Robert Young began his prolific filmmaking career while a student at Harvard University, where he majored in English literature, founded the Harvard Film Society, and, with the help of several colleagues, put together his first film (about a Boston factory worker). His reputation as a documentary filmmaker earned him a prestigious position with NBC, and he has since worked within and without the Hollywood production system for five decades. At age 80, Robert M. Young continues to be actively involved in a variety of projects as a commercially successful filmmaker and an independent artist. In this compilation of 15 essays, scholars of both English literature and film analyze the aesthetic and thematic elements of Young's many works. Among the films examined are Nothing But a Man, Triumph of the Spirit, Cortile Cascino, ALAMBRISTA!, Short Eyes, Ballad of Gregorio Cortez, Extremities, Dominick and Eugene, Talent for the Game, Roosters, Caught, and Human Error. The book includes an extensive interview with Young that provides a retrospect of Young's life as a director, cinematographer, writer and producer. A filmography of Young's work and a chronology of his life are also provided.

The sitcom made its first appearance in January of 1949 with the introduction of television's first family, The Goldbergs. Since the advent of the sitcom, televised fictional families have reflected the changing structure of American society. The sitcom emphasized first the lives of suburban, working class European immigrants and gradually expanded to encompass the multicultural urban phenomena of the 1960s. The roles of men and women in the fictional family have similarly been adjusted to depict women's movement into the workforce and the changing identity of the father. As censorship laws became less stringent, sitcom viewers also began to be exposed to the realities of changing family dynamics in America, watching as the traditional nuclear family diverged to include single-parent, two-father, and two-mother households. From the cultural upheaval of the mid-century to the ?reality? craze of the new millennium, television's families have mimicked and even influenced the changing values of American society. This broadcast history covers more than 100 television families, from the Goldbergs to the Osbournes, who have provided entertainment and inspiration for the American public since 1949. An introduction to the cultural trends and social developments of each decade is provided prior to a summary of the significant series of that decade. Each series entry includes a description of the family, the date of the show's first and last broadcast, the broadcasting network, the day and time aired, and the cast of characters.

In 1931 Antonio Moreno completed Santa, Mexico's first true sound film. In it he established one of the foremost genres of Latin American cinema?the popular melodrama?which continues to this day. Latin American filmmakers came to the fore in the fifties and sixties and, as 1992's Como agua para chocolate (Like Water for Chocolate) showed, Latin American films continue to be a major part of the international film scene. In this work over 300 of the most significant films from Argentina, Brazil, Cuba, Mexico, Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and other Latin American countries are covered. Each entry includes the English title, director, year of release, running time, language, country and a detailed plot synopsis. Notes about the production and the filmmakers are also provided for many entries.

With a career in films spanning nearly fifty years, Burt Lancaster brought his unique charisma and energy to roles in films ranging from the adventurous to the bittersweet. This comprehensive filmography of Lancaster's career is accompanied by a biography that provides the background for his immense range of work on the screen. Production information, a synopsis, and commentary is provided for each of Lancaster's 85 films, from the first - The Killers - to the last - Separate But Equal. Photographs from nearly all of Lancaster's films accompany the text, and an index and bibliography are also included.

In their heyday, pulp westerns were one of America's most popular forms of entertainment. Often selling for less than 50 cents, the paperback books introduced generations to the ?exploits? of Billy the Kid and Jesse James, brought to life numerous villains (usually named ?Black? something, e.g., Black Bart and Black Pete), and created a West that existed only in the minds of several talented writers. It was only natural that filmmakers would look to the pulps for stories, adapting many of the works for the big screen and shaping the Western film genre. The adaptations of seven of the pulps? best writers?Ernest Haycox, Luke Short, Frank Gruber, Norman A. Fox, Louis L?Amour, Marvin H. Albert, and Clair Huffaker?are analyzed here. Insightful and humorous, the work looks at how the pulp novels and the movie adaptations reflected the times in which they were produced. It examines the clich's that became a part of the story: the rescue of the heroine, the gunfights, the evil banker or rancher ready to steal the land of the good, law-abiding citizens, and the harlot with a heart of gold. A critical examination of how the books were interpreted?or frequently misinterpreted?by filmmakers is included, along with commentary on the actors and directors who put the pulps on screen.

To double-track is to be both: counter-cultural and establishment, rich and poor, a bum with the keys to a country retreat, an exotic addition to the dinner table who still knows how to find their way around the silverware. In the 1970s Tom Wolfe located the apex of doubletracking as the art world, but today, it's a cornerstone of the middle classes, and a full-blown commonplace of contemporary life. At root, it's a state of mind born of an ambivalent relationship to privilege, that, when perfected, allows those with financial resources the economic benefits of leaning right, and the cultural benefits of leaning left. It curls around the vocal chords of private school alumni as they drop their consonants, sprays the can of legally sanctioned graffiti on the side of the pop-up container shopping mall, and tones the cores of sweaty executives attending weekly parkour classes, prancing about the concrete furniture of housing estates they do not live on. Comprising essays, fiction and art criticism, this is a merciless, witty satire of the middle classes - a venturesome, intelligent debut which cuts to the very core of our duplicitous lives.

The Politics of Nordsploitation takes a transnational approach to exploring Nordic ‘exploitation’ films in their industrial contexts, viewing them as not only political manifestations of domestic considerations but also to position Nordic film cultures in a global context. Incorporating a wide range of films, from international cult classics like They Call Her One Eye (1974), homegrown martial arts films like The Ninja Mission (1984) to contemporary crowd-sourced fan productions like Iron Sky (2012), this volume examines the remarkable diversity of genre-based, commercially and culturally exploitative film production throughout the Nordic countries – emphasized here through the term ‘Nordsploitation’. This volume provides a historical exposition of largely ignored marginal films and film cultural patterns. It also outlines how influential these films have been in shaping the development of Nordic cinema. The effects are visible in the films of the new millennium as previously marginalized practices now enter the mainstream. With sharp insights and new research, The Politics of Nordsploitation redefines the concept of ‘exploitation’ and its role in small nation cinemas.

To today's radio listener, it is difficult to imagine the influence radio once held over the American people. Unlike movies or newspapers, radio both informed and entertained its audience without requiring them to participate. Part of its success depended upon the people who created the sound effects - a squeaking door, the approach of a horse, or a typewriter. The author did live sound effects during the ""Golden Age"" of radio. He provides many insights into the early days of the medium as it grappled with entertaining an audience based on a single sense (hearing). How the sounds were produced is fully covered as are the artists responsible for their production. Stories of successful effects production are balanced by embarrassing or funny failures. A list of artists and their shows is included.

All films with a predominantly or entirely African American cast or that were about African Americans are detailed here. Each entry includes cast and credits, year of release, studio, distributor, type of film (feature, short or documentary) and other production details. In most cases, a brief synopsis of the film or contemporary reviews of it follow. In the appendices, film credits for over 1,850 actors and actresses are provided, along with a listing of film companies.

Transcending Boundaries is an autobiography tracing the multifaceted and wide-ranging career of choreographer, director, performer and professor of dance, Donald McKayle. His chance meeting with the legendary Bill Robinson, who obligingly responded to the entreaties of a nine-year-old and executed an impromptu version of his infectious stair tap-dance, and an electric encounter as a teenager sitting in a darkened theatre witnessing a performance by concert artist Pearl Primus, are key early experiences which bring about McKayle's life in dance, theatre, film, television, entertainment, and education. He learned at the feet of the masters, trained and developed some of the profession's top practitioners, and worked in theatres and studios around the world, on - Broadway, in Hollywood - creating a repertoire of acclaimed masterworks. He experienced failure, success, love, marriage and family. Readers will find his autobiography a revelation in an ongoing and still evolving story.

Alfred Hitchcock called the silent ""the purest form of cinema,"" and the ten silent films he directed between 1925 and 1929 reveal the young director's mature artistry. Hitchcock's silents have often been characterized as the work of a talented amateur, a young director practicing his craft during a pre-sound era of antiquated instruments and poor film techniques - the director experimented with myriad points of view, unique camera angles and movements, and special affects such as dissolves, blurriness, and violent cuts. These silents, however, contain the first appearances of some of his greatest and most familiar techniques: the vertigo-inducing crowd scene, the symbolic use of inanimate objects, the manipulation of the audience's emotions, and the self-conscious, macabre wit. This work discovers Hitchcock's talent and skill through close readings of the films from The Pleasure Garden to the silent version of Blackmail, using shot-by-shot descriptions and interpretations. Each film's chapter includes technical information, a summary of the critical response from the film's release to the present, and detailed analysis of the camera techniques and themes Hitchcock uses.

Diminutive Mickey Rooney has been in show business for more than 80 years as actor, producer, writer, composer, and director. His still-active career spans vaudeville, radio, television, the stage, and movies such as ""It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World"", ""The Black Stallion"", and ""The Bridges at Toko-Ri"". He won two Golden Globes and an Emmy and has received or been nominated for many other awards. From leading a 17-piece band to writing a novel, Rooney has been dispensing earthy wisdom and good humor in the public eye for many decades. Part biography and part reference tool, this richly illustrated work covers Rooney's life from his birth in 1920 and first stage appearance 16 months later to his television and film appearances in 2004. It discusses both his professional and personal life and includes information drawn from interviews with his peers, including Spring Byington, Jackie Cooper, and Ann Rutherford. Five appendices conclude the work: a detailed filmography of his more than 170 features and 65 shorts, each listing credits and a brief commentary, plus assorted reviews; listings of all his radio, television, and stage work; and a discography of his recorded work.

In February 1903, a 30-second film titled Sherlock Holmes Baffled was released by American Mutoscope and Biograph Company, the first known adaptation of the work of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Over the years hundreds of adaptation and parodies of Conan Doyle's works have been released. Though he is most closely associated with Sherlock Holmes, other Conan Doyle works have found their way to the silver screen, including the science fiction classic The Lost World (1925). The major adaptations of all of Conan Doyle's literary works are fully covered here, plus a 1927 one-reel documentary in which the author talks about his work and his psychic beliefs. The focus is on how faithful the adaptations are to the author's own work and the overall effectiveness of the film.

Long before television and radio commercials beckoned to potential buyers, the medicine show provided free entertainment and promised cures for everything from corns to cancer. Combining elements of the circus, theater, vaudeville, and good old-fashioned entrepreneurship, the showmen of the American medicine show sold tonics, ointments, pills, extracts and a host of other ""wonder-cures,"" guaranteed to ""cure what ails you."" While the cures were seldom miraculous, the medicine show was an important part of American culture and of performance history. Harry Houdini, Buster Keaton, and P.T. Barnum all took a turn upon the medicine show stage. This study of the medicine show phenomenon surveys nineteenth century popular entertainment and provides insight into the ways in which show business, advertising, and medicine manufacture developed in concert. The colorful world of the medicine show, with its Wild West shows, pie-eating contests, clowns, and menageries, is fully explored. Photographs of performers and of the fascinating handbills and posters used to promote the medicine show are included.

Noted for its ?B? westerns, RKO also produced several movie classics; two were Citizen Kane and Gunga Din. Comprehensive filmographic data are included here for all of the studio's features: title, year of release, production credits, cast, genre, running time, alternate titles, availability on videocassette, and plot synopsis. Many entries give background information on the film's production and stars.

Puppetry has become a significant force in contemporary theatre and thousands of puppets from various cultures and time periods have been collected by scholars, enthusiasts, and curators, who wisely realized that these material images can teach us much about the societies for which they were created. This book consists of essays by the curators of the most significant puppet collections in the United States and by leading scholars in the field. In addition to the descriptive and analytical essays on the collections, the book includes an overview of American puppetry today, a history of puppetry in the United States, and essays on the theater of Julie Taymor, the Jim Henson Company, Howdy Doody's custody case, puppet conservation, and the development of virtual performance space. Institute, the Harvard University Theatre Collection, the Brander Matthews Collection at Columbia University, the American Museum of Natural History, and the Center for Puppetry Arts in Atlanta. Appendices provide a listing of additional puppetry collections and a filmography of puppetry at the New York Public Library Donnell Media Center. The work concludes with a bibliography and index and is illustrated with many beautiful photographs of puppeteers and puppets on display and in performance.

The merengue is internationally recognized as the Dominican Republic's national dance. It is an integral and unifying element of Dominican identity both within that nation and among emigrants abroad. Although Dominicans often make the claim that merengue has always been in their blood, the dance is relatively young, and its popularity among Dominicans of all social classes and ages is an even more recent occurrence. This book presents three convincing arguments about the merengue's longevity as a unifying symbol of Dominican identity: Dominican identity and the merengue have necessarily been extremely fluid in order to encompass the different cultural and ethnic groups present; historically, the merengue has become a stronger identity symbol when the nation is or is perceived to be threatened from outside; and the white, Catholic, Hispanic Dominican has long been held as the ""true"" Dominican identity, causing the dance to become progressively ""whitened"" in terms of performers and style to reflect this notion and gain wider appeal at home and abroad. A map of the Dominican Republic, related photographs of key figures of Dominican history and merengue artists across the decades, and a complete bibliography are included.

During the horror and conflict of World War II, a fictional radio character named Captain Midnight stormed his way into the consciousness of American radio listeners. Captain Midnight (a.k.a. Charles J. Albright) was a vigorous, mature figure whom listeners could easily perceive defending their United States. The scripts, well written and expertly plotted, had a wide appeal-- from excited children and their Secret Squadron Code-O-Graphs to U.S. Army Air Corps flight crews. But to fans (then and now) of the original 15-minute serial adventures, the ""real"" Captain Midnight retired when the show went to 30 minutes, replaced actor Ed Prentiss, and simplified the writing and plotting. Using facts, details and events from those original early radio scripts of Captain Midnight, the author has constructed a ""biography"" of the great wartime aviation hero, covering his origins and adventures. Concluding the work are thorough appendices that discuss Secret Squadron equipment, aircraft and rocketry; cryptology and code-cracking in the series; and Captain Midnight's portrayal in various media (books, radio, television, serials, comics and newspaper strips).

This is the biography of Thomas Abthorpe Cooper, the first star of the American stage. Cooper was the chief transitional figure between the British and American stage and contributed greatly to the development of American theatre. For the 30 years after 1797, Cooper performed in the major cities and toured to every state in the Union. This work covers his entire life and career from his birth outside London in 1775, to his famed performance to celebrate the opening of the City of Washington in 1800, to his death in New York in 1849. Much research is drawn from Mr. Cooper's letters to his mentor, English radical philosopher William Godwin. Throughout, there are descriptions of his principal portrayals at different stages drawn from contemporary accounts and theatrical reviews. There are also 22 illustrations, from paintings and engravings to playbills and photographs of the sites associated with the actor.

Franklin D. Roosevelt was the first politician to recognize the power of radio. He appealed directly to the American people for support of his New Deal and for his foreign policy. Roosevelt's speeches and fireside chats were broadcast over networks only recently equipped with newsrooms. Listeners immediately learned of events they earlier would not have heard about for days. In those newsrooms, commentators began to interpret the news for average listeners, sometimes slanting it to reflect their own view. But it fell to a young star to demonstrate the full power of the medium. On October 30, 1938, Orson Welles' War of the Worlds broadcast brought widespread panic with its fictional newscast of an alien invasion. How Roosevelt used radio, how the news was reported, and the changes Welles caused are all detailed.

The culmination of an innovative practice research project, Michael Chekhov in the Twenty-First Century: New Pathways draws on historical writings and archival materials to investigate how Chekhov’s technique can be used across the disciplines of contemporary performance and applied practice. In contrast to the narrow, actor training-only analysis that dominated 20th-century explorations of the technique, authors Cass Fleming and Tom Cornford, along with contributors Caoimhe McAvinchey, Roanna Mitchell, Daron Oram and Sinéad Rushe, focus on devising, directing and collective creation, dramaturgy and collaborative playwriting, scenography, voice, movement and dance, as well as socially-engaged and therapeutic practices, all of which are at the forefront of international theatre-making. The book collectively offers a thorough and fascinating investigation into new uses of Michael Chekhov’s technique, providing practical strategies and principles alongside theoretical discussion.

The films of Billy Wilder, from Double Indemnity to Some Like It Hot, are American classics created by a brilliant Austrian in love with his newfound country. This is a re-examination of the key American films of Wilder, often challenging previous readings of his filmmaking style and personality, emphasizing the pop-cultural, film-historical, and sociohistorical content of well known films like Sunset Boulevard and less frequently remembered ones, like The Fortune Cookie. The book interprets Wilder as more than the ""cocky little Viennese"" or ""closet Romantic"" stereotypes often attached to him. Here the student will find provocative analysis and the enthusiast will find evocative commentary on one of the most important figures in American film. Photographs add to the text, and a complete filmography and bibliography are also included. Fully indexed.

As film and television become ever more focused on the pornographic gaze of the camera, the human body undergoes a metamorphosis, becoming both landscape and building, part of an architectonic design in which the erotics of the body spread beyond the body itself to influence the design of the film or televisual shot. The body becomes the mise-en-scène of contemporary moving imagery. Opening The Space of Sex, Shelton Waldrep sets up some important tropes for the book: the movement between high and low art; the emphasis on the body, looking, and framing; the general intermedial and interdisciplinary methodology of the book as a whole. The Space of Sex’s second half focuses on how sex, gender, and sexuality are represented in several recent films, including Paul Schrader’s The Canyons (2013), Oliver Stone’s Savages (2012), Steven Soderbergh’s Magic Mike (2012), Lars Von Trier’s Nymphomaniac (2013), and Joseph Gordon-Levitt’s Don Jon (2013). Each of these mainstream or independent movies, and several more, are examined for the ways they have attempted to absorb pornography, if not the pornography industry specifically, into their plot. According to Waldrep, the utopian elements of seventies porn get reprocessed in a complex way in the twenty-first century as both a utopian impulse—the desire to have sex on the screen, to re-eroticize sex as something positive and lacking in shame—with a mixed feeling about pornography itself, with an industry that can be seen in a dystopian light. In other words, sex, in our contemporary world, still does not come without compromise.