Culture of Philadelphia

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The culture of Philadelphia goes back to 1682 when Philadelphia, Pennsylvania was founded by William Penn. Originally inhabited by the Lenape, Philadelphia was envisioned as a place where people could live without fear of persecution because of their religion, as a result Quakers, Mennonites and others came to the city. As Philadelphia grew into a major political and economic center of the United States many different groups of religions and ethnicities flocked to the city. 19th and 20th century immigration and migration led to large concentrations of Germans, Italians, Asians, Puerto Ricans and African Americans.

The city's cultural prominence has risen and fallen since its founding. The city has made contributions in art, music, television, architecture and food. Philadelphia institutions range from the Philadelphia Museum of Art to Pat's Steaks.

Contents 1 People 2 Art 2.1 Fine art 2.2 Music 2.3 Performance art 2.4 Film and television 3 Cuisine 4 Annual fairs and events 5 Philadelphia in fiction 6 See also 7 References 8 External links

[edit] People

When Philadelphia was founded in 1682 the area was already inhabited by the Native American culture, the Lenape. During the 17th Century, the Dutch, British and Swedish settlers arrived in the area.^[1] When William Penn founded Philadelphia he envisioned the city as a place where many groups of people could live together and worship freely. In the late 1600s Quakers, Mennonites, Amish, Moravians and Pietists came to Philadelphia and Pennsylvania to escape persecution in Europe because of their religious beliefs. Philadelphia grew into a major city during the 1700s and other ethnic groups such as the Welsh, Irish, Germans, Finns, African slaves, Anglicans, Catholics and Jews moved to the city. During the 1800s Philadelphia, with the rise of industry, became a major immigrant destination with Southern and Eastern Europeans, Russians, Chinese and African Americans relocating within the United States. The 20th Century saw further immigration from South and East Asia and Latin America.^[2] By the 2000 US census the city's population was 1,517,550.^[3]

In some cases the different ethnicities developed into neighborhoods such as Chinatown in Center City, the mostly Italian South Philadelphia and the Puerto Rican North Kensington neighborhood. Philadelphia's gay community is mostly centralized in the Washington Square West neighborhood in Center City. For the most of the first half of the 20th Century Philadelphia's most conspicuous group was the rich and cultural elite. They were the White Anglo-Saxon Protestant, wealthy families that dominated the wealthier sections of Philadelphia and later the Main Line suburbs just outside the city.

See also: Demographics of Philadelphia

See also: List of people from Philadelphia

[edit] Art

[edit] Fine art

Before the American Revolution the upper class increasingly began to support the arts, particularly there was a demand for portrait paintings. The demand for portraits made Philadelphia attractive to artists and many came to the city, including William Williams who introduced oil painting to another Philadelphia artist, Benjamin West. In 1805 an art collector, believing Philadelphia the best place for the encouragement of artistic taste, offered the city numerous paintings, sculptures, engravings and other art work. To accept the gift the city formed the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts. The Academy, the oldest art school and museum in the United States, helped establish many artists. Portraitist Charles Willson Peale and sculptor William Rush helped found the Academy of the Fine Arts and artists such as Thomas Eakins and Henry Ossawa Tanner studied there.^[1] The city's major art museum, the Philadelphia Museum of Art was founded in 1876 as part of the Centennial Exposition. The museum holds over 225,000 pieces of artwork including work by Vincent van Gogh, Pablo Picasso, and Marcel Duchamp.^[4] Not far from the Museum of Art is the Rodin Museum. The museum, founded in 1929, is the largest collection of Auguste Rodin work outside of France. In 1991, to promote Old City art galleries, the Old City Art Association began First Fridays. On the first Friday of every month, Old City galleries hold a collaborative open house night.^[2]

Beyond Philadelphia's art museums and galleries the city has more public art than any other American city. The inclusion of decorative art in Philadelphia structures goes back to the 19th Century. In 1872 the Fairmount Park Art Association was created. Responsible for the art along the Schuylkill River drives, the private association was the first in the United States dedicated to integrating public art and urban planning.^[5] In the late 1950s the Philadelphia Redevelopment Authority included a clause in its development contracts that at least one percent of construction budget be allocated to fine art. After lobbying by the Artists Equity Association, the clause became the Percent for Art ordinance in 1959. Philadelphia was the first United States city to approve a Percent for Art ordinance.^[6] The Percent for Art program, which is responsible for over 200 pieces of public art, is administered by the Philadelphia Office of Arts and Culture which is designated as Philadelphia's local art agency.^[7]

In 1984 the Department of Recreation began the Mural Arts Program. The program, an extension of the city's Anti-Graffiti Network, is intended to help provide an outlet for graffiti artists while beautifying neighborhoods. The program, which became independent from the Anti-Graffiti Network in 1996, has created over 2,300 murals, more than any other city in the U.S. The murals are created by professional, staff and volunteer artists and along with the creation of murals the program runs art education programs and tours of the murals.^[2]

[edit] Music

Main article: Music of Philadelphia

Music first began to be a major part of Philadelphia life in the middle of the 18th Century. Organs were being installed in the non-Quaker churches and Philadelphia experienced its first opera, The Beggar's Opera. The city's musical scene continued to grow with the music of William Henry Fry, the creation of the Musical Fund Society in 1820 and the opening of the Academy of Music 1857. Musical Fund Society concerts ended with the creation of the Academy of Music, which now hosts the Philly Pops, the Pennsylvania Ballet and the Opera Company of Philadelphia. The Philadelphia Orchestra, founded in 1900, rose to prominence with conductors Leopold Stokowski and Eugene Ormandy.^[1] The orchestra's home was the Academy of Music before the opening of the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts in 2001.

The city developed an early jazz scene with many future jazz luminaries, such as John Coltrane and Charlie Biddle, coming out of Philadelphia. In 1952 WFIL-TV, contributed to American pop music when it premiered Bandstand which, in a few years, would become American Bandstand hosted by Dick Clark.^[8] The national success of the show led to rise of local music labels such as Swan Records, Cameo-Parkway and Chancellor Records. The 1960s saw the development Philadelphia soul. The major architects of the sound were Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff who became the most renowned producers of the Philadelphia soul scene.^[9]

[edit] Performance art

In Philadelphia's early history the city was visited by outside theater troupes, but experienced some resistance from conservatives and Quakers who tried to restrict performances. The creation of the Southwark Theater in 1766 marked the permanent presence of theater in Philadelphia. Theatrical performances were banned during the American Revolution, but the ban was repealed in 1784, theater returned and another theater, the Chestnut Street Theater, opened in 1794. Over the next century a number of other theaters opened in the city including the Forrest Theater and the Walnut Street Theater. Philadelphia produced several major theater actors, including Edwin Forrest, John Drew, and John Barrymore.^[1] The Philadelphia Theater Company, founded in 1974 and specializes in new American plays, performs in Plays and Players Theatre but will soon move into a new theater under construction along Broad Street.^[10] Other modern theaters include the Arden Theater Company and the Wilma Theater, and the University of the Arts' Merriam and Arts Bank theaters. The University of Pennsylvania puts on productions at the Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts, the Irvine Auditorium and the Iron Gate Theater. African American themed plays are put on at the Freedom Theater and the Bushfire Theater.^[2] Other theater companies include the Ardienne, the InterAct Theater Company, the Venture Company, and the Mum Puppet Theater. Every year the Philadelphia Shakespeare Festival performs three Shakespeare plays.

There are an estimated 120 theater organizations in the Philadelphia area.^[2] The Theater Alliance of Philadelphia was formed in 1990 out of its predecessor the Performing Arts League of Philadelphia. The goal of the Theater Alliance is to promote Philadelphia theater. Among the Theater Alliance's events is the annual Barrymore Awards for Excellence in Theater. The awards, held since 1994, honor theater productions in the Philadelphia area.^[11]

Dance became a part of Philadelphia with the beginning of the Philadelphia Dancing Assemblies in 1748 which remained popular into the 20th Century.^[1] Major dancing organizations include the Pennsylvania Ballet founded in 1963. The Pennsylvania Ballet performs in the Academy of Music and the Merriam Theater. The Philadelphia Dance Company (Phildanco) was founded in 1970 and specializes in modern dance.^[12]

[edit] Film and television

On December 18, 1895 Charles Francis Jenkins showed off his film projector at the Franklin Institute. It was the first demonstration of moving pictures using flexible film in Philadelphia. A week later Woodville Latham's eidoloscope was shown to Philadelphia audiences. German immigrant and optician, Siegmund Lubin, was impressed with the technology and bought Jenkins' camera. In Philadelphia he filmed his first film, his horse eating hay. Lubin continued to make films in Philadelphia, now showing them commercially, and built his own cameras and projectors which he marketed. He eventually created a production company, Lubin Manufacturing Company, in 1902. Shortly afterwards Lubin opened up some of the cities first movie theaters and in 1905 Jules Mastbaum opened the city's first Nickelodeon.^[13] Lubin Studios shut down in 1917 and through most of the 20th Century Philadelphia had an almost non-existent film industry. In 1985 the Greater Philadelphia Film Office was created as part of the city government, and, in 1992, it became a regional economic office.^[14] Since 1992 the GPFO, which promotes the Philadelphia region and helps coordinate film productions, has assisted in the making of over 200 films and television shows. Between 1992 and 2002 film productions have brought in US$500 Million to the city's economy.^[2] Every year Philadelphia hosts the Philadelphia Film Festival and the Philadelphia International Gay & Lesbian Film Festival.

In the early 1930s Philco Corp. founded Philadelphia's first experimental television station, W3XE. That station became NBC's first affiliate in 1939, and in 1941 the station became WPTZ-TV after it was granted Philadelphia's first commercial license. By the late 1940s WPTZ, which would eventually become CBS affiliate KYW-TV, was joined by WCAU-TV and WFIL-TV, now WPVI-TV.^[15] In succeeding decades, WHYY-TV, WPHL-TV, WTXF-TV and WPSG-TV would join the Philadelphia market. Major shows that were broadcasted out of Philadelphia include American Bandstand, Double Dare and The Mike Douglas Show.

[edit] Cuisine

Main article: Cuisine of Philadelphia

Philadelphia is the home of many culinary institutions, both gourmet and local staples. The city's immigrant history has allowed many tastes to mix and develop. The cheesesteak, created in Philadelphia in the 1930s, is a well known city icon. A rivalry between two cheesesteak sellers, Pat's Steaks, which invented the cheesesteak, and Geno's Steaks, about which has the best steaks is a popular Philadelphia argument. Italian ice and soft pretzels were not invented in Philadelphia, but because of their popularity and availability have become Philadelphia staples.^[2]

During the 1700s city taverns such as the London Coffee House and Tun Tavern were regular meeting places for the political and business leaders. In the late 19th century two Philadelphia landmarks were created, the Reading Terminal Market and Italian Market which sell all types of food and other commodities. The early 20th century saw the creation of the first automat in the United States on Chestnut Street and the founding of the Tasty Baking Company. For most of the 20th century fine dining could only be found in private clubs or dinner parties, but with the beginning of the city's revival in the 1970s a restaurant renaissance began.^[1] Starting with Le Bec-Fin in 1970 many upscale restaurants have sprung up in the popular neighborhoods. To this day, Philadelphia has added over 150 fine diniing establishments, most famously the several upscale trendy restaurants of Stephen Starr as well as dozens of sidewalk cafes and trendy bars. Such a renaissance has led to an acclamation of Philadelphia as a world-class "food city."

[edit] Annual fairs and events

Philadelphia holds many annual festivals and events. One of the most famous is the Mummers Parade. The first modern version of the parade was held in 1901 and is held every year on New Year's Day.^[2] There is also the Puerto Rican Day Parade and the Saint Patrick's Day Parade which is the second oldest parade in the United States.^[16] Three major annual shows in Philadelphia are the Philadelphia Flower Show held in March, the Philadelphia International Auto Show held in February and the Philadelphia Antiques Show held in April. Major events include the Greek Picnic which is a reunion and celebration of African American college fraternities and sororities. Another event, the Wing Bowl is an eating contest started in 1993. Festivals include the Philadelphia Folk Festival and Unity Day an event celebrating unity between people and families. PrideFest events are to promote gay and lesbian rights, and there are two major film festivals, the Philadelphia Film Festival and the Philadelphia International Gay & Lesbian Film Festival. In September, the Philadelphia Fringe Festival is held. The ten day festival in Old City highlights experimental art, performances and exhibits.^[2]

[edit] Philadelphia in fiction

Main article: Cultural depictions of Philadelphia

The city has been featured in literature, film and television. One of the first novels to take place in Philadelphia was The Quaker City by George Lippard. Published in 1844, the book was based real events in 1843 and depicted seduction and violence. The novel sold 60,000 copies in less than a year.^[1] Other novels that take place in Philadelphia include John J. Rust science fiction novel Epsilon, John Edgar Wideman's Philadelphia Fire: A Novel and the Old Philadelphia Mystery book series.

The film Rocky is one of Philadelphia's most iconic films partially because of its use of Philadelphia locations. Other films include Philadelphia, a film about AIDS discrimination, and two films set in the city's 1930s high soicety, The Philadelphia Story and Kitty Foyle. Filmmaker M. Night Shyamalan has set many of his films in or around Philadelphia including The Sixth Sense and Unbreakable. Television shows that takes place in Philadelphia include Cold Case, Hack, The Class, and It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, among others.

[edit] See also

• Buildings and architecture of Philadelphia
• List of sites of interest in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
• Media of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Guide to Philadelphia Art Galleries
• Greater Philadelphia Film Office
• Greater Philadelphia Cultural Alliance