Brian McTavish
bmctavish@kcstar.com

My beat has developed into covering the width and breadth of popular culture. What is that? It's a lot. I've written articles and reviews out of all these beats, reviewed hundreds of concerts, films and plays. And the thing is, these high arts all sprang from the pop culture of their day. Don't forget, Shakespeare was once Spielberg.

Oddly enough, this varied experience with the high and low arts has allowed me to synthesize and juxtapose a cavalcade of trends -- from the influence of Don Knotts on Western civilization (insecure nebbish as folk hero) to public fascination with reality TV dating shows (emotional brutality as post-modern entertainment) to the shaky future of comic books (underappreciated art form as fodder for Hollywood hits, including "Road to Perdition" and "Spider-Man").

As I peer into the world of arts and entertainment, I'm always looking for that piece of junk that could be a jewel in disguise. Who can say which of today's crowd-pleasing diversions fighting for exposure in the media slipstream is destined to become a classic? A Pokemon or an Elvis?

The search for significance can lead anywhere. And that's why I write about it.