Featured Events

The end of the First World War in 1918 signaled the beginning of a new era of economic prosperity, the relaxation of Victorian mores, and a national fascination in entertainment.  Heroes were quickly identified: John Barrymore, Fanny Brice, Babe Ruth, Mary Pickford, and, in 1924, a young Jewish man born in Brooklyn, George Gershwin.  During the next 17 years his fame would grow meteorically, catapulting him to international fame before his tragic death in 1937.  Gershwin is one of the giants of American music, unique in that he was both a brilliant writer of popular songs (“Swanee,” “I Got Rhythm,” “They Can’t Take That Away From Me”) and of more serious music, including Rhapsody in Blue, An American in Paris, and Porgy and Bess.