All upcoming Popular Culture programs

Why does Sherlock Holmes remain such an intriguing figure generations after his debut? English professor Kristopher Mecholsky highlights his origins and worldwide popularity. He also focuses a magnifying glass on his unique impact on contemporary fans—who are fascinated by searching for clues to whether Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s timeless detective would be classified as neurodivergent today.

Why do we always succumb to this bountiful, joyous, teary-eyed musical that melts even the cynical and leaves everyone singing? The glorious melodies of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s final show never age, and its plot never fails to touch us as it covers everything from music-making to resistance to tyranny. Documentary filmmaker Sara Lukinson, who teaches at New York University, traces how the story went from a German memoir and documentary to a Broadway hit, movie fame, and entertainment immortality.

From its start in the early 1950s, the talk show has been one of television’s most durable formats. Pioneering programs like “Today,” “Person-to-Person,” and “Tonight” established the basic features that have guided the format, later embraced by Oprah Winfrey, David Letterman, and Jon Stewart, among others. Media historian Brian Rose looks at the history of the television talk show and examines its changing appeal.

Jazz has consistently defied efforts to capture its essence, milieu, dynamics, and quicksilver magic effectively in the mainstream medium of movies. Although cinema and jazz were born at roughly the same time, they have often appeared to be two art forms at odds with one another. In his exploration of jazz on screen, Tim A. Ryan, a professor at Northern Illinois University, surveys the genre’s film history and examines the inherent challenges filmmakers face when trying to dramatize the world of jazz.

Writer Virginia Woolf dismissed clothes as “vain trifles” but acknowledged that “they wear us and not we them.” The way we dress reflects our times, our sense of self, and our aspirations, says author Debra N. Mancoff. Mancoff reveals how clothing and fashion tell stories over time and across cultures.

Today, the popular 1989 Disney film ensures that most people think of “The Little Mermaid” as a tale of triumph. But in Hans Christian Andersen’s “The Little Mermaid” fairy tale, which loosely inspired the movie, the mermaid fails to meet the terms of the sea witch’s bargain and dies. Folklorists Sara Cleto and Brittany Warman do a deep dive into “The Little Mermaid” fairy tale to discuss folkloric and literary tales that inspired it. They also explore how the story has been retold in contemporary times.

Walt Disney built a cultural empire rooted in imagination, optimism, and storytelling. Guided by this outlook, he and his Imagineers conceived something special: an architecture of reassurance in Disney theme parks. Former urban planner Sam Gennawey, author of Walt Disney and the Promise of Progress City, decodes Disney’s design DNA and reveals the techniques his team employed at Disneyland: eight design principles that usher guests on a journey through places that delight. Take a peek behind the curtain.

Fred Astaire was one of the 20th century’s greatest magicians: His sorcery depended on making some of the most complex dancing ever seen on the screen seem as effortless as breathing. Whether partnering with Ginger Rogers, Rita Hayworth, Cyd Charisse, or a hat rack—or dancing on the ceiling or on roller skates—he made it appear easy and elegant. Media historian Brian Rose surveys the sweep of Astaire’s remarkable career in a program illustrated with video clips.