The article I decided to blog about today is the movie “American Gangster”. I watched this movie this past weekend. This movie is based off a true story and stars academy award winning actors Denzel Washington and Russell Crowe. Denzel Washington stars as Frank Lucas a 1970’s gangster who brought pure heroin to the streets of Harlem. Russell Crowe stars as Ritchie Roberts an undercover special investigator who has been tasked to bring down drug lords.
Frank Lucas got his beginning by being a driver for a gangster named Bumpy Johnson. Bumpy ends up passing away and there is no clear-cut leader in the streets of Harlem. At the time drugs were rampant in Harlem but the quality was very suspect. While watching a news piece Frank hears about Heroin in Vietnam. Frank decides to by pass all middlemen and purchase Heroin directly from the manufactures in Vietnam. What this does for Frank is enable him to give higher quality Heroin at a discount price to his customers. Frank ends up becoming a multi-millionaire with even more power then the Mafia. Ritchie gets tasked with bringing down the drug lords because he is a very honest person. So begins a cat and mouse chase between Frank and Ritchie.
This movie kind of gives an accurate description of when hard drugs such as Cocaine and Heroin began to cripple this country. Frank Lucas loved the money so much that he was willing to cripple his own by neighborhood by enabling people’s addiction to heroin. Frank Lucas is one of the reason drugs are destroying many parts of this wonderful nation.
Monday, November 12, 2007
Sunday, October 28, 2007
Assg 5-1
This week I decided to blog the TV show The Unit. I have been an avid watcher of this show for three seasons now. I think I enjoy this show so much because I am in the military, and this show is based on a fictional military unit on a fictional military base. The show is loosely based on the Delta Force the elite US Army unit, and is produced by one of the original members of Delta Force Sergeant Major Eric Haney. Its lead character Sergeant Major Jonas Blaine is the shows version of Eric Haney.
What makes show really entertaining is that it just does not focus on the military aspect of the characters lives, but it also focuses on their personal lives also. I guess I would say is that the shows creators have added the soap opera aspect to the show, and it ha made it really good. One of the current plots going on with this season is one of the characters is going through a divorce finds out his soon to be ex-wife is stripping to pay the bills.
This past weeks episode was good as always. Jonas and his crew have to go to France and recover a computer chip that has top secret information containing undercover agents and there whereabouts. They locate the person that has the computer chip, but the problem is the chip is underneath his skin. Now they have to locate a hospital all the while fighting off terrorist through the streets of France. Eventually, they set up a sting to bring the people that want the chip to them, and they catch all of the terrorists.
What makes show really entertaining is that it just does not focus on the military aspect of the characters lives, but it also focuses on their personal lives also. I guess I would say is that the shows creators have added the soap opera aspect to the show, and it ha made it really good. One of the current plots going on with this season is one of the characters is going through a divorce finds out his soon to be ex-wife is stripping to pay the bills.
This past weeks episode was good as always. Jonas and his crew have to go to France and recover a computer chip that has top secret information containing undercover agents and there whereabouts. They locate the person that has the computer chip, but the problem is the chip is underneath his skin. Now they have to locate a hospital all the while fighting off terrorist through the streets of France. Eventually, they set up a sting to bring the people that want the chip to them, and they catch all of the terrorists.
Thursday, October 11, 2007
Assg 3-2 Icon Analysis
The three icons I choose truly epitomize what a pop culture icon is. The first one I chose is Tiger Woods. Tiger Woods is the world’s most famous golfer and probably most famous athlete. The second icon I chose is James Bond. James Bond movies have been around for over 40 years and still continue to entertain the young to the old. The third icon I chose is Hugh Hefner. Hugh Hefner is the founder of playboy magazine and the owner of the world famous playboy mansion.
Words cannot describe what Tiger Woods has done for the sport of golf. Golf use to be a hobby played by retired upper-middle class males, but what Tiger has done is bring the sport to all races, classes, and genders. Tiger has crossed a line that few athletes will ever achieve and that is legendary status. Tiger is probably the most recognizable face in the United States and the only other athlete that has ever been at his level is Michael Jordan. A sporting even cannot be watched on TV without a Tiger commercial appearing. Tiger has brought to me a new love for the sport of golf. Golf use to be a sport I despised, but because of Tiger I now play the sport regularly. It is also nice to see an athlete that portrays a positive image unlike a lot of the other athletes you hear about in the news.
A person would be hard pressed to find somebody that has not seen a James Bond Movie. There is no doubt in my mind that James Bond is a pop culture icon. Anytime something can continue to entertain audiences for more then 40 years and still stay fresh and innovative it has to be classified as an icon. James Bond continues to make hundreds of millions of dollars at the box office and it is showing no sign of slowing down. James Bond has proven it can bridge the gap between generations. What I mean by that is my father is 25 years older then I am and he use to watch James Bond movies when he was younger. Now when a new James Bond movie comes out my dad and I do some bonding together over a OO7 flick.
Last but not least is Hugh Hefner. Every man in America at one time or another wished they were Hugh Hefner. Hugh continues at his age to date some of the most beautiful girls in America. Not to mention the fact his playboy magazine has become a staple in many men's magazine collections. To me Hugh represents what the United States is all about and what Freedom of speech is all about.
Monday, October 8, 2007
Assg 1-3 Ideology and “Real World Superheroes
This article discusses some of the huge differences between comic books of yesteryear and the comic books of the last 20 years. It discusses how superheroes in the forties and fifties fit the mold of the typical good guy. Superman, Batman, Spiderman, and Wonder Women always epitomized good, and their enemies were always evil. The old comic books never had a gray area it was always black or white, and good versus evil. In the last 20 years comic books started to change. They started to deal with some of the social, political, and world issues that were prevalent at the time. Basically, what happened is the superhero became engulfed in real world situations. One comic book in particular Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons “Watchman” took this new type of superhero to a new level.
Jamie A. Hughes discusses how the super heroes of old were put on a throne and they were untouchable by the government, military, and police. Superman, Batman, and Spiderman represented perfection and they did not let ideology get in their way. Those comic books acknowledged the existence of government and religion but they always seemed to be above it. These superheroes of old always represented something we as average Americans could never be, and that is perfection. Sometimes the government would look at these superheroes as outcast, and they would try to prosecute them, but they would never end up succeeding. That is why we as Americans love Superman and Spiderman, because they represent what is great about the United States.
Today’s superhero is much different then yesteryear’s superhero. These new superheroes are involved in political and social issues of the current time. Nowhere is that more evident then in the comic book “Watchman.” This comic book takes superheroes and places them in current real world situations. This comic book is set in 1980’s New York City, and what it does is makes superheroes fixtures of everyday life. Not to mention that these superheroes are unable to avoid becoming a product of the society they are in. Basically the superheroes do not dictate what goes on within the society, the society dictates what goes on with them.
James A. Hughes stresses the fact that these superheroes are not in it to help to protect mankind, but rather to advance their own ideology. Some are in it for the fame and money, but some are in it to advance and promote their own belief system. For example, one of the superheroes Sally Jupiter is in it to advance her modeling career not to help the human race. Another superhero the Nite Owl is a member of the New York City Police Department and becomes a witness to all the murders, pimps, and prostitutes around the city. The Nite Owl makes it his responsibility to correct that problem. Two other superheroes are in it for the same reason as Nite Owl, and they are Captain Metropolis and The Comedian. Silhouette is another superhero she is an openly gay woman out to promote her own ideology for gay rights. All of these superheroes formed a group together called the Minutemen, but after sometime they realized they were just a passing fad and it was time to disband.
These superheroes did not succeed because they were out for themselves. The only thing important to them was advancing their own philosophy and ideology. The public had shunned them because they were considered outcasts. A lot of comic book readers might relate to these superheroes because they have faults like themselves, and are outcast a lot like themselves.
After sometime a new superhero group is formed called “The Crimebusters”. The members of this group are all new except for two of the members Captain Metropolis and The Comedian who were members of “The Minutemen”. The problem is this group never gels well together. Everyone’s ideology gets in the way of making one cohesive unit. That is kind of reminiscent of a real world problem right now with the Democrats and Republicans. Those two groups cannot get together and fix problems that has plagued our society for years.
The Comedian now works for the government and has become a ruthless and pessimistic leader. He thinks America’s problems cannot be fixed by crime fighting. At some point he thinks there is going to be Nuclear War with all nations. Another one of the superheroes is Rorschach who was born to a prostitute and had the toughest upbringing of all the superheroes. Because of the way he was brought up things are very black and white to him there is no middle ground. Some people view him as psychotic, while others view him as protector of society.
The last two characters are Ozymandias and Dr. Manhattan. Ozymandias is a powerful world leader who worships Alexander the Great. Dr. Manhattan follows the old version of superhero by gaining his powers through a nuclear accident. These men also believe the world is on the verge of Nuclear War, but both have a difference of opinion on how to handle the situation. Ozymandias tricks the world by planting a fake alien life form in New York City that kills 3 million people. His plan is to divert all of the countries away from each other, and have them unite as one against the alien life form. He fails to realize the implications of killing 3 million Americans, because he is so wrapped up in his own ideology. His plan eventually falls apart because documents get leaked to the press about his plan.
Dr. Manhattan is the hero of the Comic Book. After a nuclear accident he returns as a superhero. The government gets a hold of him and issue him a military uniform. As time goes on he starts to be believe less and less of the governments ideology. Slowly but surely he starts to strip his government uniform until he is totally naked riding himself of the governments ideology. Back in the golden age of comic books superheroes were untouchable but superheroes today fall victim to one thing and that is ideology.
References
Hughes, Jamie A. (2006)."Who watches the watchman?": Ideology and real world superheroes. The Journal of Popular Culture. 39, 546-556.
Jamie A. Hughes discusses how the super heroes of old were put on a throne and they were untouchable by the government, military, and police. Superman, Batman, and Spiderman represented perfection and they did not let ideology get in their way. Those comic books acknowledged the existence of government and religion but they always seemed to be above it. These superheroes of old always represented something we as average Americans could never be, and that is perfection. Sometimes the government would look at these superheroes as outcast, and they would try to prosecute them, but they would never end up succeeding. That is why we as Americans love Superman and Spiderman, because they represent what is great about the United States.
Today’s superhero is much different then yesteryear’s superhero. These new superheroes are involved in political and social issues of the current time. Nowhere is that more evident then in the comic book “Watchman.” This comic book takes superheroes and places them in current real world situations. This comic book is set in 1980’s New York City, and what it does is makes superheroes fixtures of everyday life. Not to mention that these superheroes are unable to avoid becoming a product of the society they are in. Basically the superheroes do not dictate what goes on within the society, the society dictates what goes on with them.
James A. Hughes stresses the fact that these superheroes are not in it to help to protect mankind, but rather to advance their own ideology. Some are in it for the fame and money, but some are in it to advance and promote their own belief system. For example, one of the superheroes Sally Jupiter is in it to advance her modeling career not to help the human race. Another superhero the Nite Owl is a member of the New York City Police Department and becomes a witness to all the murders, pimps, and prostitutes around the city. The Nite Owl makes it his responsibility to correct that problem. Two other superheroes are in it for the same reason as Nite Owl, and they are Captain Metropolis and The Comedian. Silhouette is another superhero she is an openly gay woman out to promote her own ideology for gay rights. All of these superheroes formed a group together called the Minutemen, but after sometime they realized they were just a passing fad and it was time to disband.
These superheroes did not succeed because they were out for themselves. The only thing important to them was advancing their own philosophy and ideology. The public had shunned them because they were considered outcasts. A lot of comic book readers might relate to these superheroes because they have faults like themselves, and are outcast a lot like themselves.
After sometime a new superhero group is formed called “The Crimebusters”. The members of this group are all new except for two of the members Captain Metropolis and The Comedian who were members of “The Minutemen”. The problem is this group never gels well together. Everyone’s ideology gets in the way of making one cohesive unit. That is kind of reminiscent of a real world problem right now with the Democrats and Republicans. Those two groups cannot get together and fix problems that has plagued our society for years.
The Comedian now works for the government and has become a ruthless and pessimistic leader. He thinks America’s problems cannot be fixed by crime fighting. At some point he thinks there is going to be Nuclear War with all nations. Another one of the superheroes is Rorschach who was born to a prostitute and had the toughest upbringing of all the superheroes. Because of the way he was brought up things are very black and white to him there is no middle ground. Some people view him as psychotic, while others view him as protector of society.
The last two characters are Ozymandias and Dr. Manhattan. Ozymandias is a powerful world leader who worships Alexander the Great. Dr. Manhattan follows the old version of superhero by gaining his powers through a nuclear accident. These men also believe the world is on the verge of Nuclear War, but both have a difference of opinion on how to handle the situation. Ozymandias tricks the world by planting a fake alien life form in New York City that kills 3 million people. His plan is to divert all of the countries away from each other, and have them unite as one against the alien life form. He fails to realize the implications of killing 3 million Americans, because he is so wrapped up in his own ideology. His plan eventually falls apart because documents get leaked to the press about his plan.
Dr. Manhattan is the hero of the Comic Book. After a nuclear accident he returns as a superhero. The government gets a hold of him and issue him a military uniform. As time goes on he starts to be believe less and less of the governments ideology. Slowly but surely he starts to strip his government uniform until he is totally naked riding himself of the governments ideology. Back in the golden age of comic books superheroes were untouchable but superheroes today fall victim to one thing and that is ideology.
References
Hughes, Jamie A. (2006)."Who watches the watchman?": Ideology and real world superheroes. The Journal of Popular Culture. 39, 546-556.
Sunday, October 7, 2007
Assg 1-2
Popular culture to me epitomizes what this country is all about. Popular culture is the fashion, music, dances, movies, and trends that are seen all around us. Popular culture is what gives us an emotional high as Americans. Whether it is feeling emotionally tied to a character on C.S.I or the satisfaction of trying the to latte at Starbucks popular culture is all around us. Popular culture has to do with religion, food, fashion, music, T.V., and the way people or governed. To me popular culture relates to every person in a society from the uneducated to the educated, young to old, man to women, and every race within a society. Popular culture is very important because it ties a society together with beliefs, entertainment, sports, and many other things common throughout the society. Whether it has to do with who is the next person to be voted out of “American Idol” or who is going to be the next president of the United States. Popular culture influences every aspect of our everyday lives.
In my education here at Franklin and in my future career it is very important to have a through understanding of popular culture. Basically, “understanding popular culture” equals “understanding the consumer or clients”, and because this helps me understand what is popular at the time and potentially what the consumer or my client is interested in. It cannot be stressed how important it is to understand society and in doing this I will be more successful in my future career.
Perez Hilton and his website are perfect examples of a popular culture artifact. Perezhilton.com has taken the country by storm. Perez’s website currently gets millions of hits a day. Perez has made a living out of making fun of Hollywood stars and MTV stars, but in doing that he has became a star himself. Everyone is subject to his wrath to include Hollywood, musicians, politicians, and some average Americans. What Perez has done is got a read on the American people and what they like. Perez has shown that a lot of people in our society like to see famous people insulted beyond belief. Also a lot of Americans enjoy going to his website to see photos of their favorite stars and what they do during their daily lives and also their mistakes. Perez also tackles a lot of popular social issues thru his commentary to include gay rights and the Iraq War. Perez has spun his website into many other ventures for himself to include being a correspondent on award shows and his own T.V. show on VH1.
http://nateanderton.blogspot.com/
Assg. 1-4/2008 Presidential Election
Currently a very popular topic in pop culture is the 2008 presidential election. A person cannot turn on CNN, MSNBC, Fox News without hearing something about the election and it is still more then a year before the election actually happens. In fact the season premiere of Saturday Night Live opened with skit portraying Hillary and Bill Clinton. The Republicans and the Democrats have already had numerous debates televised on cable news outlets. In fact You Tube another pop culture phenomenon held a debate with the democrats with questions posted on their website.
On the democratic side there is front-runner Hillary Clinton who has raised tons of money and is running with the powerful and controversial Clinton name. If Hillary does win the presidency that would mean that a Bush or a Clinton would be in the White house for 32 straight years. That is kind of scary to think that two families have could have a strangle hold on the white house for that long period of time. Then there is Hilary’s strongest contender Barack O’bama who has also raised tons of money. A lot of Hollywood has jumped on Barack’s bandwagon not to mention the fact that television’s most powerful female Oprah Winfrey has endorsed him. Barack is going to have a tough time trying to get the Democratic nomination, because the Clinton’s know how to run a powerful campaign.
The Republican’s have two strong candidates also Rudolph Giuliani and Senator Fred Thompson. Rudy is known as America’s Mayor because he was mayor of New York City during the September 11 attacks. A lot of people like him because he showed strong resolve during these attacks. What might hurt him with-in his own party is some of his views differ with the majority of his party. Rudy is pro-choice which is out of line with the rest of his party; also he supports domestic partnerships unlike the rest of his party. Those two views might hurt him in getting the republican nomination. Fred Thompson might be best known for playing NYC District Attorney Arthur Blank on television’s Law and Order. Fred Thompson is very conservative which is a lot like the current President George Bush. If he got the nomination it might be hard for him to beat the democratic nominee considering how unpopular the current president is.
On the democratic side there is front-runner Hillary Clinton who has raised tons of money and is running with the powerful and controversial Clinton name. If Hillary does win the presidency that would mean that a Bush or a Clinton would be in the White house for 32 straight years. That is kind of scary to think that two families have could have a strangle hold on the white house for that long period of time. Then there is Hilary’s strongest contender Barack O’bama who has also raised tons of money. A lot of Hollywood has jumped on Barack’s bandwagon not to mention the fact that television’s most powerful female Oprah Winfrey has endorsed him. Barack is going to have a tough time trying to get the Democratic nomination, because the Clinton’s know how to run a powerful campaign.
The Republican’s have two strong candidates also Rudolph Giuliani and Senator Fred Thompson. Rudy is known as America’s Mayor because he was mayor of New York City during the September 11 attacks. A lot of people like him because he showed strong resolve during these attacks. What might hurt him with-in his own party is some of his views differ with the majority of his party. Rudy is pro-choice which is out of line with the rest of his party; also he supports domestic partnerships unlike the rest of his party. Those two views might hurt him in getting the republican nomination. Fred Thompson might be best known for playing NYC District Attorney Arthur Blank on television’s Law and Order. Fred Thompson is very conservative which is a lot like the current President George Bush. If he got the nomination it might be hard for him to beat the democratic nominee considering how unpopular the current president is.
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