EVERY PERSON IN THE UNITED STATES HAS BEEN AFFECTED BY AN ELEMENT OF

POPULAR CULTURE AT SOME TIME IN THEIR LIVES…

Whether it be a favorite song that brings a rush of memories, a baseball card that brings back the joys of an innocent youth, a Barbie doll or G.I. Joe that led to journeys of the imagination, a comic book that allowed an escape to a fantastic world away from the daily reality or a movie or television program that takes the viewer on an innovative and imaginative journey…everyone has a favorite element of popular culture.

Comic books have provided the inspiration of many through their printed pages or their subsequent translation into the film or television mediums. Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, The X-Men, The Fantastic Four, Iron Man, The Hulk, Spider-man, Green Hornet, The Flash, The Punisher, The Ghost Rider, Daredevil, Elektra, The Spirit, The Shadow and Watchmen have all made the successful translation from comic book to film or television. These intellectual properties have existed for decades and have inspired and educated several generations.

Science fiction was always a favorite of the pulp novel format reader. This genre exploded in the 1950s in film and 1960s in television giving us such classics as The Day The Earth Stood Still, Forbidden Planet, Lost In Space, The Invaders, Creature from the Black Lagoon, It! and of course Star Trek. The continued success of the Star Trek franchise has inspired generations into science, technology and the exploration of space. The first Space Shuttle bore the name Enterprise. The television show of the 60s spawned 4 different sequels and 11 feature films to date. The early success of science fiction directly inspired the mega-successful Star Wars franchise, television shows like Battlestar Galactica, Stargate, Stargate Atlantis, X-Files, Lexx, Andromeda, Farscape and Babylon 5 which all had legions of fans and lengthy runs. These films and TV shows inspired and educated legions of youth around the world. It inspired many (and continues to do so) to seek a higher education in a technology or science discipline.

In our capitalist society each successful film, television, comic book or video game franchise spawns opportunists who hope to capitalize on such successes through the introduction of related merchandise…mostly in the form of action figures, vehicles, accessories and collector dolls. This also relates to military toys (G.I. Joe), girls toys (Barbie) and sports (baseball, football, basketball, hockey, wrestling and NASCAR) as a plethora of toys from these properties have been generated over the years.

Kenner built a reputation with sports figures and superhero toys, as well as movie-licensed products from Star Wars, Indiana Jones and others. Hasbro built a similar repertoire, including G.I. Joe, and acquired Kenner. Mattel built its empire with Hot Wheels and Barbie as well as superhero and film and television related merchandise. Three major publications, Action Figure News & Toy Review, Action Figure Digest and ToyFare chronicle events in this arena of marketing and sales on a monthly basis. The largest and most attended convention in the world is the annual San Diego Comic-Con which regularly attracts 100,000 attendees who devour every iota of information and merchandise related to their favorite film, TV show or comic book.

Simply stated, popular culture is a daily presence in the average adult and child’s life. We identify celebrities through whom they have portrayed as cultural icons, William Shatner is Captain James T. Kirk, Leonard Nimoy is Spock, Harrison Ford is Indiana Jones and Han Solo, Mark Hamill is Luke Skywalker, Sarah Michelle Gellar is Buffy, David Duchovny is Mulder and Gillian Anderson is Scully in our perspectives.

Our organization now has the ability and mission to preserve and present these cultural icons for the present and for the future generations. It is our goal to enlighten and inspire today’s youth to seek out careers in science, mathematics, technology and the arts as a direct result of their experience with popular culture. The future is so bright we’ve gotta wear shades!