Why do we need a national
nonprofit membership society for American history?
“Save America’s Treasures” has been totally eliminated—the largest Federal program supporting preservation of such treasures as the original Star Spangled Banner and George Washington’s tent.
65% of Americans don’t know what happened at the Constitutional Convention, according to a recent survey by Newsweek.
The “Teaching American History” grants—the largest Federal program supporting history education—have been completely eliminated.
Visits to the Top 20 Civil War battlefields have dropped in half from 1970 to 2009 according to official National Park Service statistics.
40% of Americans can’t identify whom we fought in World War II, according to a recent survey by Newsweek.
A quarter of Americans believe Congress shares power over U.S. foreign policy with the United Nations, according to a recent Annenberg survey.
“There is little that is more important for an American citizen to know than the history and traditions of his country,” John F. Kennedy wrote in American Heritage.
The “We the People Program,” which touched some 30 million students and 90,000 teachers over 25 years, has been completely eliminated.
Two-thirds of Americans could not correctly name Yorktown as the last major military action of the American Revolution, according to a recent national Gallup survey.
The National Heritage Areas and Scenic Byways program, the only major Federal program encouraging visits to historic places, has been completely eliminated in Congressional committee.
The first real “concept” album, Pet Sounds featured the Wrecking Crew and wunderkind producer Brian Wilson at their creative apex. Considered by Sir Paul McCartney to be the finest pop recording of the 1960s, it undeniably influenced the very competitive Beatles to create their conceptual masterpiece, Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band . Read more »
Although the Wrecking Crew is widely considered the most prominent group of pop/rock studio musicians to come out of their day, other cities and other music styles had their own important session players. Read more »
On a cool, overcast February night in Hollywood, near the slightly scruffy, down-on-its-luck intersection of Vine Street and Santa Monica Boulevard—the final stretch of Route 66—a group of highly talented musicians gathered in a weathered, non-descript former dentist’s office are about to make rock ’n’ roll history. No one present, from the bass player to the drummer to the guitarist, has any inkling that this particular studio session is likely to differ from any other.Read more »
For the brilliant songwriter behind the Beach Boys, the endless summer gave way to a very hard winter. Now he is back, with a work that wants to be no less than a musical history of the American dream.
The voices are clear and strong, their song crackling with energy. “Early in the morning we’ll be startin’ out, / Some honeys will be comin’ along / We’re loading up our woodie with our boards inside / And headin’ out singing our song.... Let’s go surfin’ now / Everybody’s learning how / Come on and safari with me....”