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There are cities that Pop - Think New York in all its Times Square and U2 shoveling snow in front of the Ed Sullivan Theater glory.

There are cities with Pop - Think Austin, Texas, epicenter of the music world for its annual SXSW extravaganza.

Then there are those cities that embrace Pop. It is in this intersection where culture and commerce collide that Atlantic City makes itself comfortable.

"I don't think of Atlantic City as cutting edge," says Temple University history professor Bryant Simon. "It's not L.A. It's not New York. But it's also not Austin or Athens (Ga.). It's never been known as a place where some sort of artistic moment wells up."

Sounds damning, doesn't it? The birth of the uncool. The place where people go to be bland, homogenous automatons. And yet, Simon argues, it is for this reason the city that touts itself as Always Turned On occupies an honored place on the pop-culture radar.

"It's not about challenging its audience," Simon says. "It's about giving 'em what they want."

And for most of its history, Atlantic City has happily obliged the masses who first visited the resort as a vacation hot spot, taking in the Boardwalk sights or popping into town for Miss America. Even in its economically battered latter-day incarnation, Atlantic City mirrors what's hot in pop. Where else can you find celebrity chefs, reality stars headlining Pool parties or the hottest acts swinging through town at Borgata or House of Blues?

Nowhere. Not really. Not in a place of similar size, anyway.

"It's a place of popular culture, not high-brow culture," Simon says. "It's a mass resort. It sells people something they know they want, and it's always been that way."

You want avant garde? Go to Austin or troll Greenwich Village.

For cultural comfort food, you'll always have Atlantic City.

A.C. on film

Neil Cirucci, president of Neil Cirucci Public Relations in Ventnor doesn't remember anything about Louis Malle's 1980 "Atlantic City" but this: "Susan Sarandon's a clam shucker and would bathe her whole body in lemon juice. That's what I remember about 'Atlantic City.'"

A little younger, and you probably get ramped up for the scenes in "Ocean's 11" where George Clooney and Bernie Mac hang out at Caesars Atlantic City.

Another generation fixates on the still-swoonworthy Paul Newman from "The Color of Money." Or waxes poetic about Jack Nicholson coming to town for "The King of Marvin Gardens."

Whatever the memory - maybe it's David Schwimmer's "Duane Hopwood" ... maybe not - the city has long been fertile ground for the glitz and glamour of a Hollywood production. Next up: "Bounty Hunter," starring Jennifer Aniston, and "Warrior," starring Nick Nolte. The latter is scheduled to film today. Then there's the HBO adaptation of Nelson Johnson's "Boardwalk Empire." The pilot will star Steve Buscemi and be directed by Martin Scorsese, no stranger to A.C. - he helmed "The Color of Money," which filmed in the city.

Donald Trump

It's easy to mock The Donald. The bankruptcies. The bravado. The Hair. It's almost easy to forget the power Trump wields.

Almost.

Because, let's face it, no one embodies Atlantic City's casino era quite like Trump. It's his face that glares at you from billboards as you race down the A.C. Expressway for a date with a gaming floor. It's his name that shines bright on the city skyline.

"I think it's his whole image," Cirucci says when asked to explain Trump's allure. "He's going to do it his own way."

If the old guard viewed Skinny D'Amato as the city's figurehead, then Donald Trump - the entire, complicated package - is the patron saint for the new wave.

Monopoly

"Monopoly ... That might be the biggest thing ever."

It's a fair assessment from Cirucci. Even if you've never been to Atlantic City, have never even heard of it, you've likely gone for a spin on one of its roads from the comfort of your own home.

The Hasbro board game has inspired dozens of versions. But while a "Star Wars" edition is a fun way to embrace your inner geek, pity the game maker that tries to mess with Monopoly classic. Witness the local uproar over 2006's "Monopoly: Here and Now" edition, when Hasbro set out to create a new version of the game using national landmarks instead of its Atlantic City staples.

The ensuing cries of protest from city supporters did do one thing. It reminded us how big a part of the city identity Monopoly once occupied.

Miss America

For more than eight decades, Atlantic City was Miss America and vice versa. Hard to believe, but it's only been four years since she left, ultimately landing in Las Vegas.

Cirucci still misses it.

"I loved the Miss America Pageant when it was here," he says. "It's gone to Vegas and it's died. I almost think they should bring it back here."

Not likely, so all we're left are memories: The Boardwalk parade. Showing their shoes. The Rose Walk. The statue of Bert Parks.

The '50s club scene

Picture the 40/40 Club. Now picture the 40/40 Club bouncing to the flows of hip-hop's hottest acts - T.I., Jay-Z, Beyonce, Flo Rida - live, with Donovan McNabb and Ryan Howard chillin' in a private booth.

Back in the day, that was the 500 Club.

We're talkin' Sinatra swingin' on stage. Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis pairing up for the first time. All with Joe Dimaggio kicking back at a table.

Elsewhere in town, at Club Harlem, Nat King Cole crooned, while Miles Davis swooped in from New York for late-night gigs you'd give your first born just to be a fly on the wall for.

Yeah, the era had its demerits, not the least of which, Simon says, were the racial divides of the time. And we're not talking about Sinatra at his zenith, either. But still, this club scene rocked in its way.

Ricky Nelson

Go to a concert these days - if, that is, you can afford it - and you're lucky to squeeze 90 minutes of music out of your performer of choice. But what if U2 came to House of Blues and decided to play four or five times throughout a single day.

That's what Ricky Nelson did in 1962, attracting 44,211 on Labor Day Sunday while performing multiple times at Steel Pier.

"The Nelson thing, it's like the very last gasp of the sort of 1920s to 1960s heyday," Simon says. "It's mainstream, mass popularity."

Rodney Jerkins

He doesn't live here anymore. And Pleasantville's Darkchild Studio is, well, dark. But famed music producer Rodney Jerkins put the area on the map musically. There have been other acts in the interim - Egg Harbor Township's Clique Girlz, former Ocean City and Egg Harbor City resident Tiffany Evans - but Jerkins stands alone for his work with the likes of Janet Jackson and Destiny's Child.

"You had people like Lauryn Hill flying in," Cirucci says. "Whoever he was recording - Mary J. Blige - would fly in, park their cars at his studio to work with him. That was unheard of."

'80s title fights

He's a largely a punchline now, albeit one navigating the tragedy of a lost child. But Mike Tyson, Iron Mike, authored Atlantic City's pugilistic return to glory almost 21 years ago.

Boxing had been big at the casinos for years, but reached its apex in the late '80s as Tyson fought Michael Spinks at Boardwalk Hall. Donald Trump - See? He's everywhere - paid an $11 million site fee for the event.

The fight was done in a flash - 91 seconds, to be exact. You've heard of The Chicago Way? This was The Tyson Way. At least, it was when he was the champion of the world. And on one night in Atlantic City, 21,785 lapped it up.

Boardwalk Hall

It's not pretty, not from the outside. But man, this hall rocks. It regularly tops Billboard magazine's list of venues of its size, last year becoming the top draw in the world for halls of between 10,001 and 15,000 seats, and regularly boasts a slate of artists that include Madonna, Celine Dion, Elton John and Jay-Z.

E-mail Kevin Clapp:

KClapp@pressofac.com

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