Hollywood Left and Right: How Movie Stars Shaped American Politics

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Steven Ross (Professor of History and chairman of the Department of History, Professor of History and chairman of the Department of History, The University of Souther California)

Hollywood Left and Right

How Movie Stars Shaped American Politics

Steven Ross (Professor of History and chairman of the Department of History, Professor of History and chairman of the Department of History, The University of Souther California)

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English

01 August 2011

Film, TV & Radio; Films, movies & cinema; History of the Americas; 20th century history: c 1900 to c 2000

In Hollywood Left and Right, Steven J. Ross tells a story that has escaped public attention: the emergence of Hollywood as a vital center of political life and the important role that movie stars have played in shaping the course of American politics. Ever since the film industry relocated to Hollywood early in the twentieth century, it has had an outsized influence on American politics. Through compelling larger-than-life figures in American cinema--Charlie Chaplin, Louis B. Mayer, Edward G. Robinson, George Murphy, Ronald Reagan, Harry Belafonte, Jane Fonda, Charlton Heston, Warren Beatty, and Arnold Schwarzenegger--Hollywood Left and Right reveals how the film industry's engagement in politics has been longer, deeper, and more varied than most people would imagine. As shown in alternating chapters, the Left and the Right each gained ascendancy in Tinseltown at different times. From Chaplin, whose movies almost always displayed his leftist convictions, to Schwarzenegger's nearly seamless transition from action blockbusters to the California governor's mansion, Steven J. Ross traces the intersection of Hollywood and political activism from the early twentieth century to the present. Hollywood Left and Right challenges the commonly held belief that Hollywood has always been a bastion of liberalism. The real story, as Ross shows in this passionate and entertaining work, is far more complicated. First, Hollywood has a longer history of conservatism than liberalism. Second, and most surprising, while the Hollywood Left was usually more vocal and visible, the Right had a greater impact on American political life, capturing a senate seat (Murphy), a governorship (Schwarzenegger), and the ultimate achievement, the Presidency (Reagan).

By: Steven Ross (Professor of History and chairman of the Department of History Professor of History and chairman of the Department of History The University of Souther California)
Country of Publication: United States
Dimensions: Height: 232mm, Width: 160mm, Spine: 42mm
Weight: 799g
ISBN: 9780195181722
ISBN 10: 0195181727
Publication Date: 01 August 2011
Audience: General/trade , ELT Advanced
Format: Hardback
Publisher's Status: Active

Reviews for Hollywood Left and Right: How Movie Stars Shaped American Politics

meticulously researched and well-plotted -Ted Johnson, Variety Hollywood Left and Right is nonfiction at its best: entertaining and engaging, probing and provocative, detailed and comprehensive in coverage, multifaceted and far-ranging in its treatment, objective and balanced, appropriately paced in covering a complex, big story. -Stephen Roulac, New York Journal of Books Steven J. Ross convincingly shows in Hollywood Left and Right that since its early days, the movie industry has been as quietly conservative as publicly liberal. -Carolyn Kellogg, Los Angeles Times [F]ascinating...compelling survey of politics and celebrity. -Rowan Kaiser, A.V. Club Well written, entertaining, and enlightening, this is highly recommended, especially for film buffs interested in the intersection of politics and culture. -Library Journal Steven Ross's engrossing book about the interplay between movie stars, politics and America's celebrity