and other insects have the ability to modify their behavior based on experience.
The Embrace: A Visit to the New Martin Luther (and Coretta!) King Statue on the Boston Common
On a beautiful snowy Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday in Boston, we went to the Boston Common to see the new tribute to Dr. King and his wife, Coretta Scott …..
Pelé, a Pope, and Barbara Walters: Last-Minute Deaths of 2022
Brazilian football legend Pele at China’s Imperial Palace in 2008 (WENN) 2022 was a typically busy year in famous deaths. We tracked the passings of 32 famous people, from world …..
Charles Schulz’s 100th Birthday: A Salute from the Funny Pages
Charles Schulz (1922-2000). Photo: United Features Syndicate Cartoonist Charles Schulz, the creator of Charlie Brown and Snoopy and the rest of the kids in the comic strip Peanuts, was born …..
Liz Truss Becomes One of History’s Shortest-Serving Leaders
Liz Truss, the prime minister of the United Kingdom, has resigned after just 45 days in office. It was just two days ago that her Home Minister, Suella Braverman, was …..
John Carpenter Looks Back On His Career
John Carpenter, the director of iconic films like Halloween and Escape from New York, discusses his movies, his career, and his life in this lively Q&A interview with film fanatic …..
Mikhail Gorbachev RIP: The Soviet Leader Who Tried for ‘Revolution from Above’
Mikhail Gorbachev died at 91 on Aug. 30, 2022. A historian of the Soviet era assesses his impact and the consequences of his failed attempts to reform state socialism.
Anne Heche Has Died at Age 53
Actress Anne Heche has died, a week after her car crashed into a Los Angeles house and burst into flames. TMZ reports that a representative for Heche’s family said that …..
Top Gun: The Marching Band Edition
Top Gun is back, 36 years later. Top Gun: Maverick, the sequel to the 1986 fighter-jock classic (again starring the ageless Tom Cruise) arrives in theaters on May 27. Deadline.com …..
‘Rage Joyously’: William Hurt Muses on Death
Actor William Hurt has died at age 71. His son, Will, released this statement: It is with great sadness that the Hurt family mourns the passing of William Hurt, beloved …..
Ryūsuke Hamaguchi Biography – New!
Our new biography of film director Ryūsuke Hamaguchi is now live. Ryūsuke Hamaguchi is the Japanese film director whose drama Drive My Car has been nominated for four Academy Awards …..
Mikaela Shiffrin’s Father: What Happened to Him?
Ski champion Mikaela Shiffrin has spoken openly and bravely about her struggles with the 2020 death of her father, Jeff Shiffrin. Reports and interviews have noted that Mikaela “couldn’t even …..
Punxsutawney Phil Is Not Actually Predicting the Weather, Just FYI
Groundhog hero Punxsutawney Phil has made his annual appearance for 2022. This year he “saw his shadow” and thereby “predicted” six more weeks of winter. Now, we love Groundhog Day …..