American actors Cindy Williams (right) and Ron Howard as Laurie and Steve on the set of the Lucasfilm production 'American Graffiti',

The Sonic Triumph of American Graffiti

In 1973, George Lucas joined forces with sound designer Walter Murch to celebrate a bygone era. They ended up revolutionizing the role music plays in film.
Anita Bryant is hit in the face with a pie during a press conference on October 14, 1977

Proposition 6 (The Briggs Initiative): Annotated

Proposition 6, better known as the Briggs Initiative, was the first attempt to restrict the rights of lesbian and gay Americans by popular referendum.
Closeup of the edge of open book pages

The Theory Journal: Still Trendy after All These Years?

A wave of academic periodicals devoted to theory started appearing in the 1970s. Criticism wasn't far behind.
Superbarrio

Superbarrio: The People’s Superhero

Defender of the poor tenants and evictor of the voracious landlords, a masked lucha libre wrestler rose from the ruins of Mexico City’s 1985 earthquake.
Barnum and Bailey poster

How P. T. Barnum Gave The Public What It Wanted

P.T. Barnum, born July 5, 1810, was "the first great advertising genius and the greatest publicity exploiter the world has ever known."
"We Are The World" album cover

“We Are the World, We Are the Children” (Or Are We?)

Megahit "We are the world" turns 30 this year.
Education and Leisure

The Rise and Fall of “Education for Leisure”

Where did the notion of teaching people how to spend their free time come from, and why did it disappear?