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The Palmer Method is a handwriting method developed by Austin Norman Palmer. Palmer published a work, The Palmer Method of Business Writing, detailing the method in 1900. A defining characteristic of the technique is the insistence on the use of the arm when writing instead of the fingers. As opposed to the popular use of copy-book handwriting instruction, the Palmer Method positioned itself as a guide on penmanship, as well as writing mechanics. As of 2023, the Palmer Method website offers a free downloadable PDF of a digitized copy of The Palmer Method of Business Writing from 1915. 

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The Brady Bunch was an American sitcom which ran from 1969 to 1974. The series follows the blended Brady family as they learn to live under the same roof. The show remains both a pop cultural icon and a site of constant ridicule in its depiction of the American family.

Peter Brady is the middle Brady boy. He is known for his changeable nature, letting experiences build him up or knock him down easily. He is clumsy and impulsive, enjoys joking with his brothers and sisters, and is very protective of the youngest Brady, Cindy.  

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Gund is an American maker of plush toys, established in 1898 by Adolph Gund. The Mary Lou doll was a toy sold by Gund in the mid 20th century. As of 2023, Gund continues to sell toys representing a variety of franchises, including Sesame Street and Hello Kitty, among others. 

Photograph of Jan with red text to her left. The rim is purple and is decorated with orange, pink, and green swirls.

The Brady Bunch was an American sitcom which ran from 1969 to 1974. The series follows the blended Brady family as they learn to live under the same roof. The show remains both a pop cultural icon and a site of constant ridicule in its depiction of the American family.

Jan Brady is the middle Brady daughter. She is portrayed by Eve Plumb. She is most remembered for her quintessential middle child antics, including her well-known line, “Marcia, Marcia, Marcia,” in which she bemoans the attention her older sister receives. 

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Marc Smith, born in Chicago in 1940, is a poet, creator of the poetry slam, and founder of the International Poetry Slam Movement. Smith devised the plan to put on poetry performances as a way to make poetry more interesting. He believed that schools did not do poetry justice and was the reason poetry repelled people. He began the movement as an “Up Yours” to establishment poets as he considered them snooty and boring. Smith hosted his first poetry slam at the Get Me High Lounge in 1986. In 1987, Smith found a permanent home for his poetry slam events at the Green Mill Tavern. Since then, Smith has performed in nightclubs, concert halls, libraries, universities, the Kennedy Center, the Smithsonian Institute, and many other venues around the world.

In one of his shows, Smith put on a performance dressed as Dr. John C. Spray. In this one-man show, Smith dressed as the eccentric turn-of the century coroner, “alienist”, and, at one time, an asylum superintendent. In the show, Smith performed monologues which focused on Dr. Spray’s macabre side. Smith’s monologues told the stories of Dr. Spray’s time as the Cook County Coroner. This show was performed in the 1990s.

An interesting fact about Dr. Spray is that he belonged to the Whitechapel Club. The Whitechapel Club was formed in 1889 by newspapermen who named Jack the Ripper the club president. Inside the club, one would find many macabre items including skulls, weapons, bloodied clothes, and debris from the Chicago fire. Dr. Spray supplied the skulls, which were turned into gas lamps and goblets. 

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Rube Goldberg (1883-1970) was an American cartoonist and inventor who is best known for his cartoon depictions of impossibly complicated machines to accomplish simple mundane tasks. Goldberg is the only person ever to be listed in the Merriam-Webster dictionary as an adjective.

Goldberg was a founding member and first president of the National Cartoonists Society, whose Reuben Award for cartoonist of the year is named after him. He received a Pulitzer Prize for his political cartooning in 1948, and in 1995 was honored with a commemorative stamp as part of the "Comic Strip Classics" series from the U.S. Postal Service.

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Katherine "Kitty" Anne Pryde is a Jewish mutant superhero who is also known as Shadowcat in the Marvel comic series X-Men. At the age of 13 years old, Kitty enrolled in Xavier’s School for Gifted Youngsters after experiencing headaches which were a result of mutant powers emerging; she became the youngest member to join the ranks of the X-men. Kitty possesses the ability to pass through solid matter. While being attacked by the Brood, Kitty met the small dragon Lockheed, who she kept as a pet. 

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It's difficult to imagine a world without a standardized way to dispose of and reuse your waste; however, until World War II, recycling was merely a figment of one's imagination. To aid the war effort, Americans began to collect products—tin cans, cooking oils, and other metal-based waste—which could be reused by the military. By the 1960s, the concept of recycling as a way to  benefit the environment became more widely accepted; curbside pickup quickly became the norm and environmental legislations began to be introduced in local, state, and national governments. Since then, recycling rates have increased to 32% in 2023, making the world a cleaner place.

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In a 1976 ad campaign for traveler's cheques, American Express popularized the phrase “don’t leave home without them.” This phrase was updated for future ads regarding their credit card: “don’t leave home without it.” American Express filed to trademark the phrase in 1978, and their ads in the following years featured a number of celebrities. Used in popular culture in a number of different ways, the phrase here likely indicates an anti-war sentiment. 

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Hassan Cigarettes, a brand under the umbrella of the American Tobacco Company, were made with a Turkish tobacco blend and famously known for their corked tip. During the 1910s, as an incentive for purchasing Hassan cigarettes, consumers received a free button or baseball card with every pack. The company contracted popular comic artists including Bud Fisher, T.E. Powers, R.L. Goldberg, "Tad", and Gus Mager to provide illustrations for the buttons. These buttons became quick collectibles, however their prevalence was short-lived. In 1911, President Taft enforced the Sherman Antitrust Act against the American Tobacco Company to control its monopolistic practices. As a result, Hassan Cigarettes and their collectible buttons faded out of the market completely by the 1930s.