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In the Shadow of The Birth of a Nation: Racism, Reception and Resistance

by Melvyn Stokes Paul McEwan

This collection brings together many of the world’s leading scholars on race and film to re-consider the legacy and impact of D.W. Griffith’s deeply racist 1915 epic The Birth of a Nation. While this film is often cited, there is a considerable dearth of substantial research on its initial impact and global reach. These essays fill important gaps in the history of the film, including essential work on its sources, international reception, and African American responses. This book is a key text in the history of the most infamous and controversial film ever made and offers crucial new insights to scholars and students working in film history, African American history and the history of race relations.

In the Spotlight

by Nancy Krulik

Four of the final contestants in the contest to determine who will be in the new all-girl pop band No Secrets are finally selected and find their lives changed.

In the Spotlight (High School Musical: Stories From East High #11)

by Catherine Hapka

A film produced by Sharpay and Ryans dad is getting rave reviews, so he invites Sharpay, Ryan, and their friends to LA for the premiere! Troy, Gabriella, Taylor, and Chad are psyched! What could be better than hanging out at the beach and rubbing elbows with stars? Meanwhile, Sharpay is ecstatic her dreams of being discovered are finally going to come true! However, she soon realizes that becoming famous isn't all it's cracked up to be. Will Sharpay get her big break, or will she say good-bye to Hollywood? Bookshare has the other books in this series. Look for: #1 BATTLE OF THE BANDS, #2 WILDCAT SPIRIT, #3 POETRY IN MOTION, #4 CRUNCH TIME, #5 BROADWAY DREAMS, #6 Heart to Heart, #7 Friends 4Ever, #8 GET YOUR VOTE ON, #9 Ringin' It In # 10 Turn Up The Heat and #12 Bonjour, Wildcats.

In the Studio: Visual Creation and Its Material Environments

by Brian R. Jacobson

Studios are, at once, material environments and symbolic forms, sites of artistic creation and physical labor, and nodes in networks of resource circulation. They are architectural places that generate virtual spaces—worlds built to build worlds. Yet, despite being icons of corporate identity, studios have faded into the background of critical discourse and into the margins of film and media history. In response, In the Studio demonstrates that when we foreground these worlds, we gain new insights into moving-image culture and the dynamics that quietly mark the worlds on our screens. Spanning the twentieth century and moving globally, this unique collection tells new stories about studio icons—Pinewood, Cinecittà, Churubusco, and CBS—as well as about the experimental workplaces of filmmakers and artists from Aleksandr Medvedkin to Charles and Ray Eames and Hollis Frampton.

In the Studio: Visual Creation and Its Material Environments

by Brian R. Jacobson

Studios are, at once, material environments and symbolic forms, sites of artistic creation and physical labor, and nodes in networks of resource circulation. They are architectural places that generate virtual spaces—worlds built to build worlds. Yet, despite being icons of corporate identity, studios have faded into the background of critical discourse and into the margins of film and media history. In response, In the Studio demonstrates that when we foreground these worlds, we gain new insights into moving-image culture and the dynamics that quietly mark the worlds on our screens. Spanning the twentieth century and moving globally, this unique collection tells new stories about studio icons—Pinewood, Cinecittà, Churubusco, and CBS—as well as about the experimental workplaces of filmmakers and artists from Aleksandr Medvedkin to Charles and Ray Eames and Hollis Frampton.

In the Weeds: Around the World and Behind the Scenes with Anthony Bourdain

by Tom Vitale

Anthony Bourdain's long time director and producer takes readers behind the scenes to reveal the insanity of filming television in some of the most volatile places in the world and what it was like to work with a legend. In the nearly two years since Anthony Bourdain's death, no one else has come close to filling the void he left. His passion for and genuine curiosity about the people and cultures he visited made the world feel smaller and more connected. Despite his affable, confident, and trademark snarky TV persona, the real Tony was intensely private, deeply conflicted about his fame, and an enigma even to those close to him. Tony&’s devoted crew knew him best, and no one else had a front-row seat for as long as his director and producer, Tom Vitale.Over the course of more than a decade traveling together, Tony became a boss, a friend, a hero and, sometimes, a tormentor.In the Weeds takes readers behind the scenes to reveal not just the insanity that went into filming in some of the most far-flung and volatile parts of the world, but what Tony was like unedited and off-camera. From the outside, the job looked like an all-expenses-paid adventure to places like Borneo, Vietnam, Iran, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Libya. What happened off-camera was far more interesting than what made it to air. The more things went wrong, the better it was for the show. Fortunately, everything fell apart constantly.

In the World: From the Big House to Hollywood (Cannabis Americana: Remembrance of the War on Plants, Book 3) (Cannabis Americana: Remembrance of the W #3)

by Richard Stratton

The Hollywood Ending of an Adrenaline-Filled and, By Turns, Harrowing and Funny Odyssey of Crime and Redemption in America's War on DrugsSmuggler's Blues, the first book in Richard Stratton's memoir of his criminal career, detailed his years as a kingpin in the Hippie Mafia. Kingpin, the second book, traced his eight-year journey through the criminal justice system, through two federal trials and myriad jails and prisons, and culminating in his success as a self-taught jailhouse lawyer in winning his own release. In this final volume, Stratton recounts his return to civilian life, as a convicted felon who had been forced to confront his demons and an aspiring writer who yearned to make his mark. From parole to Hollywood to marriage and fatherhood, he found his way in the free world. Working in the New York office of a criminal defense attorney, he somehow adhered to the stringent conditions of his release not to associate with other felons. When his prison novel Smack Goddess was published, his mentor, Norman Mailer, entered his life again. Going to Hollywood to consult on a documentary, he became a writer and producer, and his feature film Slam won major awards at Sundance and Cannes. In the World includes profiles of celebrities such as Mailer, Oliver Stone, Sean Penn, and others.

In-Between Worlds: Performing [as] Bauls in an Age of Extremism (Routledge Advances in Theatre & Performance Studies)

by Sukanya Chakrabarti

This book examines the performance of Bauls ‘folk’ performers from Bengal, in the context of a rapidly globalizing Indian economy and against the backdrop of extreme nationalistic discourses. Recognizing their scope beyond the musical and cultural realm, Sukanya Chakrabarti engages in discussing the subversive and transformational potency of Bauls and their performances. In-Between Worlds argues that the Bauls through their musical, spiritual, and cultural performances offer ‘joy’ and ‘spirituality,’ thus making space for what Dr. Ambedkar in his famous 1942 speech had identified as ‘reclamation of human personality’. Chakrabarti destabilizes the category of ‘folk’ as a fixed classification or an origin point, and fractures homogeneous historical representations of the Baul as a ‘folk’ performer and a wandering mendicant exposing the complex heterogeneity that characterizes this group. Establishing ‘folk-ness’ as a performance category, and ‘folk festivals’ as sites of performing ‘folk-ness,’ contributing to a heritage industry that thrives on imagined and recreated nostalgia, Chakrabarti examines different sites that produce varied performative identities of Bauls, probing the limits of such categories while simultaneously advocating for polyvocality and multifocality. While this project has grounded itself firmly in performance studies, it has borrowed extensively from fields of postcolonial studies and subaltern histories, literature, ethnography and ethnomusicology, and cosmopolitan studies.

Incapacity and Theatricality: Politics and Aesthetics in Theatre Involving Actors with Intellectual Disabilities (Routledge Advances in Theatre & Performance Studies)

by Tony McCaffrey

Incapacity and Theatricality acknowledges the distinctive contribution to contemporary theatrical performance made by actors with intellectual disabilities. It presents a close examination of certain key theatrical performances across a variety of different media, including John Cassavetes’ 1963 social issues film A Child Is Waiting; the performance art collaboration between Robert Wilson and Christopher Knowles; and the provocative pranksterism of Christoph Schlingensief’s talent show mockumentary FreakStars 3000. Tracing a global path of performances, Incapacity and Theatricality offers an analysis of how actors with intellectual disabilities have emerged onto the main stage, and how their inclusion calls into question long-held assumptions about both theatre and intellectual disability. For postgraduate students, or anyone interested in the shifting dynamics of twenty-first century theatre, McCaffrey’s work offers a vital consideration of the intersubjective relations between people with and without intellectual disabilities and ultimately addresses urgent questions about the situation and representation of the contemporary subject caught up somewhere between incapacity and theatricality.

Incendiary (Hollow Crown)

by Zoraida Córdova

An epic tale of love and revenge set in a world inspired by Inquisition-era Spain pits the magical Moria against a terrifying royal authority bent on their destruction.When the royal family of Selvina sets out to destroy magic through a grand and terrible inquisition, magic warrior-thief Renata - trained in the art of stealing memories-seeks to kill the prince, leader of the King's Justice, only to learn through powerful memories that he may be the greatest illusion of them all ... and that the fate of all magic now lies in her hands.With the ferocity of series like Ember in the Ashes and Throne of Glass and loosely based on 15th century Spain, INCENDIARY explores the double-edged sword of memory and the triumph of hope in the midst of fear and oppression.(P) 2020 Hodder & Stoughton Ltd

Inception (Constellations)

by David Carter

Christopher Nolan's Inception (2010) is a difficult film to categorize. It partakes of various genres, blurring the distinctions between them. Yes, it is science fiction but it does not contain many of the ingredients associated with that genre. It can also be identified as a kind of heist film, and there are shades of film noir as well, not only because of the heist motifs but also due to its character types. It can also be described as psychological thriller, telling the story of one man's attempt to flee his past and regain access to his family, of his coming to terms with the death of his wife. In addition it plays with time, questioning the certainty of consciously experienced real time, and revealing that the personal experience of the passing of time is variable. The film also explores the nature of the mind and how dreams are related to the conscious and unconscious mind. David Carter's contribution to the Constellation series covers all of these facets of a complex yet highly successful film, as well as considering it in the context of the director's other work.

Inception: The Shooting Script

by Christopher Nolan Jonah Nolan

Inception, writer-director Christopher Nolan's seventh feature film, joins the epic scope of The Dark Knight with the narrative sophistication of Memento. The story of a group of thieves who specialize in invading the mind through one's dreams, Inception explores the writer-director's signature psychological themes of memory, paranoia, and self-doubt as his protagonist, Dom Cobb, is pitted against a hostile subconscious spurred on by personal demons and regrets from the past.In a conversational preface, Nolan discusses with brother and frequent collaborator, Jonathan, the genesis of the idea for the film and the decade-long process it took to write it. Detailing the results of Nolan's efforts, Inception: The Shooting Script includes key storyboard sequences, full-color concept art, and an appendix on the workings of the mysterious Pasiv Device that Cobb and his fellow extractors use to initiate the dream-share. An exclusive exploration of a highly original concept, Inception: The Shooting Script is the record of a writer-director at the height of his craft.Includes: Writer-director Christopher Nolan's initial handwritten outline of the Inception plot A preface by brothers and collaborators Christopher Nolan and Jonathan Nolan, in which they delve into the 10-year development process behind Inception An 8-page color insert featuring Inception concept artAn in-world appendix with instructions for operating the mysterious Pasiv Device mechanism

Include Me Out: My Life from Goldwyn to Broadway

by Farley Granger Robert Calhoun

The star of Hitchcock’s Rope and Strangers on a Train “recalls life onstage and in film in an engaging, colorful memoir” (Kirkus Reviews, starred review).Synonymous with the golden age of Broadway, the dazzling lights of Hollywood, and the rise of television arts, Farley Granger’s charm and talent captivated the acting community and audiences alike. Working with creative visionaries like Alfred Hitchcock, Luchino Visconti, and Nick Ray, Granger was a celebrated figure in films like Strangers on a Train, Rope, Senso, and They Live by Night, bringing to the big screen a stunningly memorable presence.But behind his characters, he was an intensely complex man. In his richly told memoir, Granger details his life with disarming candor. Rich in personal insight, he describes his relationships with both men and women and reminisces about legends he knew with private familiarity—from Shelley Winters and Joan Crawford to Leonard Bernstein and Tyrone Power.Recreating not only his personal struggles but his legendary struggle to free himself of his contract with Sam Goldwyn, Granger reveals none so elegantly as he does himself. Include Me Out is as much a story of classic Hollywood glamour as it is a collection of iconic theatrical portraits, all from the man who knew them all.“This polished and perceptive memoir etches a scintillating portrait of life inside Tinseltown soundstages where ‘nothing was real except anxiety, insecurity and fear’ . . . The book has a huge celebrity cast, from Mike Todd, Rita Hayworth and Cornelia Otis Skinner to Leonard Bernstein and Peggy Guggenheim. Granger and Calhoun write with a stylish and iridescent flair.” —Publishers Weekly

Inclusive Character Analysis: Putting Theory into Practice for the 21st Century Theatre Classroom

by Jennifer Thomas Robert J. Vrtis

Inclusive Character Analysis foregrounds representations of race, gender, class, ability, and sexual orientation by blending script analysis with a variety of critical theories in order to create a more inclusive performance practice for the classroom and the stage. This book merges a traditional Stanislavski-based script analysis with multiple theoretical frameworks, such as gender theory, standpoint theory, and critical race theory, to give students in early level theatre courses foundational skills for analyzing a play, while also introducing them to contemporary thought about race, gender, and identity. Inclusive Character Analysis is a valuable resource for beginning acting courses, script analysis courses, the directing classroom, early design curriculum, dramaturgical explorations, the playwriting classroom, and introduction to performance studies classes. Additionally, the book offers a reader-style background on theoretical frames for performance faculty and practitioners who may need assistance to integrate non-performance centered theory into their classrooms.

Inclusive Screenwriting for Film and Television

by Jess King

Breaking down the traditional structures of screenplays in an innovative and progressive way, while also investigating the ways in which screenplays have been traditionally told, this book interrogates how screenplays can be written to reflect the diverse life experiences of real people. Author Jess King explores how existing paradigms of screenplays often exclude the very people watching films and TV today. Taking aspects such as characterization, screenplay structure, and world-building, King offers ways to ensure your screenplays are inclusive and allow for every person’s story to be heard. In addition to examples ranging from Sorry to Bother You to Portrait of a Lady on Fire, four case studies on Killing Eve, Sense8, I May Destroy You, and Vida ground the theoretical work in practical application. The book highlights the ways in which screenplays can authentically represent and uplift the lived experiences of those so often left out of the narrative, such as the LGBTQIA+ community, women, and people of color. The book addresses a current demand for more inclusive and progressive representation in film and TV and equips screenwriters with the tools to ensure their screenplays tell authentic stories, offering innovative ways to reimagine current screenwriting practice towards radical equity and inclusion. This is a timely and necessary book that brings the critical lenses of gender studies, queer theory, and critical race studies to bear on the practice of screenwriting, ideal for students of screenwriting, aspiring screenwriters, and industry professionals alike.

Inclusive Shakespeares: Identity, Pedagogy, Performance (Palgrave Shakespeare Studies)

by Sonya Freeman Loftis Mardy Philippian Justin P. Shaw

Inclusive Shakespeares: Identity, Pedagogy, Performance responds to the growing concern to make Shakespeare Studies inclusive of prospective students, teachers, performers, and audiences who have occupied a historically marginalized position in relation to Shakespeare's poetry and plays. This timely collection includes essays by leading and emerging scholarly voices concerned to open interest and participation in Shakespeare to wider appreciation and use. The essays discuss topics ranging from ethically-informed pedagogy to discussions of public partnerships, from accessible theater for people with disabilities to the use of Shakespeare in technical and community colleges. Inclusive Shakespeares contributes to national conversations about the role of literature in the larger project of inclusion, using Shakespeare Studies as the medium to critically examine interactions between personal identity and academia at large.

Inclusivity and Equality in Performance Training: Teaching and Learning for Neuro and Physical Diversity

by Petronilla Whitfield

Inclusivity and Equality in Performance Training focuses on neuro and physical difference and dis/ability in the teaching of performance and associated studies. It offers 19 practitioners’ research-based teaching strategies, aimed to enhance equality of opportunity and individual abilities in performance education. Challenging ableist models of teaching, the 16 chapters address the barriers that can undermine those with dis/ability or difference, highlighting how equality of opportunity can increase innovation and enrich the creative work. Key features include: Descriptions of teaching interventions, research, and exploratory practice to identify and support the needs and abilities of the individual with dis/ability or difference Experiences of practitioners working with professional actors with dis/ability or difference, with a dissemination of methods to enable the actors A critical analysis of pedagogy in performance training environments; how neuro and physical diversity are positioned within the cultural contexts and practices Equitable teaching and learning practices for individuals in a variety of areas, such as: dyslexia, dyspraxia, visual or hearing impairment, learning and physical dis/abilities, wheelchair users, aphantasia, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder and autistic spectrum. The chapter contents originate from practitioners in the UK, USA and Australia working in actor training conservatoires, drama university courses, youth training groups and professional performance, encompassing a range of specialist fields, such as voice, movement, acting, Shakespeare, digital technology, contemporary live art and creative writing. Inclusivity and Equality in Performance Training is a vital resource for teachers, directors, performers, researchers and students who have an interest in investigatory practice towards developing emancipatory pedagogies within performance education.

Incomparable

by Brie Bella Nikki Bella

THE INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER A raw, honest, and revealing co-memoir by Brie and Nikki Bella: twin sisters, WWE Hall of Fame inductees, and stars of the hit E! shows Total Bellas and Total Divas.As twins, the Bellas have always competed. Legend has it that Nikki drop-kicked Brie in the womb so that she could make her grand entrance first. But the rest of the world often treated them as identical and even interchangeable, so they decided to do something about it. After they made it into WWE, the Bellas accomplished so much together: bringing in young girls and women while building the Bella Army, helping the transition of female performers from Divas to Superstars, starring in Total Divas and Total Bellas, and founding companies like Birdiebee, Nicole + Brizee Beauty, and Bonita Bonita Wine. Though their early journey began with loss, abuse, and plenty of rough times, these challenges &“shined the diamond.&” They resolved to be survivors and the heroes of their own stories, and to take control and responsibility for their lives. Eventually, they would come to show girls everywhere that they can do anything. The Bellas may be identical twins—but as individuals, they have proven themselves Incomparable.

Incomplete Shakespeare: Macbeth

by John Sutherland John Crace

‘Give me the daggers and I’ll pin the blame/ On Duncan’s grooms who both are also slain. /A little water clears us of this deed /Though a large scotch might also do the trick...’ To celebrate the 400th anniversary of Shakespeare's death, this is the first of a new collection of the Bard's greatest plays, digested to a few thousand words with invaluable side notes from John Sutherland. Funny and incredibly clever, these parodies are a joy for those who know their Shakespeare, perfect for the theatre goer needing a quick recap, and a massive relief for those just desperate to pass their English exam.This ebook has a large amount of footnotes and is best viewed on a device that supports pop-up text.

Incomplete: The Feminist Possibilities of the Unfinished Film (Feminist Media Histories #5)

by Alix Beeston and Stefan Solomon

This field-defining collection establishes unfinished film projects—abandoned, interrupted, lost, or open-ended—as rich and underappreciated resources for feminist film and media studies. In deeply researched and creatively conceived chapters, scholars join with film practitioners in approaching the unfinished film as an ideal site for revealing the lived experiences, practical conditions, and institutional realities of women's film production across historical periods and national borders. Incomplete recovers projects and practices marginalized in film industries and scholarship alike, while also showing how feminist filmmakers have cultivated incompletion as an aesthetic strategy. Objects of loss and of possibility, incomplete films raise profound historiographical and ethical questions about the always unfinished project of film history, film spectatorship, and film studies.

Inconceivable: Heartbreak, bad dates and finding solo motherhood

by Alexandra Collier

Alexandra Collier was a writer living in a light-filled Brooklyn brownstone in New York with the man she loved. But when she woke up to a ravenous hunger to have a baby that her partner didn't share, she had to make a choice between love or a future family. She chose family, which catapulted her life back to Melbourne where, at 37, she found herself single, heartbroken and living with her parents. Ally began dating with dedication with sometimes hilarious and often soul-crushing results. But like many single women approaching 40, she found that her reproductive timeline was rapidly outpacing her romantic life. So she began to explore another controversial option: conceiving a baby with donor sperm. From defying her family's expectations to searching for sperm and navigating pregnancy alone, Ally deftly takes us through the ecstatic, complicated and demanding path to becoming a solo mother by choice. 'An inspiring and necessary book that challenges the narratives we set for our lives and reveals the beauty beyond them' CLEMENTINE FORD'Powerful, singular story I rejoiced in reading. Finally, here is a story about a woman who has created her own happily ever after, without submitting to traditional forms of family-building. Collier writes movingly of the judgement single women face in society. Necessary, immersive read.' JESSIE TU

Incongruous Entertainment: Camp, Cultural, and the MGM Musical

by Steven Cohan

With their lavish costumes and sets, ebullient song and dance numbers, and iconic movie stars, the musicals that mgm produced in the 1940s seem today to epitomize camp. Yet they were originally made to appeal to broad, mainstream audiences. In this lively, nuanced, and provocative reassessment of the MGM musical, Steven Cohan argues that this seeming incongruity--between the camp value and popular appreciation of these musicals--is not as contradictory as it seems. He demonstrates that the films' extravagance and queerness were deliberate elements and keys to their popular success. In addition to examining the spectatorship of the MGM musical, Cohan investigates the genre's production and marketing, paying particular attention to the studio's employment of a largely gay workforce of artists and craftspeople. He reflects on the role of the female stars--including Judy Garland, Debbie Reynolds, Esther Williams, and Lena Horne--and he explores the complex relationship between Gene Kelley's dancing and his masculine persona. Cohan looks at how, in the decades since the 1950s, the marketing and reception of the mgm musical have negotiated the more publicly recognized camp value attached to the films. He considers the status of Singin' in the Rain as perhaps the first film to be widely embraced as camp; the repackaging of the musicals as nostalgia and camp in the That's Entertainment! series as well as on home video and cable; and the debates about Garland's legendary gay appeal among her fans on the Internet. By establishing camp as central to the genre, Incongruous Entertainment provides a new way of looking at the musical.

Incorrigibles and Innocents: Constructing Childhood and Citizenship in Progressive Era Comics

by Lara Saguisag

Histories and criticism of comics note that comic strips published in the Progressive Era were dynamic spaces in which anxieties about race, ethnicity, class, and gender were expressed, perpetuated, and alleviated. The proliferation of comic strip children—white and nonwhite, middle-class and lower class, male and female—suggests that childhood was a subject that fascinated and preoccupied Americans at the turn of the century. Many of these strips, including R.F. Outcault’s Hogan’s Alley and Buster Brown, Rudolph Dirks’s The Katzenjammer Kids and Winsor McCay’s Little Nemo in Slumberland were headlined by child characters. Yet no major study has explored the significance of these verbal-visual representations of childhood. Incorrigibles and Innocents addresses this gap in scholarship, examining the ways childhood was depicted and theorized in late nineteenth- and early twentieth-century comic strips. Drawing from and building on histories and theories of childhood, comics, and Progressive Era conceptualizations of citizenship and nationhood, Lara Saguisag demonstrates that child characters in comic strips expressed and complicated contemporary notions of who had a right to claim membership in a modernizing, expanding nation.

Increasing Personal Efficiency

by Russell H. Conwell

In "Increasing Personal Efficiency," Russell H. Conwell, the esteemed Baptist minister, lawyer, and founder of Temple University, provides a comprehensive guide to maximizing productivity and achieving personal success. Drawing on his extensive experience and keen insights, Conwell offers practical advice and motivational wisdom to help individuals enhance their efficiency in both their personal and professional lives.Conwell's approach to personal efficiency is holistic, emphasizing the importance of mental, physical, and spiritual well-being. He believes that true efficiency arises from a balanced and well-rounded lifestyle that nurtures all aspects of an individual's character and abilities.Key themes include:Time Management: Conwell offers strategies for effective time management, emphasizing the importance of prioritizing tasks, setting realistic goals, and avoiding procrastination. He provides practical tips on how to organize one's day to maximize productivity and achieve a healthy work-life balance.Goal Setting: The book underscores the importance of setting clear, achievable goals. Conwell encourages readers to define their objectives and create actionable plans to reach them, highlighting the role of persistence and determination in achieving success.Self-Discipline: Conwell discusses the vital role of self-discipline in increasing personal efficiency. He provides techniques for developing and maintaining discipline, including habits of regular practice, focus, and resilience.Physical Health: Recognizing the connection between physical health and efficiency, Conwell advises on maintaining a healthy lifestyle through proper nutrition, regular exercise, and adequate rest. He believes that a strong, healthy body contributes significantly to one's overall efficiency and effectiveness.Mental Attitude: Conwell explores the power of positive thinking and a proactive mindset. He encourages readers to cultivate a positive attitude, embrace challenges, and learn from failures as part of their journey toward personal growth and efficiency.

Indecent Detroit: Race, Sex, and Censorship in the Motor City

by Ben Strassfeld

While Detroit has been a major focus in urban history, little has been written on censorship in the very city that—due to shifting legalities, the urban crisis, and racial tensions—profoundly shaped media suppression in the United States. By examining censorship in film and literature, Indecent Detroit recounts the evolution of media control from the end of WWII through the 1970s, when the US saw a major change in the legal mechanisms used to censor media due to court rulings that curtailed censorship laws. Ben Strassfeld reveals how Detroit altered its censorial tactics and rhetoric from an obscenity-based system of censorship centered in the Detroit Police Department to a regulatory model based in zoning law that was then expanded nationwide. This shift was connected to broader social and political trends, including the sexual revolution, that led the public to increasingly turn against censorship. A must-read for film and media scholars, Indecent Detroit highlights how one Midwest city's ordinance was imitated across the country after it was upheld by the US Supreme Court, making this more than a local curiosity but also an influential model for the cultural, political, and moral control of urban space through media regulation.

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