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Popular Culture March 2020
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| 1973: Rock at the Crossroads by Andrew Grant JacksonWelcome to...1973, the year that ushered in a sea change for many of rock music's biggest acts, heralded the arrival of new talents, and saw the rising popularity of genre offshoots including punk, reggae, hip hop, funk, disco, and outlaw country.
Why you might like it: Andrew Grant Jackson's engaging season-by-season chronicle reveals how a transformative moment in music reflected the social and cultural developments of a fractured era.
Book buzz: 1973 is the follow-up to Jackson's 1965: The Most Revolutionary Year in Music. |
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The Contender: The Story of Marlon Brando
by William J. Mann
What it is: a meticulously researched biography of actor Marlon Brando.
What sets it apart: Aided by materials from Brando's personal archives, William J. Mann embraces the actor's complexity, celebrating his artistry and activism while also examining his traumatic childhood, complicated family relationships, and mistreatment of women.
Read it for: fresh insights on Brando's career highlights, including the story behind On the Waterfront's famous "contender" speech.
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| Disney's Land: Walt Disney and the Invention of the Amusement Park That Changed the World by Richard SnowWhat it is: a lively, well-researched chronicle of the development of Disneyland, the iconic California amusement park that opened in 1955.
Read it for: profiles of the workers who tirelessly helped make the park a reality, like former United States Navy admiral and submarine designer Joe Fowler, who built the Mark Twain Riverboat.
Try this next: David Koenig's Realityland: True-Life Adventures at Walt Disney World offers an immersive behind-the-scenes look at the creation of Disney's east coast park. |
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| Sidney Lumet: A Life by Maura SpiegelStarring: five-time Academy Award-nominated director Sidney Lumet (1924-2011), best known for helming the 1970s classics Serpico, Dog Day Afternoon, and Network.
What sets it apart: Supplemented with materials from an unfinished memoir and interviews with Lumet's loved ones and collaborators, this first-ever biography of the quintessential "actor's director" offers rare insights into his creative process and relationships.
Reviewers say: "Essential reading for movie fans" (Booklist). |
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All That Heaven Allows: A Biography of Rock Hudson
by Mark Griffin
What it's about: the complex rags-to-riches life of 1950s film icon Rock Hudson, whose public persona as "Hollywood's Most Eligible Bachelor" concealed his homosexuality until his death from AIDS in 1985.
What's inside: over 100 interviews with co-stars and loved ones; a comprehensive analysis of Hudson's filmography.
Movie buzz: A film adaptation helmed by Love, Simon director Greg Berlanti is in the works.
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Letters from Hollywood: Inside the Private World of Classic American Moviemaking
by Rocky Lang
Letters from Hollywood reproduces in full color scores of entertaining and insightful pieces of correspondence from some of the most notable and talented film industry names of all time—from the silent era to the golden age, and up through the pre-email days of the 1970s. Culled from libraries, archives, and personal collections, the 135 letters, memos, and telegrams are organized chronologically and are annotated by the authors to provide backstories and further context. While each piece reveals a specific moment in time, taken together, the letters convey a bigger picture of Hollywood history.
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The Sun and Her Stars: Salka Viertel and Hitler's Exiles in the Golden Age of Hollywood
by Donna Rifkind
Salka Viertel was the screenwriter for five of Greta Garbo's movies and also her most intimate friend. At one point during the Irving Thalberg years, Viertel was the highest-paid writer on the MGM lot. Meanwhile, at her house in Santa Monica she opened her door on Sunday afternoons to scores of European émigrés who had fled from Hitler—such as Thomas Mann, Bertolt Brecht, and Arnold Schoenberg—along with every kind of Hollywood star, from Charlie Chaplin to Shelley Winters. In Viertel's living room (the only one in town with comfortable armchairs, said one Hollywood insider), countless cinematic, theatrical, and musical partnerships were born. A vital presence in the golden age of Hollywood, Viertel combined a modern-before-her-time sensibility with the Old-World advantages of a classical European education. She combined great worldliness with great warmth.
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Conversations With the Great Moviemakers of Hollywood's Golden Age at the American Film Institute
by George Stevens
A collection of interviews with some of the world's leading directors, producers, cinematographers, and screenwriters provides a revealing glimpse of the filmmaking art, with commentary by King Vidor, Howard Hawks, Hal Wallis, William Wyler, George Stevens, Alfred Hitchcock, George Cukor, Fritz Lang, Federico Fellini, and others.
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| We'll Always Have Casablanca: The Life, Legend, and Afterlife of Hollywood's Most... by Noah IsenbergWhat it is: a page-turning chronicle of the production of 1942 classic Casablanca, chock-full of fascinating behind-the-scenes tidbits; a nostalgic celebration of the film's enduring legacy.
Did you know? Dooley Wilson, the actor who portrayed pianist Sam, didn't know how to play the piano; many of the film's supporting cast were real-life European refugees who can be seen during the emotional "La Marseillaise" scene. |
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