William Katz: Entertaining Observations

We all know that the entertainment and media industries can have an impact on American culture. Bob Hope made this political jab in the 1940 film, "The Ghost Breakers."



I'm sure it got a great laugh in theaters. Then again, I wonder if Hope, as a die-hard Republican, was attempting more than comedy?

For the past two years or so, William Katz has been blogging about entertainment and politics through his occasional articles at the political blog, Power Line. Believe me, he should be writing books on the subject. He is a gifted writer inspired by a broad background of life experiences that would leave most of us exhausted:

William Katz, during an extensive career, has been an intern for a U.S. senator; an officer in the Central Intelligence Agency; an assistant to Herman Kahn, the nuclear-war theorist; an editor at The New York Times Magazine; a comedy writer for Bob Newhart; an interviewer for The Tonight Show, with Johnny Carson; and an the author of ten novels published in many languages.

In short, he's an insightful participant-observer of the American scene, and still working after all these years. Reading him is a delight, and I'm pleased to see that he has his own political blog at Urgent Agenda. Unfortunately, I don't think he gets nearly the exposure he deserves, and this brief article is my small attempt at spreading the word.

Katz's latest Power Line entry enlightens us on the huge significance entertainers had on the outcome of our recent presidential contest. Don't have any interest in entertainment and its impact on culture and politics? You will after watching the scene from "A Face in the Crowd," available at the link in the last paragraph of Scott Johnson's comments.