Be it Elvis or Mickey Mouse, pop culture icons entice generations of travelers, as do the memorabilia and history surrounding them. Not surprisingly, off-site venues with a pop culture theme appeal to a broad spectrum of meeting attendees as well.
“Pop culture is common culture,” says Lynn Bartholome Ph.D., associate professor of English and philosophy at Monroe Community College in Rochester, N.Y., and president of the Popular Culture Association and American Culture Association, adding that pop culture includes “the activities, the artifacts, the media of the common folk, of the mass population—movies, television, print art, artifacts.”
But what qualifies as pop culture is debatable, even among top scholars.
“There are two types of popular culture scholars, those who believe popular culture began from ancient times—I am one of those—and there are those who believe it takes money, masses and mechanics, which means it did not begin until after the Industrial Revolution,” Bartholome says.
Whatever the definition, Americans are embracing pop culture with increasing fervor, which Bartholome attributes to today’s stressful times.
“When people are concerned about the future, they tend to reminisce and embellish the past,” she says. “What they are buying and where they are spending their time is a direct reflection of how they feel about themselves, the world, their lives. After 9/11 people wanted comfort foods, and the hobby industry had a big increase [in activities such as] scrapbooks and knitting. People were trying to get back to a simpler life. The trend will continue. People have a lot of worries.”
Bartholome points to one of the biggest tourist attractions in her area, the Strong National Museum of Play in Rochester, which also serves as home to the National Toy Hall of Fame.
“Baby Boomers want to visit toys they grew up with, like the Slinky,” she notes. “It’s a large population group, and Baby Boomers are on a major nostalgia kick.”
As far as locations, “when you think popular culture, you think Orlando, with Disney World and Universal Studios,” Bartholome says.
“And though it failed as a family destination, Las Vegas will always be one of the top pop culture venues. There, you can go to Venice, go to New York. What other place can you find a museum in a strip mall,” she adds, referring to the Liberace Museum.
Music Icons
The Liberace Museum was founded in 1979 by Mr. Showmanship himself and features his ostentatious collections. One building houses Liberace’s ornate cars and rare pianos, including a rhinestone-encrusted Baldwin grand, while a second building showcases his lavish wardrobe and jewelry, including his trademark candelabra ring.
Group Tours are offered and the facility can host special events.
More of a destination in itself, music buffs can head to Graceland Mansion in Memphis, Tenn., for a taste of the King. The mansion is open to groups for after-hours tours.
“The mansion takes on a different feel at night,” says Kevin Kern, spokesman for Graceland. “It feels more homey. You’re touring with people you know at a relaxed pace.”
There are four venues across from the mansion open to groups, including a pavilion that transforms into a ballroom at night, and two restaurants, one with a rockabilly 1950s theme. The main event venue site is the Automobile Museum, styled along the lines of a drive-in theater on a summer night. A central full-size screen shows Elvis videos, while around the perimeter sit 20 of Elvis’ original vehicles, including his red MG from the film Blue Hawaii and his famed pink Cadillac.
“There is no place in the world to party like that,” says Marianne Murphy, special events manager for Graceland.
Graceland will help provide other entertainment if desired, but no Elvis impersonators.
“There is no need to impersonate the King of Rock and Roll in his house,” Kern says.
In Seattle, the Experience Music Project and Science Fiction Museum and Hall of Fame (EMP/SFM) spotlight two pop culture themes under one roof. The two venues in combination can host groups of up to 3,000 for special events.
The Science Fiction Museum and Hall of Fame is the world’s first museum devoted to the genre, while Experience Music Project offers an interactive focus on the roots of rock and its influence on other musical genres like hip-hop.
Attendees can view memorabilia and listen to musicians tell their own stories, as well as learn to play guitar in the Sound Lab or hop onstage as part of a simulated rock band performance.
“Corporations always look for great space to engage their employees and they don’t always want to do it in a ballroom. They want to get out and have fun together,” says Cate Nedved, senior manager of private events for EMP and SFM. “The groups come and can be engaged; they can participate in the exhibitions.”
Groups can also bring their own entertainment, namely DJs, live bands and Rockaroke (a live band backing Karaoke singers).
Music venues don’t always reside within four walls. Dollywood in Pigeon Forge, Tenn., pays tribute to Dolly Parton, who owns the 150-acre theme park, and which also salutes its surrounding Great Smoky Mountains. Groups of up to 4,000 can use the park’s pavilions as well as take advantage of the park’s attractions, including more than 40 rides.
Dollywood also displays Dolly Parton’s Grammy awards, handwritten manuscripts for songs and includes an interactive museum, Chasing Rainbows, detailing her life story. One of the options for live entertainment, The Kinfolks Show, features performances by her aunts and uncles, who also tell stories of Dolly’s past. Groups can also visit a replica of the Tennessee mountain home where Dolly Parton lived.
At the Movies
The land of celluloid and pop culture images, Los Angeles offers multiple opportunities to dive into the Hollywood scene, whether it’s tours of the stars’ homes, visiting the graves of Rudolph Valentino and Jayne Mansfield at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery or using one of the working television and film studio lots for an event.
Paramount Studios has a five-acre backlot that recreates the look and feel of parts of New York City. In addition to being the backdrop for many films and television shows, it can also host events up to 5,000. On the premises is the Paramount Theater, which is still used for movie premieres and screenings and is available to groups for presentations and meetings. Stage 11 has been dedicated to Paramount special events, but the studio maintains 30 stages that may be used for indoor events.
NBC Studios is also group-friendly, with backlot locations that can accommodate up to 2,500 guests.
Los Angeles will also be home to the new $350 million Academy Museum of Motion Pictures (AMMP), with an anticipated opening in 2012. The museum will take visitors through the history of film, the process of filmmaking and the buzz of the Academy Awards.
Mixed Bag
In the art world, virtually every major city opens its fine art and contemporary museums to groups. An artist’s haven like Santa Fe, N.M., offers a kaleidoscope of choices, from intimate galleries to the Georgia O’Keeffe Museum, with space for up to 100 for sit-down dinners.
For a mixed bag of American pop culture memorabilia, Geppi’s Entertainment Museum in Baltimore showcases everything from old toys to over 1,400 comic books. The main star at the museum is a life-size statue of Batman in the ’60s gallery.
“The theme of the museum is pop culture with character—one man’s personal collection of memorabilia starting with 1776 to the present day,” says Julie Meddows, the museum’s associate director of sales.
Tours are available, as well as facility rental for groups. Geppi’s can organize a seated dinner in the galleries and main hall for up to 175 or cocktail parties for up to 400 using the museum’s two floors. A grand staircase leads to a third-floor private gallery space that accommodates up to 100 guests.
In New York City, the Sports Museum of America, which houses more than 600 artifacts, 1,100 photos and 20 original films within 19 galleries, features some 8,000 square feet of event space.
Pop culture doesn’t have to stop at entertainment, Bartholome notes. New Orleans for instance, offers a pop culture experience with its National WWII Museum, designed to educate the public about the war. The facility is open to group rentals for up to 2,500.
“The museum is educating an entire new generation, my grandchildren, about WWII,” Bartholome says.
On the lighter side, Atlanta’s World of Coca-Cola holds universal appeal.
“It’s the only facility of its type in the world; the only facility that covers the history of Coca-Cola,” says Rachel Hood, the facility’s event sales manager.
The museum houses a variety of Coca-Cola memorabilia as well as a tasting suite with over 60 products, which groups can rent after-hours. Attendees can also observe how Coca-Cola is bottled.
The Coca-Cola made on the premises is served to guests, according to Hood. On-site, The Hub can host up to 8,000 for a reception, while the Bottle Cap Suite is open for smaller groups up to 60. The facility’s Pop Culture Gallery features works by artists such as Steve Penley, Haddon Sundblom and Howard Finster.
There is also a four-dimensional theater that groups can use and a Jim Henson polar bear puppet that serves as the museum’s mascot, which can be reserved for after-hours. Groups can rent the entire attraction, which accommodates up to 5,000 for receptions.
