Joel Dinerstein

writer & professor
race, music & cool

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Being Cool in the Cold War

January 03, 2022

I'm proud to announce the online publication of an essay commissioned by the World War II Museum for their website, "The Origins of 'Cool' in Post-WWII America." There are new aspects of my work here, including anti-racism, etymology, the cultural politics of jazz in the Cold War, and why jazz transformed from "hot music" into cool music. Postwar authors Ralph Ellison and Simone de Beauvoir help guide the ride through the usual postwar cool suspects: Miles Davis, Sinatra, Lester Young and Billie Holiday, Bogart, Ellington, The Beats, Elvis. This is the most accessible (and free!) cool essay of mine on the internet. Thanks to the good folks at the WW2 Museum for the opportunity.

Joel Dinerstein is the author of three books on cool, including the first history of the concept (The Origins of Cool in Postwar America), the first major exhibit of cool icons (American Cool), and a corporate history, Coach: A Story of NY Cool. My TED Talk, entitled "Why Cool Matters," can be found on YouTube. I am also the author of the award-winning Swinging the Machine, a theory of swing-era jazz and technology, and Jazz: A Quick Immersion, a short history and listening guide.

I am a cultural historian and Professor of English at Tulane University, and hold a Ph.D in American Studies from the University of Texas @ Austin.

In 2014, I curated the exhibit American Cool at the National Portrait Gallery in Washington DC. American Cool featured 100 cool icons and 100 photographs, and it was based on my historical research.