Laughter Gives Hope for America

The one and only Bob Hope

Fueled by tremendous advances in communications, one of the major trends of modern America has been the interweaving patterns between politicians, performers, and pop culture. And an ongoing exhibit entitled Hope for America: Performers, Politics & Pop Culture does an enlightening, engaging job of demonstrating those powerful connections.

While ostensibly built around the career of comic icon Bob Hope, all the great political humorists from Will Rogers through the Smothers Brothers to the stars of Saturday Night Live to Jon Stewart of The Daily Show are represented here.

The exhibit is arranged in 3 sections, each further broken down into numerous stations.  The areas are:

• Political Humor
• Causes and Controversies
• Blurring of the Lines

Several of the exhibits provide interactive choice.  My 2 favorites were a clip of  the old Rocky and Bullwinkle satiric cartoon show and audio/video jukebox where you could select from a variety 
of politically themed songs.

As a teacher of more than 30 years, I am always tempted  to grade exhibitions that I see. And I would give this an A. Of course, for the sake of full disclosure, I must report that I knew I was in the right place when we were welcomed by a special video message from Stephen Colbert, who along with the already mentioned Mr. Stewart, provides the best political perspective offered anywhere in America today.

Travelers' Tip:
When visiting an exhibition, it can be fun to give different awards for the different sements that you view. For example, best of show. Or the most surprising. My wife and I have been doing this for years. Today, I would have bestowed most unique on a 1967 poster showing then President Lyndon Johnson and his wife Ladybird as the lead characters from the movie Bonnie and Clyde. Think about it ... if you believed Mr. Johnson was promoting too much violence, what better way to get your point across.