Culture critic

By MAIA NOLAN
Daily News correspondent

Published: March 25th, 2009 06:39 PM
Last Modified: March 25th, 2009 06:40 PM

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If you've been sitting up nights worrying about the impact "Saved by the Bell" has had on the development of America's cultural psyche, rest easy: Chuck Klosterman is on the way.

Klosterman, who has written for Esquire, Sports Illustrated and Spin magazines, is also the author of five books including "Sex, Drugs and Cocoa Puffs: A Low Culture Manifesto" and "Fargo Rock City: A Heavy Metal Odyssey in Rural North Dakota."

He is coming to town as the latest guest of the University of Alaska's Bartlett Lecture Series and will also give lectures at the campuses in Fairbanks and Juneau.

The program encourages speakers to interact with students and faculty, and in addition to his public lecture in Anchorage, Klosterman will speak to an undergraduate journalism class and interact with student media representatives.

"In the past, some of the Bartlett Lecture Series speakers have been aimed at older Alaskans," said Mike McCormick, UAA's assistant director of student activities. "(Klosterman's) audience is a little younger. Students have mentioned him as someone they would like to see."

The lecture is free and un-ticketed, and with the buzz Klosterman's visit has generated, there may be some competition for seats in the auditorium.

However, McCormick said he's confident they'll be able to fit everyone in.

"There are 900 seats," McCormick said. "That's a lot of seats for a lecture."

Still, he said, it would be wise to arrive about 30 minutes before the lecture is scheduled to start. When former Black Flag singer Henry Rollins visited UAA several years ago, the Williamson filled up and people were turned away. Klosterman will likely draw a similar-sized crowd.

Enthusiasm for Klosterman's visit is running high on campus and off. More than 100 Facebook users had RSVPed for the lecture this week, and buzz has been circulating among Anchorage's young professionals for weeks. Anchorage attorney Jason Brandeis said he is one of Klosterman's biggest local fans.

"I want to be Chuck Klosterman when I grow up," said Brandeis, 33. "Which is weird because he is only three years older than me."

He said Klosterman's cultural criticism speaks directly to his generation.

"He talks about real-world concepts but relates them to obscure pop culture references that only people from my generation will get," Brandeis said. "That is, anyone who grew up watching MTV -- back when it showed videos -- and playing video games, then went to college and watched 'Real World' marathons and sat in front of four to five reruns of 'Saved by the Bell' a day."

In Klosterman's writing, Brandeis said, those hours of TV watching -- which some might considered wasted time -- are validated.

"Now we are adults with lots of pop culture memories, and Klosterman helps us understand how those memories and experiences actually impacted the world around us," Brandeis said. "For instance, I learned how John Cusack's character in 'Say Anything' and the mere existence of Woody Allen have affected every relationship I have ever been in."

On a more serious note, Brandeis said Klosterman's analysis of "seemingly meaningless pop cultural phenomena," such as the impact of the 1998 leak of Pamela Anderson and Tommy Lee's sex tape, provides keen insight into the way American culture functions and evolves.

"He has really witty and interesting insight as to how important that tape was to understanding our culture, and how important pornography was to the speed at which the Internet proliferated and became so integral," Brandeis said. "I didn't really think about those connections until he wrote about it. He is proof that people can be intelligent, socially-aware and thoughtful, and also be really into sports."

• Maia Nolan lives and writes in Anchorage.

Chuck Klosterman Monday, 7:30 p.m. at UAA's Wendy Williamson Auditorium. The event is free and open to the public.

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