Ultra Swank - Retro Adventures

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7 Must-Have Christmas Albums of the 1950s

Each decade brings its unique cultural atmosphere, and the 1960s and 1970s left an indelible mark on holiday music. Renowned artists such as Nat King Cole and Dean Martin graced the 1960s with seasonal classics, while the 1970s witnessed a resurgence of legacy musicians. However, it’s the 1950s that may be credited with initiating the era of classic holiday music. In the vast landscape of...

What Is So Nostalgic About the Classic Bond Movies?

Although modern times are full of convenience, there is still something almost inexplicably charming about certain eras past. And thanks to pop culture and the windows it provides us into the past, even many who were born not so long ago might find themselves longing for the “good old days” of simpler, “golden-era” western culture. And the James Bond franchise can inspire these longing feelings...

A Warmer, Friendlier Alternative to Christmas

A long time ago when I was a lot younger I used to feel sorry for people in the southern hemisphere who never saw snow, much less a white Christmas. I thought to myself, “how could they possibly get into the holiday spirit when it was still warm enough to wear shorts and t-shirts?” I truly felt bad for them not knowing what a “true”...

Halloween Special – Sex and Horror
Written by Baron von Swankenstein in Readable

Halloween Special – Sex and Horror

I love Halloween. Ever since I was a kid, Halloween has meant an exploration of my most personal Jungian archetypes wrapped in a gloomy shroud of adventure. All the tropes of gothic horror and Halloween – haunted houses, gothic cemeteries, werewolves, ghosts, vampires – have tapped my subconscious in ways I’ll probably never fully understand. Of course, I didn’t know that when I was eight....

Pacific Ocean Park – The Nautical Theme Park Lost to Time

Unless you’re an Angeleno, you’ve probably never heard of Pacific Ocean Park. Even then, you’d have to be of a certain age to remember it. However, if you’re a fan of vintage American TV, you’ve probably seen it: You saw it when Martin Milner’s character took a job at P.O.P. on Route 66 (“Between Hello And Goodbye;” 1962). You saw it when Jack Klugman chased...

Video
Written by Baron von Swankenstein in Film

Korla Pandit – The Godfather of Exotica

Lounge Revivalists dream of romantic mystery. It’s why we buy all those Exotica and Space Age Pop records. We dream of idyllic unexplored islands or far-flung planets away from problematic modern lives. It doesn’t matter that those places couldn’t possibly exist. We need them to exist. And, with a dream and a good stereo, we hope to will them into existence. Korla Pandit was the...

Looney Tunes – Not Just Merrie Melodies

Watching a modern cartoon and then watching a vintage Looney Tunes cartoon is like eating dinner at burger stand in a town full of steak houses; there’s no comparison. In 1930 Warner Brothers Pictures released the first Looney Tunes cartoon. A decade later or so, Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck are fighting the axis and playing on African-American racial stereotypes. But let’s start from the...

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