Librarians in Popular Culture

This blog is dedicated to cataloging and identifying librarians found throughout popular culture. Although "librarian" is often used loosely and as an umbrella term, all of the characters mentioned are involved in the information profession in their own unique ways. Feel free to submit your own material through the "request material" link, or alert me to any mistakes that I may have made, and most importantly I hope you enjoy your visit! :) Please note that all content and images used on this site are not owned or licensed by me and belong to their original creators.

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INTRODUCTION What image pops into your head when you hear the word "librarian"? Let me guess - the stereotypical bespectacled old lady wi...

Here is a great blog detailing librarians throughout popular culture.

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Librarians in Popular Culture: Gloria Mundy- Foul Play (1978)

Recent divorcee Gloria Mundy (Goldie Hawn) is a San Francisco librarian. While attending a party, she is encouraged by a friend to leave herself open to new experiences. On the way home, Gloria picks up an attractive man named Bob "Scotty" Scott (Bruce Solomon) when she encounters him and his disabled car on Highway 1. She impulsively invites him to join her at the movies that evening, and before they part ways he asks her to take his pack of cigarettes in order to help him curb his smoking. Unbeknownst to her, Scotty has secreted a roll of film in the pack. That evening, a seriously wounded Scotty meets Gloria in the theater and warns her to "beware of the dwarf" before dying. When his body mysteriously disappears while Gloria seeks help from the theater manager, she is unable to convince anyone of what has transpired.

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Libraries in Popular Culture: The Library- Clue (Film and Board Game)

In a mysterious mansion there are nine rooms in total, and a murder has occurred in one of them. One of those rooms is...the library!

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Libraries in Popular Culture: Biblioteca di San Barnaba - Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade

The Biblioteca di San Barnaba was a library on Piazza San Marco, at the site of San Barnaba, near the Canale Grande in Venice, Italy. The library building was originally a medieval or Renaissance church, and contained columns brought back as spoils of war from the sacking of Byzantium during the Fourth Crusade. It also contained stained glass windows with images of the knights of the Crusades, and mysterious Roman numerals. The church itself had been built over the site of a monastery run by early Christian monks, who had built the catacombs that lay under the city.

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Mr. Henderson, you know the rules. Five at at a time. You already have five books checked out. Stranger Things, Chapter Three: The Pollywog

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We welcome curiosity voyages!

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I watched that scene and literally screamed at my television. Ms. Librarian needs to get with the times.

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<3 <3 <3 <3 <3

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No limits! <3

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Hallow Librarium

by Alex Drummond

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The Amazing Story of Kentucky's Horseback Librarians (10 Photos)

Saddle up with the  Pack Horse Library Project of Eastern Kentucky.

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Librarians in Popular Culture: Offred- The Handmaids Tale

Offred is the main protagonist of The Handmaid's Tale. She is a woman in her thirties who is forced to work as a Handmaid in the early years of the Republic of Gilead, due to the fact she is still capable of bearing children. 

 In the Hulu original television series, June/Offred works as a copyeditor for an unknown company before discovering that her bank account was no longer valid and she and the other women in her office were fired from their jobs in the same day. Later, Offred learns from her best friend, Moira, that women were no longer allowed to hold property.

Offreds skills as a book editor later prove to be useful after her new Commander secretly begins inviting her to his study in the evenings to play scrabble.

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Libraries in Popular Culture: Library of Skulls- Land of the Lost

The Library of Skulls is a highly knowledgeable sentient "library" used by the Sleestaks in the 1974 TV series Land of the Lost and its 2009 movie adaptation.

The Library of Skulls is located in the Lost City. It is a foggy cavern containing glowing Altrusian skulls and urns on pedestals and ledges. The urns emit a "sacred smoke" that induces a form of telepathy that allows the user to communicate with the Skulls, however a lengthy exposure to the smoke causes hallucinations.

The Skulls are databases that can tell information through voices. They are even able to predict or prophesize the future. Each Skull has a different areas of expertise or specialization ("Skull of History", "Skull of Wisdom", etc.). Despite being sentient, they don't have any specific goals.

The Sleestaks always consult the Library of Skulls for advice on important matters, especially the Sleestak Leader and Enik. However, under some circumstances, others may also ask questions. The Sleestaks have an immense respect for the Skulls, and never question them.

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Librarians in Popular Culture: Robert- 13 Reasons Why

After searching for a college that will give her both financial aid and acceptance with her low GPA, Hannah stumbles upon a cool librarian (Robert) at her schools college fair who invites her to a poetry reading. Robert is a local public librarian who believes that libraries are community centers and safe places for people to be and express themselves.

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Librarians in Popular Culture: Unnamed Woman- Fahrenheit 451, “The Hearth and Salamander”

In Fahrenheit 451 it is a crime to possess books. When caught with books in her attic, the unnamed woman not only refuses to leave her books, she lights the match which burns her books, her house, and herself as the firemen watch.

Notable quotes:

"play the man, Master Ridley; we shall this day light such a candle, by God`s grace, in England, as I trust shall never be put out."

"There must be something in books, things we can't imagine, to make a woman stay in a burning house; there must be something there.  You don't stay for nothing." (pg 51)

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Librarians in Popular Culture: Jean- The Bletchley Circle

Jean is one of five members of the Bletchley Circle, a group who works together at a secret facility at Bletchley Park to decipher German military codes for the British military, during World War II. Jean is the oldest of the circle members, and worked as the supervisor of the younger girls at Bletchley. Jean is working as a librarian after the war, and Susan seeks her out to help the team uncover secret information due to her many connections and her knowledge about how to get the right information.

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Libraries in Popular Culture: Library of Souls- Miss Peregrin’s Home for Peculiar Children

Library of Souls is a place where it was rumored peculiars kept their souls after their death for others to borrow later, but was later cut off from the rest of peculiardom after a horrible war that was also responsible for scattering peculiars across the world.

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Libraries in Popular Culture: Hawkins Public Library- Stranger Things

Hawkins Public Library was located in the center of Hawkins's town square. A prominent feature of the building was the clock tower.

Police Chief Jim Hopper and Officer Powell went there to research Hawkins National Laboratory and found news articles about the lab's involvement in Project MKUltra and its participant Terry Ives.

The Upside Down equivalent of the library was used as the Monster's nest where its victims were brought. Barbara Holland and Will Byers were taken there, as well as an unidentified person whose only remnant was a skull. Whereas it became Barb's final resting place, Will was found with a tendril down his throat by Hopper and Joyce and brought back to his own dimension.

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Libraries in Popular Culture: Buddwick Public Library- Steven Universe

The Buddwick Public Library is a public library founded by Buddy Buddwick that first appeared in "Buddy's Book". After Rose Quartz gave Buddy Buddwick the idea to become an author, he had written enough books to fill an entire library. That is how Buddwick Public Library came to be.

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Librarians in Popular Culture: Amethyst Maresbury- My Little Pony

Amethyst Maresbury is an elderly female Crystal Earth pony with a light lilac coat, pink mane and tail, purple eyes, and a cutie mark of a scroll. She is the librarian of the Crystal Empire's non-castle library.