Ned Gallagher:
What I’m Up To
Independence Day 2026
“And so with the sunshine and the great bursts of leaves growing on the trees, just as things grow in fast movies, I had that familiar conviction that life was beginning over again with the summer.”
- F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby
The Semiquincentennial
I am old enough to remember the nation’s bicentennial celebrations: I have a clear memory of the tall ships crusing through New York Harbor and such. This time around, the festivities seem driven more by partisan fervor. The way I see it, much of what is being called “patriotism” is, frankly, an embarrassing display of chest-beating. That said, I am happy to raise the proverbial glass to the U.S.A. on this milestone.
The Knickerbockers
Very happy to see the New York Knicks prevail in such exciting fashion in the NBA Finals this season. The team’s nearly flawless parade through post-season play was a reminder of sport’s capacity for bringing people together in remarkable ways. The Big Apple was electrified by its first basketball crown in 53 years. And the Game 4 comeback against San Antonio in the closing minutes of the contest was nothing short of magnificent.
Dallas
In this 250th anniversary year of our nation, I was privileged to spend a week on the campus of Southern Methodist University in mid-June attending a conference of history teachers exploring the Declaration of Independence and its contexts. The opportunity to meet with top scholars in the field and take a deep dive into the historical subject matter was invigorating.
What I’m Reading
Working On Now:
- Joshua Kendall, Trudeau & Doonesbury: A Biography: The Cartoonist Who Turned the News into Art
- David Sedaris, The Land and Its People: Essays
Recently Finished:
- Ryan Pote, Blood and Treasure
- Theo Baker, How to Rule the World: An Education in Power at Stanford University
- Claire Keegan, Foster
- Tom King and Bilquis Evely, Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow
- Douglas Stuart, Shuggie Bain
- John Byrne, X-Men: Elsewhen, Volume 1
On Deck:
- Adrian Goldsworthy, Athens and Sparta
- Daniel Silva, Ransom
- Andrew Ludington, Splinter Effect
- Tana French, The Keeper
For Courses I’m Taking This Summer:
- David Kenley, Modern Chinese History
- Lindsay Chervinsky, The Cabinet: George Washington and the Creation of an American Institution
- Ron Johnson, Entangled Alliances: Racialized Freedom and Atlantic Diplomacy During the American Revolution
- Kate Carté, Religion and the American Revolution: An Imperial History
- The American Revolution: Essays on the Founding Era, ed. by Nicholas Popper
- Podcasting with Youth: A Quick Guide for Librarians and Educators
- John Milton, Paradise Regained
- John Milton, Samson Agonistes
- The Ancient Near East: An Anthropology of Texts & Pictures, ed. by James H. Pritchard
- Hesiod, Theogony
- Hesiod, Works and Days
- The Bible
- Aeschylus, The Oresteia
- Euripedes, Medea
- The American Revolution: Core Documents, ed. by Robert S. McDonald
For Courses I’m Teaching This Summer:
- James Q. Wilson et al., American Government: Institutions and Policies
- Leon P. Baradat and John A. Phillips, Political Ideologies: Their Origins and Impact
- Homer, The Iliad
- Pericles, “Funeral Oration”
- Sophocles, Antigone
- Peter S. Bennett, What Happened on Lexington Green: An Inquiry into the Nature and Method of History
What I’m Watching
Ongoing—Television:
- House of the Dragon, season 3 (HBO Max)
- coverage of Wimbledon tennis (ESPN, ESPN 2, ESPN+, ABC)
- The American Experiment (Netflix)
- Welcome to Wrexham, season 5 (Hulu)
- Life, Larry, and the Pursuit of Unhappiness (HBO Max)
- Citadel, season 2 (Prime Video)
- My Adventures with Superman, season 3 (HBO Max)
Recently Finished—Television:
- Criminal Record, season 2 (Apple TV)
- Amadeus (Starz)
- coverage of Roland Garros tennis (TNT, HBO Max)
- The Punisher: One Last Kill (Disney+)
- Colin From Accounts (Paramount+)
- Your Friends and Neighbors, season 2 (Apple TV)
- Henry David Thoreau (PBS Passport)
- Big Mistakes (Netflix)
- Such Brave Girls, seasons 1 & 2 (Hulu)
On Deck—Television:
- Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, season 4 (Paramount+)
- The Bear, season 4 (Hulu)
- Dublin Murders (Starz)
- Under the Dome, seasons 1–3 (Paramount+)
- Star City (Apple TV)
Recently Finished—Films:
- Supergirl (d. Craig Gillespie, 2026), cinema
- Chris & Martina: The Final Set (d. Rebecca Gitlitz, 2026), streamed on Netflix
- Masters of the Universe (d. Travis Knight, 2026), cinema
- Disclosure Day (d. Steven Spielberg, 2026), cinema
- Rafa (d. Zachary Heinzerling, 2026), streamed on Netflix
- Lovebug (d. Blake Kaiser, 2025), streamed on Prime Video
- Gideon’s Trumpet (d. Robert L. Collins, 1980), streamed on Prime Video
- Marshall (d. Reginald Hudlin, 2017), streamed on Starz
- Gone With the Wind (d. Victor Fleming, 1939), streamed on HBO Max
- Marty, Life Is Short (d. Lawrence Kasdan, 2026), streamed on Netflix
- Star Wars: The Mandalorian and Grogu (d. Stanley Donen, 2026), cinema
- Michael Clayton (d. Tony Gilroy, 2007), streamed on Criterion Channel
- Charade (d. Stanley Donen, 1962), streamed on Prime Video
What I’m Listening To
Music:
- U2, Easter Lily EP
- Sting, The Night Watch (Live at the Rijksmuseum)
Podcasts:
- The Colin McEnroe Show
What I’ve Been Attending
- Gilder-Lehrman seminar: “America’s First Principles: Exploring the Declaration, the War, and the Constitution,” Southern Methodist University, Dallas, TX, June
- George W. Bush Presidential Center, Dallas, TX, June
- Jesus Christ Superstar, Goodspeed Opera House, Haddam, CT, June
- exhibition: “Pop! American Art in the 1960s,” New Britain Museum of American Art, New Britain, CT, May
- National Consortium for Teaching about Asia seminar: ”Modern Chinese History: From May Fourth to June Fourth,” online, May/June
- Gilder-Lehrman seminar: “Declaration at 250: The Declaration of Independence in World History,” online, April
Where I’m Traveling
Recent Trips:
Upcoming Trips:
What I’m Learning
What I’m Looking Forward To