Americana: USA TODAY

USA TODAY has been published since 1982. During that time it has given us more charts, graphs, snippets, and snapshots than any other publication. Uploaded to Flickr by antitezo.

Want a lot of news? USA TODAY has it. Want easy-to-read news? Turn to USA TODAY. Want charts and graphs, lists and snippets? USA TODAY practically invented the info snapshot. Want local news? Come on, USA TODAY can’t have everything.

Uploaded to Flickr by Darien Chin.

The paper, which made its debut in 1982, now has a circulation of 1.8 million. Typically it has four sections: News (blue), Money (green), Sports (red), and Life (purple). While a number of local papers have borrowed some of USA TODAY’s style, it’s still unlike any other paper, different in focus, content, and appearance.

If you’re from Richmond, VA and you’re doing business in Richmond, CA, USA Today feels like a little bit of home, which is ironic since chances are it mentions Richmond only on the weather page. The paper, despite its reputation for only giving news highlights, does a surprisingly good job of covering certain areas, including movies and sports. In the publishing world, it does a better job of having “something for everyone” than just about any other newspaper. That’s not a bad reputation to have.

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Kid Stuff: Where the Wild Things Are

 

Published in 1963, Where the Wild Things Are won the Caldecott Medal as the most distinguished American picture book for children. Uploaded by collider.com.

Where the Wild Things Are, written and illustrated by Maurice Sendak and published almost 50 years ago (1963), still is a favorite of children everywhere. According to HarperCollins publishers, it has sold more than 19 million copies worldwide as of 2008. The book won the Caldecott Medal for the most distinguished picture book of the year.

Poster from the 2009 film. Uploaded by myrabybee.blogspot.com.

The story isn’t all that complicated, which is appropriate for its age group. Young Max puts on a wolf suit, gets into trouble, and gets sent to bed without his supper. Sendak draws monsters that are more likely to tickle than frighten, and his prose breaks rules in a way that kids find hilarious. By the end of the story, Max is ready to go back home, and home is once again ready for him. All is right in his world.

Wild Things has reached a special status now; the children who originally loved it grew up, and got to share it with their children. Now their grandchildren are smitten by it. The book is still in print, and one of the reasons it’s still popular is that its illustrations aren’t dated, those monsters look just as “scary” now as they did when it was first published. Kids still love this book — and their parents still love reading it to them.