Marilyn Monroe. The Rolling Stones. And Bond — James Bond. What do they have in common?
Sure, one’s long gone, and one’s fictional. But all three marked a golden anniversary in 2012. And after a half-century in our pop-culture consciousness, they each displayed a surprisingly enduring appeal.
So even though, as a culture, we still worshiped at the fountain of youth, marveling at the precocious talents of Lena Dunham, Taylor Swift, and a slew of charming young Olympians, let’s give a shoutout to some of our most enduring icons. Turns out some things never go out of style.
Once again, our highly subjective pop-culture journey through the year:
January
Here begins the incredible ascendance of LENA DUNHAM, as HBO picks up the actress-director-writer’s “Girls,” a meditation on the awkwardness of being female and 20-ish in New York. By year’s end Dunham, 26, will have gathered so much buzz, she’ll be on her way to becoming what her character, Hannah Horvath, can only dream of being: “The voice of my generation. Or at least, A voice. Of A generation.”