Rutgers-Camden Announces February Cappuccino Academy Lecture

For Immediate Release

CAMDEN From its heyday as the nations most popular middle-class vacation destination in the early twentieth century, to its collapse into urban decay in the 1960s, to its current existence as a casino Mecca, Atlantic City has a remarkable story to tell. And according to local author Bryant Simon, the story of Atlantic City points to the overall future of urban America.

At 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 2, the Rutgers University-Camden lecture series at the Barnes & Noble in Marlton will feature Simon, a Temple University history professor who will discuss his latest book, Boardwalk of Dreams: Atlantic City and the Fate of Urban America (Oxford University Press, 2004).

Simon has received positive reviews from the nations top newspapers for his book, including The New York Times which calls Boardwalk of Dreams a sober look at urban degeneration and regeneration against the backdrop of a changing nation enjoying its post-World War II prosperity, and a burgeoning middle class eager to parade its riches on the Boardwalk.

Raised in Vineland, Simon now lives in West Philadelphia and teaches U.S. history and courses on popular culture and music at Temple University. He is the author of A Fabric of Defeat: The Politics of South Carolina Millhands and is currently researching Starbucks as a new kind of public place. In some ways, the story of Atlantic City is the story of public spaces that dont work, so I wanted to shift gears and look at a space that works for people at least somewhat, says Simon.

Barnes & Noble is located at 200 West Route 70 in Marlton.

Sponsored by the Mid-Atlantic Regional Center for the Humanities, this lecture is part of Cappuccino Academy, a monthly series of free public lectures delivered by Rutgers-Camden professors and their colleagues at Barnes & Noble. For more information, call (856) 225-6627.

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