Classic Birthdays of 20th Century Popular Culture Creators January February March

A Memory Care Book for Activity Directors and Caregivers

De: Daphne Simpkins

Narrado por: Virtual Voice

When Clark Kent stepped into the glass phone booth, we knew he was about to emerge as Superman. That transformation happened every time.

Then, he used his superpowers to rescue people in distress, leaping over tall buildings in a single bound and flying faster than a speeding bullet. That spinning around in the phone booth was mesmerizing. And, in a way, that blur of change that we recognized as transformation from one kind of person to a stronger kind of person is the kind of change I am writing about in this series of books about popular culture creators of the 20th century.

As popular culture does for every generation, it connected with and helped to build the emotional landscape of its people.
Those connections are tied to memories—particular kinds of memories. Those memories are called episodic memories, and they are more potent than the words nostalgia and sentiment imply. Episodic memories remind people of who they were once upon a time, and in the remembering, they get recharged—can feel more at home in their bodies and wherever they are living. The right memory can be like that phone booth where Clark Kent becomes Superman.

The prompts from the artifacts of popular culture are often the catalyst for remembering. And those prompts arrive through activities and programs designed for residents and people in the care of others, often half the age and of a generation that doesn’t know the culture of the 20th century. This four-set volume of classic birthdays is meant to help you know some of the people and stories and songs and movies your people probably know by simply putting them on a calendar for each month.

Most likely you have a calendar of birthdays already. Here are some more classic birthdays to highlight each month and the names of other movies and books and people your people might know and remember.
It isn’t comprehensive. These are story-driven snapshots of people your people probably know.
To keep the size of material manageable, the books are divided into three months each.
Here are the selected names of popular culture creators of the 20th century for book 1.


Dana Andrews
Harold Arlen
Pearl Bailey
Tallulah Bankhead
Louise Beavers
Charles Bickford
Nat King Cole
Joan Crawford
Thomas Alva Edison
Albert Einstein
Clark Gable
Cary Grant
Langston Hughes
Jennifer Jones
Shirley Jones
Jerome Kern
Abraham Lincoln
James Michener
Ray Milland
Paul Newman
David Niven
Kim Novak
Suzanne Pleshette
Sidney Poitier
Elvis Presley
Ronald Reagan
Fred Rogers
Dinah Shore
Rod Taylor
Elizabeth Taylor
Lana Turner
George Washington
Jane Wyman
Loretta Young

About Daphne Simpkins: Daphne has been writing about caregiving and daily life in the South for the past thirty years. Currently while she is best known for her series about church ladies of the South featuring Mildred Budge and friends, she has also written several books about caregiving. They are: The Long Good Night, What Al Left Behind, Blessed: Stories about Caregiving, Belle: A Mildred Budge Friendship Story, and 11 DIY Holidays Small Talks for Activity Directors and Caregivers.