I’m surfing the sonic waves of my next Essentials pick this a.m. I plan to ride its wild grooves again tomorrow, perhaps incorporate a video component in the afternoon, and then write the essay on Friday. No doubt, between now and then, I’ll also open the Notes app on my phone and sketch the lede and/or a few sentences or phrases.
That may seem neither here nor there as it pertains to today’s Daily Prompt question—and, yet, there’s a reason I start there. I’ve spent the bulk of my life focused on what some might dismiss as “fluff and stuff.” I’m well-versed on pop culture from the 1950s onward, only running into trouble once the entertainment options exploded during the 2010s. It wasn’t just a pastime or hobby, either. I freelanced record/CD reviews in late 1980s, worked for a troika of TV magazines (The Cable Guide, TV Time/Total TV, and See) in the 1990s, with the last half of that decade spent as a highlights editor, and signed on with TV GUIDE as a text writer once it acquired us in 2000. (Some of my work can now be found on this blog, including here and here.) It was never just a job. It was fun.
Even now, years removed, I can talk in-depth about the intricacies of many classic and not-so-classic TV series and movies, as well as the oeuvres of many actors, actresses, and directors. It’s second nature to me.
At the same time, as evidenced by this blog, I’m well-versed on much pop music. (These days, “pop” is a distinct genre all its own, but initially it was simply short for “popular”; if it was a hit, ergo, it was pop.) I devoured books and magazines about it, and—to an extent—still do. Aside from my dislike of public speaking, I could easily deliver TED Talks focused on the career arcs of Elvis Presley, the Beatles, Neil Young and many others, plus delve deep into a slew of newer singer-songwriters and bands. But, just as the TV landscape expanded exponentially in the 2010s, so too did the universe of music. We’re now deluged with as many releases in one day as we were for the entirety of 1989. It’s impossible to keep up.
To borrow a line from Paul Simon, “I know what I know.”
One reason why entertainment past and present appeals to me: It’s a microcosm of society and culture writ large, reflecting—and sometimes deflecting—larger trends. I’m something of a history buff, too, in other words. I’ve well-versed on specific stretches of the 20th century, especially the Great Depression, World War II, the 1960s, and the Watergate era.
The Old Grey Cat 