Research Catalog
Hollywood sports movies and the American dream
- Title
- Hollywood sports movies and the American dream / Grant Wiedenfeld.
- Author
- Wiedenfeld, Grant
- Publication
- New York, NY : Oxford University Press, [2022]
- ©2022
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| Status | Format | Access | Call Number | Item Location |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Available - Can be used on site. Please visit New York Public Library - Performing Arts Research Collections to submit a request in person. | Text | Use in library | MFL 22-4677 | Performing Arts Research Collections - Theatre |
Details
- Description
- 282 pages, 8 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations (some color); 24 cm
- Summary
- "Through the heart of Hollywood cinema runs a surprising current of progressive politics. Sports movies, a genre that has flourished since the mid-seventies, evoke the American dream and represent the nation to itself. Once considered mere credos for Reaganism, on closer view, movies from Rocky (1976) to Ali (2001) dream of democratic participation and recognition more than individual success. In every case, off-field relationships take precedence over on-field competition. Arranged chronologically, this critical study of six major sports films also tells the story of multiculturalism's gradual adoption. The mainstream's first minority heroes are paradoxically white ethnic, rural, working-class men, exemplified by Rocky, Slap Shot (1977) and The Natural (1984); Black, brown, and women characters follow in White Men Can't Jump (1992), A League of Their Own (1992), and Ali. But despite their insistence on community and diversity these popular dramas show limited faith in civic institutions. Hannah Arendt, Jeffrey Alexander, and others inform original analysis and commentary on the political significance of popular culture. Reading these familiar movies from another angle paints a fresh picture of how the United States has imagined democracy since its bicentennial"--
- Subject
- 1900-1999
- Sports films > History and criticism
- Motion pictures > United States > History > 20th century
- Sports in motion pictures
- Sports in popular culture
- Motion pictures > Political aspects > United States
- Popular culture > United States > History > 20th century
- Sports > Social aspects > United States
- Motion pictures
- Motion pictures > Political aspects
- Politics and government
- Popular culture
- Sports films
- Sports > Social aspects
- United States > Politics and government > 20th century
- United States
- Genre/Form
- Criticism, interpretation, etc.
- History.
- Bibliography (note)
- Includes bibliographical references (pages 265-272) and index.
- Contents
- Introduction: America's civic screen -- Rocky (1976) tenderhearted community and racial modernization in bicentennial America -- Slap shot (1977) deindustrialization, goon masculinity, and Yankee-Doodle patriotism -- The natural (1984) farm crisis and minority culture in a New Deal legend -- White men can't jump (1992) "winning and losing is one big organic globule" -- A league of their own (1994) egalitarian women and sideline men -- Ali (2001) actions of the people's champion -- Conclusion.
- Call Number
- MFL 22-4677
- ISBN
- 9780197624920
- 0197624928
- 9780197624937
- 0197624936
- LCCN
- 2021046213
- OCLC
- 1286676398
- Author
- Wiedenfeld, Grant, author.
- Title
- Hollywood sports movies and the American dream / Grant Wiedenfeld.
- Publisher
- New York, NY : Oxford University Press, [2022]
- Copyright Date
- ©2022
- Type of Content
- text
- Type of Medium
- unmediated
- Type of Carrier
- volume
- Bibliography
- Includes bibliographical references (pages 265-272) and index.
- Chronological Term
- 1900-1999
- Other Form:
- Online version: Wiedenfeld, Grant. Hollywood sports movies and the American dream New York : Oxford University Press, 2022 9780197624951 (DLC) 2021046214
- Research Call Number
- MFL 22-4677