Mental Floss

Video: You Can't Escape Shakespeare

By Chris Higgins

YouTube // The New York Times
YouTube // The New York Times / YouTube // The New York Times
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Pop culture is full of references to previous cultural touchstones. At the top of the list is Shakespeare, whose plays have been performed, referenced, and remixed more than those of any other single author. He shaped our language, culture, and even the structure of our entertainment.

In the video below, The New York Times explores the connections between the Bard and everything else. (Including cartoons, commercials, the plot of House of Cards....) My favorite quote, from Star Trek VI: "You have not experienced Shakespeare until you have read him in the original Klingon."

Meanwhile, Hamlet performed in—ahem—the original Klingon:

Related reading: 21 Phrases You Use Without Realizing You’re Quoting Shakespeare.