The 1970s is a decade characterized by many historians as a “pivot of change” for America politically, economically, and socially. There are few places that better show this drastic change in U.S. values and societal attitudes than the television programing of the 70s. At the beginning of the decade once powerhouses like The Ed Sullivan …
Category Archives: Watching TV
Beauties and Beasts on TV: The Problem with Rumbelle
In honor of BYU’s December stage production of “Beauty and the Beast,” we will be looking at the lovely beauties and the brutish beasts on our weekly television screens. And luckily, we have a slew to choose from. Courtesy of our twin site, FTTV.byu.edu, we are able to trace the tale’s appearance on numerous shows from …
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Halloween Infographic: Frankenstein the Fairy Tale?
Happy Halloween from our group of fairy tale scholars! Please enjoy this infographic designed and created by our own Audra Coleman as our treat to you.
Our World, Sofia’s World: “Sofia the First” review Pt 2
On October 12th, Sofia the First aired “The Secret Library,” an episode featuring an obvious secret library and a not-so-obvious secret river with depicted Disney “realms.” These Disney “realms” showcase worlds inhabited by Disney Princesses—Cinderella’s fairy tale castle, Merida’s misty cliffs, and Tiana’s New Orlean bayou, among others. These Disney “realms,” whimsical though they are, illustrate a very problematic concern …
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Makeover Merida? Not Here!: “Sofia the First” review Pt 1
October 12th finally marked the entrance of Princess Merida (from Disney/Pixar’s Brave) in Sofia the First: “The Secret Library.” Sofia the First, Disney Junior’s princess escapade show for kiddies, has the same fanfiction-y pleasure as ABC’s Once Upon a Time, with Disney Princesses often cameoing to impart advice, songs, and general royal screen presence. Interestingly, Sofia the First has been known to change …
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The Artistic Revolution of the 1960s
In Donald Haase’s “The Greenwood Encyclopedia of Folktales and Fairy Tales: A-F” Wolfgang Mieder uses the tale of the Pied Piper of Hamelin to describe the practicality and efficiency of using folklore and fairy tale iconography in advertising. He likens the pied piper to a “symbol of the world of advertising” who would “play his pipe ever …
Pied Piper in Police Procedurals
Picture the scene: police tape, a music institute, a car, and inside the car, a well-esteemed music teacher—or what’s left of the well-esteemed music teacher. Crawling over him and in him and through him are the furry bodies of nightmares, rats. Music, crime, rats. What comes to mind? For me, anytime music and rats are linked, I think …
Redheads and…Dead Heads?: “OUAT” 5.1 Review PART 2
We return to the season five premiere of ABC’s Once Upon a Time (OUAT), which we first covered in this post. OUAT is known for its character-a-minute cameos, but this week featured the best untamed mane in the business: Merida, from Disney/Pixar’s Brave. AUDIENCE ACCESSIBILITY It’s a good season for Disney/Pixar’s Brave–not only does Merida appear in this premiere but she’ll …
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When is a Tale not a Fairy Tale?: “OUAT” 5.1 Review PART 1
Season five is now upon us! The glitzy, cringe-fest, character-studded opera that we love, hate, and hate to admit we love, is back. ABC’s Once Upon a Time (OUAT) opened its season five with “The Dark Swan,” returning to the dilemma we last left: will Emma be more Savior or Dark One? MINING WHAT MATTERED That said, …
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Introducing America to TV Commercials
On the first day of July in 1941 a few lucky New Yorkers with televisions tuned in to the WNBT station to see their Brooklyn Dodgers take on the visiting Phillies. The handful of baseball fans who got to their television sets early for this broadcast were about the experience history: they were about to see the …