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Acting for America

Movie Stars of the 1980s

Edited by Robert Eberwein

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Price:: $41.95
ISBN:: 9780813576565
Published:: May 17, 2010

Release Date:: 17th May 2010
Contributors:: Aaron Baker, Rebecca Bell-Metereau, William Brown, Michael DeAngelis, Krin Gabbard, Chris Holmlund, Adam Knee, Christina Lane, Linda Mizejewski, James Morrison, and Jerry Mosher
Publisher:: Rutgers University Press
Imprint:: Rutgers University Press
Series:: Star Decades: American Culture/American Cinema
Pages:: 288
Illustrations:: 59 illustrations. 59 photographs

Description
Contents
Authors

A captivating cast of 1980s power and talent--John Candy, Tom Cruise, Robert DeNiro, Clint Eastwood, Sally Field, Harrison Ford, Michael J. Fox, Mel Gibson, Goldie Hawn, Jessica Lange, Steve Martin, Eddie Murphy, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Sissy Spacek, Sylvester Stallone, Meryl Streep, Sigourney Weaver, Bruce Willis, and the "Brat Pack"—stars in the drama of this decade. Acting for America focuses on the way these film icons have engaged in and defined some major issues of cultural and social concern to America during the 1980s.

Scholars employing a variety of useful approaches explore how these movie stars' films speak to an increased audience awareness of advances in feminism, new ideas about masculinity, and the complex political atmosphere in the Age of Reagan. The essays demonstrate the range of these stars' contributions to such conversations in a variety of films, including blockbusters and major genres.

Acknowledgments
Introduction: Stardom in the 1980s
1. Robert De Niro: Star as Actor Auteur
2. Sylvester Stallone and Arnold Schwarzenegger: Androgynous Macho Men
3. Jessica Lange and Sissy Spacek: Country Girls
4. Mel Gibson and Tom Cruise: Rebellion and Conformity
5. Michael J. Fox and the Brat Pack: Contrasting Identities
6. Eddie Murphy: The Rise and Fall of the Golden Child
7. Sigourney Weaver: Woman Warrior, Working Girl
8. Harrison Ford: A Well-Tempered Machismo
9. Sally Field and Goldie Hawn: Feminism, Post-Feminism, and Cactus Flower Politics
10. Meryl Streep: Feminism and Femininity in the Era of the Backlash
11. Clint Eastwood and Bruce Willis: Enforcers Left and Right
12. Steve Martin and John Candy: Penny Wise and Pound Foolish
In the Wings
Works Cited
Contributors
Index

ROBERT EBERWEIN is distinguished professor of English emeritus at Oakland University. He is the author of Armed Forces: Masculinity and Sexuality in the American War Film; The War Film; Sex ED: Film, Video, and the Framework of Desire (all Rutgers University Press), and The Hollywood War Film.

Related topics: Performing Arts / Film