american pop culture

American popular culture is one of the most influential and globally spread cultural form today. Movie, television, music, and sports are presented here.

American popular culture has expressed itself through nearly every medium. Mickey Mouse, Barbie, Elvis Presley, Madonna, Aerosmith, Babe Ruth, Baseball, American football, Basketball, screwball comedy, G.I. Joe, jazz, the blues, Rap & Hip Hop, The Simpsons, Michael Jackson, Superman, Gone with the Wind, Marilyn Monroe, Michael Jordan, Indiana Jones, Sesame Street, Catch-22—these names, genres, and phrases have joined more tangible American products in spreading across the globe. It is worth noting that while the U.S. tends to be a net exporter of culture, it absorbs many other cultural traditions with relative ease, for example: origami, soccer, anime, and yoga.

Movie

United States cinema has had a profound effect on cinema across the world since the early 20th century. Its history is sometimes separated into four main periods: the silent film era, Classical Hollywood cinema, New Hollywood, and the contemporary period (after 1980).

In 1878, Eadweard Muybridge demonstrated the power of photography to capture motion. In 1894, the world's first commercial motion picture exhibition was given in New York City, using Thomas Edison's Kinetoscope. The next year saw the first commercial screening of a projected film, also in New York, and the United States was in the forefront of sound film's development in the following decades. Since the early twentieth century, the U.S. film industry has largely been based in and around Hollywood, California. Director D. W. Griffith was central to the development of film grammar and Orson Welles's Citizen Kane (1941) is frequently cited in critics' polls as the greatest film of all time. American screen actors like John Wayne and Marilyn Monroe have become iconic figures, while producer/entrepreneur Walt Disney was a leader in both animated film and movie merchandising. The major film studios of Hollywood are the primary source of the most commercially successful movies in the world, such as Star Wars (1977) and Titanic (1997), and the products of Hollywood today dominate the global film industry.

Classical Hollywood cinema or the classical Hollywood narrative, are terms used in film history which designates both a visual and sound style for making motion pictures and a mode of production used in the American film industry between roughly the 1910s and the 1960s. Classical style is fundamentally built on the principle of continuity editing or "invisible" style. That is, the camera and the sound recording should never call attention to themselves (as they might in a modernist or postmodernist work). The apogee of the studio system may have been the year 1939, which saw the release of such classics as The Wizard of Oz, Gone with the Wind, Stagecoach, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, Wuthering Heights, Only Angels Have Wings, Ninotchka, and Midnight. Among the other films from the Golden Age period that are now considered to be classics are: Casablanca, It's a Wonderful Life, It Happened One Night, the original King Kong, Mutiny on the Bounty, City Lights, Red River and Top Hat.

'Post-classical cinema' is a term used to describe the changing methods of storytelling in the New Hollywood. It has been argued that new approaches to drama and characterization played upon audience expectations acquired in the classical period: chronology may be scrambled, storylines may feature "twist endings", and lines between the antagonist and protagonist may be blurred. The roots of post-classical storytelling may be seen in film noir, in Rebel Without a Cause (1955), and in Hitchcock's storyline-shattering Psycho (1960). Filmmakers like Francis Ford Coppola, George Lucas, Martin Scorsese, William Friedkin and Steven Spielberg came to produce fare that paid homage to the history of film, and developed upon existing genres and techniques. In the early 1970s, their films were often both critically acclaimed and commercially successful. While the early New Hollywood films like Bonnie and Clyde and Easy Rider had been relatively low-budget affairs with amoral heroes and increased sexuality and violence, the enormous success enjoyed by Coppola, Spielberg and Lucas with The Godfather, Jaws, and Star Wars, respectively helped to give rise to the modern "blockbuster", and induced studios to focus ever more heavily on trying to produce enormous hits.

Studios supplemented these movies with independent productions, made with small budgets and often independently of the studio corporation. Movies made in this manner typically emphasize high professional quality in terms of acting, directing, screenwriting, and other elements associated with production, and also upon creativity and innovation. These movies usually rely upon critical praise or niche marketing to garner an audience.

American independent cinema was revitalized in the late 1980s and early 1990s when another new generation of moviemakers, including Spike Lee, Kevin Smith, and Quentin Tarantino made movies like, respectively: Do the Right Thing; Clerks; and Reservoir Dogs. In terms of directing, screenwriting, editing, and other elements, these movies were innovative and often irreverent, playing with and contradicting the conventions of Hollywood movies. Furthermore, their considerable financial successes and crossover into popular culture reestablished the commercial viability of independent film. Since then, the independent film industry has become more clearly defined and more influential in American cinema.

The 1980s and 1990s saw another significant development. The full acceptance of home video by studios opened a vast new business to exploit. Films such as The Secret of NIMH and The Shawshank Redemption, which performed poorly in their theatrical run, were now able to find success in the video market. It also saw the first generation of film makers with access to video tapes emerge. With the rise of the DVD in the 21st century, DVDs have quickly become even more profitable to studios and have led to an explosion of packaging extra scenes, extended versions, and commentary tracks with the films.

To a lesser degree in the 2000s, film types that were previously considered to have only a minor presence in the mainstream movie market began to arise as more potent American box office draws. These include foreign-language films such as Hidden Dragon and Hero and documentary films such as Super Size Me, and Michael Moore's Fahrenheit 9/11.

Television

Television is one of the major mass media of the United States. In an expansive country of more than 300 million people, television programs are some of the few things that nearly all Americans can share. Ninety-nine percent of American households have at least one television and the majority of households have more than one.

American television has had very successful programming that has inspired television networks across the world to make shows of similar types or broadcast these shows in their own country. Some of these shows are still on the air and some are still alive and well in syndication. The opposite is also true; a number of popular American programs were based on shows from other countries, especially the United Kingdom and Canada.

Primetime series has included situation comedies such as M*A*S*H, Seinfeld or Friends, as well as dramatic series, that have taken many forms over the years: Westerns such as Gunsmoke, had their greatest popularity in the '50s and '60s, medical dramas (Marcus Welby, ER), family dramas (The Waltons, Little House on the Prairie) and crime dramas (Law & Order, CSI: Crime Scene Investigation).

The major networks all offer a morning news program (NBC's The Today Show and ABC's Good Morning America are the standard bearers), as well as an early-evening newscast anchored by the de facto face of the network's news operations. Successful news magazines have included 60 Minutes, 20/20, and Dateline in primetime and Meet the Press (the US's oldest series, having debuted in 1947).

Reality television has long existed in the United States, both played for laughs (Candid Camera, Real People) and as drama (COPS, The Real World). A new variant - competition series - exploded in popularity in 2000 with the launch of Survivor. Big Brother, The Amazing Race, So You Think You Can Dance, and American Idol followed. American soap operas have been running for over six decades. Primetime soap operas of note have included Dallas, Dynasty and Beverly Hills, 90210.

Daytime has also been home of many popular game shows over the years (particularly during the 1970s), such as The Price is Right, Family Feud or Match Game. Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy! have found their greatest success in the early-evening slot before primetime, while game shows actually aired within primetime had great popularity in the 2000s (Who Wants to Be a Millionaire, The Weakest Link, Deal or No Deal).

The most successful talk show has been the late-night Tonight Show. Daytime talk show hits have included The Oprah Winfrey Show or Live with Regis and Kelly, and run the gamut from serious to lighthearted; a subset of so-called trash TV talk shows such as The Jerry Springer Show also veered into exploitation and titillation.

Music

The music of the United States reflects the country's multi-ethnic population through a diverse array of styles. Rock and roll, blues, country, rhythm and blues, jazz, pop, techno, and hip hop are among the country's most internationally-renowned genres. The United States has the world's largest music industry and its music is heard around the world. Since the beginning of the 20th century, some forms of American popular music have gained a near global audience.

Much of modern popular music can trace its roots to the emergence in the late 19th century of African American blues and the growth of gospel music in the 1920s. The African American basis for popular music used elements derived from European and indigenous musics. The United States has also seen documented folk music and recorded popular music produced in the ethnic styles of the Ukrainian, Irish, Scottish, Polish, Hispanic and Jewish communities, among others. Many American cities and towns have vibrant music scenes which, in turn, support a number of regional musical styles. Along with musical centers such as Seattle, New York City, New Orleans, Minneapolis, Chicago, Nashville, Austin, and Los Angeles, many smaller cities have produced distinctive styles of music. The Cajun and Creole traditions in Louisiana music, the folk and popular styles of Hawaiian music, and the bluegrass and old time music of the Southeastern states are a few examples of diversity in American music.

Music intertwines with aspects of American social and cultural identity, including through social class, race and ethnicity, geography, religion, language, gender and sexuality. The relationship between music and race is perhaps the most potent determiner of musical meaning in the United States. The development of an African American musical identity, out of disparate sources from Africa and Europe, has been a constant theme in the music history of the United States. Little documentation exists of colonial-era African American music, when styles, songs and instruments from across West Africa commingled in the melting pot of slavery. By the mid-19th century, a distinctly African American folk tradition was well-known and widespread, and African American musical techniques, instruments and images became a part of mainstream American music through spirituals, minstrel shows and slave songs. African American musical styles became an integral part of American popular music through gospel, blues, jazz, rhythm and blues, and then rock and roll, soul, funk and hip hop; all of these styles were consumed by Americans of all races, but were created in African American styles and idioms before eventually becoming common in performance and consumption across racial lines. In contrast, country music derives from both African and European, as well as Native American and Hawaiian, traditions and yet has long been perceived as a form of white music.

Economic and social class separates American music through the creation and consumption of music, such as the upper-class patronage of symphony-goers, and the generally poor performers of rural and ethnic folk musics. Musical divisions based on class are not absolute, however, and are sometimes as much perceived as actual; popular American country music, for example, is a commercial genre designed to appeal to a working-class identity, whether or not its listeners are actually working class. Country music is also intertwined with geographic identity, and is specifically rural in origin and function; other genres, like R&B and hip hop, are perceived as inherently urban. Some important moments and representatives for American popular music are:

1908 - first published sheet music using the name blues, Antonio Maggio's "I Got the Blues"; emerged as an accessible form of self-expression in African-American communities blues diversified in such subgeneres/regional scenes as: Delta Blues, electric blues, Louisiana Blues or Chicago Blues and is represented by such artists as: Bessie Smith, Sonny Boy Williamson, Muddy Waters, B.B. King or John Lee Hooker. 

1917 - first appearance of recorded jazz, by Original Dixieland Jazz Band; jazz played a significant role in shaping American culture and society and was represented by such artists as: the 1920s Jazz Era musicians Louis Armstrong and Duke Ellington, the 1940s bebop musicians as saxophonist Charlie Parker, pianist Thelonious Monk, and trumpeter Dizzy Gillespie, or the 1970s and 1980s fusion and free styles of jazz musicians as trumpetist Miles Davis, saxophonist John Coltrane, bassist Charles Mingus or pianists Keith Jarret and Herbie Hancock.        

1955 - Little Richard records "Tutti Frutti," identifying rock'n'roll with manner of performance; later artists such as Chuck Berry and Elvis Presley claimed rock'n'roll or simply rock as their genre, whose expression culminated in the Woodstock festival  (1969), featuring such folk rock and psychedelic rock artists as Bob Dylan, The Greatful Dead and Jimi Hendrix in an iconic festival of the Vietnam War and Civil Right Movements generation.

1972 - DJ Kool Herc (Clive Campbell) created the blueprint for hip hop music and culture by building upon the Jamaican tradition of toasting impromptu poetry and sayings over music. Herc was also the developer of break-beat deejaying, where the breaks of funk songs - the part most suited to dance, usually percussion-based - were isolated and repeated for the purpose of all-night dance parties. Among contemporary representative rap and hip hop artists are Tupac Shakur, LL Cool J, Eminem or Run-D.M.C.

Sports

Sports in the United States are an important part of the national culture. However, the sporting culture of the U.S. is different from that of many other countries. Compared to any other nation, Americans prefer a unique set of sports. For example, cricket and soccer, two of the most popular sports in the world, are not as popular in the U.S. compared to the four most popular team sports, namely, American Football, Basketball, Baseball, and Hockey. The major leagues of each of these sports enjoy massive media exposure and are considered the preeminent competitions in their respective sports in the world.

In addition to the difference of popular sports, sports are also organized differently in the United States. There is no system of promotion and relegation like sports in Europe and major sports leagues operate as associations of franchises. Moreover, all major sports leagues use the same type of schedule with a playoff tournament after the regular season. Also, unlike many other countries, schools, colleges and universities sports competitions play an important role in the American sporting culture.

From the top four team sports Baseball is the oldest of these. Professional baseball dates from 1869 and had no close rivals in popularity until the 1960s; though baseball is no longer the most popular sport it is still referred to as the "national pastime." Also unlike the professional levels of the other popular spectator sports in the U.S., Major League Baseball teams play almost every day from April to October. The World Series is the championship series of Major League Baseball, the culmination of the sport's postseason each October. It is played between the winner of each of the two leagues, the American League and the National League and the winner is determined through a best-of-seven playoff. Notable baseball players include Ty Cobb, Babe Ruth, Sandy Koufax, Willie Mays and Hank Aaron.

American football (known simply as "football" in the U.S.) now attracts more television viewers than baseball; however, National Football League teams play only 16 regular-season games each year, so baseball is the runaway leader in ticket sales. The 32-team National Football League (NFL) is the most popular and only major professional American football league. Its championship game, the Super Bowl, is arguablly the biggest annual sporting event held in the United States. Additional millions also watch college football throughout the autumn months, and some communities, particularly in rural areas, place great emphasis on their local high school team.

Basketball, invented in Massachusetts by the Canadian-born James Naismith, is another popular sport, represented professionally by the National Basketball Association (NBA). In late April, the NBA Playoffs begin. Eight teams in each conference qualify for the playoffs and compete for the Larry O'Brien Championship Trophy. Notable NBA players in history include Kobe Bryant, Tim Duncan, Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Larry Bird, and LeBron James.

Most Americans recognize a fourth major sport - ice hockey. Always a mainstay of Great Lakes and New England-area culture, the sport gained tenuous footholds in regions like the American South in recent years, as the National Hockey League pursued a policy of expansion. The National Hockey League (NHL) is the major professional hockey league in North America, with 24 U.S.-based teams and six Canadian-based teams competing for the Stanley Cup. Notable American players are: Mike Modano, Phil Housley and Jeremy Roenick.

Unlike in Europe, Africa, and Latin America, soccer, despite being the most popular sport in the world, has a relatively small following. It is popular with the large European and Latino immigrant populations, like in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, and Texas. Almost as many girls as boys play youth soccer in the U.S., contributing to the women's national team becoming one of the world's premier women's sides. The top domestic league, Major League Soccer, is not traditionally considered one of the major leagues in the country but it has continued to rise in popularity.

Motor sports are also widely popular in the United States, but Americans generally ignore major international series, such as Formula One and MotoGP, in favor of home-grown racing series.

Golf is very popular in the U.S. as a recreational activity, especially among business people. The United States is home to the world's richest men's professional tour, the PGA Tour, and three of the four major championships in men's golf, and also to the richest women's professional tour, the LPGA Tour.

Tennis is played nationally at high school and college levels, and the country hosts one of the four annual Grand Slam tournaments, the US Open, at the USTA National Tennis Center, Queens, New York City. Many of the all-time greats of this sport are American, such as Bill Tilden, Jimmy Connors, John McEnroe, Pete Sampras, Andre Agassi, Billie Jean King, Chris Evert, and Venus and Serena Williams.

Professional boxing was one of the major sports in the U.S. from the late 19th century up to the middle decades of the 20th century. U.S. boxers such as Muhammad Ali and Sugar Ray Robinson rank among the all time greats of the sport. However boxing has decreased in popularity over the past several decades while the sport of mixed martial arts has recently enjoyed mainstream success.