Celebrity Studies Book Release & Keynotes
We are excited to announce the release of Film Stardom and the Ancient Past Idols, Artefacts and Epics by Michael Williams. Published by Palgrave MacMillan, the book offers the first major study of the use of the ancient past in the construction of Hollywood stardom after the silent era. This book offers the first comprehensive exploration of how the ancient past has shaped screen stardom in Hollywood since the silent era. It engages with debates on historical reception, gender and sexuality, nostalgia, authenticity and the uses of the past. Michael Williams gives fresh insights into...
Read MoreNot-so-female Hollywood?
Published in The Political Film Blog https://politicalfilm.wordpress.com/2016/10/02/not-so-female-hollywood/ The lack of sexual diversity in Hollywood has been a critical issue that gained wide attention among movie lovers and researchers. But, as a recent University of Southern California report shows, a real change in the industry is still required. In particular, Dr Katherine Pieper points out “raised voices and calls for change are important, but so are practical and strategic solutions based on research.” So how can we implement solutions based on research, such as the one that USC...
Read MoreCelebrity Chat: Bring Back Our Girls
It has been just over 4 weeks since I sponsored the Centre for Media and Celebrity Studies (CMCS) international conference. So thrilled to see the best CMCS video on Celebrity Chat Season 2 already! It makes you think about the role (or failures) of fame in Bring Back our Girls campaign, which is what award-winners Dr Susan Hopkins and Dr Jenny Ostini discuss. Watch till the end and tell us what you think. Tweet to www.twitter.com/celeb_studies to be part of a dialogue that this exclusive video has generated. Also join our associate press WaterHill Publishing at...
Read MoreThe Good & The Bad
In one of Facebook posts, I mentioned the idea of writing my memoir. Will that book talk about all the good ideas that were expected of me in the past? I am a bad Canadian. I neither support political images of the Great White North nor do I buy hockey tickets. My book Fame in Hollywood North will tell us why. I am also a bad Bengali. I neither buy fish nor do I have to marry. Sometimes we conflate our belonging to a geographical place, a linguistic community or professional setting with what we are expected to identify. Often these expectations are associated with a sense of collective...
Read MoreIs there a Caitlyn Jenner in You and Me?
You know I talk about celebrity culture and the notion of popularity. The popular is not limited to celebrities. In fact celebrities are part of popular culture, and the signs of fame shed light on the successful functioning of many other popular representations. A recent example of popular representations is the way in which social media users displayed their affective response towards the US same-sex marriage laws. When a plethora of Facebook users applied a translucent rainbow flag on their profile pictures, I was inspired to support it. At the same time, I did not understand the hype....
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