LEADER 04675nam 2200685Ia 450 001 9910817648203321 005 20240313043546.0 010 $a1-283-61803-6 010 $a9786613930484 010 $a0-8135-5405-5 024 7 $a10.36019/9780813554051 035 $a(CKB)2670000000242711 035 $a(EBL)1031959 035 $a(OCoLC)811410932 035 $a(SSID)ssj0000721073 035 $a(PQKBManifestationID)11377945 035 $a(PQKBTitleCode)TC0000721073 035 $a(PQKBWorkID)10687021 035 $a(PQKB)11246278 035 $a(MiAaPQ)EBC1031959 035 $a(MdBmJHUP)muse18899 035 $a(DE-B1597)541877 035 $a(DE-B1597)9780813554051 035 $a(Au-PeEL)EBL1031959 035 $a(CaPaEBR)ebr10605250 035 $a(CaONFJC)MIL393048 035 $a(OCoLC)821738044 035 $a(EXLCZ)992670000000242711 100 $a20120109d2012 uy 0 101 0 $aeng 135 $aurcn||||||||| 181 $ctxt 182 $cc 183 $acr 200 14$aThe leading man $eHollywood and the presidential image /$fBurton W. Peretti 205 $a1st ed. 210 $aNew Brunswick, N.J. $cRutgers University Press$dc2012 215 $a1 online resource (350 p.) 300 $aDescription based upon print version of record. 311 $a0-8135-5404-7 320 $aIncludes bibliographical references and index. 327 $tFront matter --$tCONTENTS --$tAcknowledgments --$tIntroduction --$t1. "The Torments of Desire": Presidents and Performance before 1929 --$t2. The Studios' Golden Age and the White House, 1929-1945 --$t3. The Old Man and TV, 1945-1960 --$t4. Charisma's Hour, 1960-1969 --$t5. Enter Stage Right, 1969-1989 --$t6. Hollywood Wags the Dog, 1990-2000 --$t7. The Twin Towers, 2001-2009 --$tConclusion --$tNotes --$tIndex --$tABOUT THE AUTHOR 330 $aAmerican presidents and Hollywood have interacted since the 1920's. This relationship has made our entertainment more political and our political leadership more aligned with the world of movies and movie stars. In The Leading Man, Burton W. Peretti explores the development of the cinematic presidential image. He sets the scene in chapter 1 to show us how the chief executive, beginning with George Washington, was positioned to assume the mantle of cultural leading man. As an early star figure in the young republic, the president served as a symbol of national survival and wish fulfillment. The president, as head of government and head of state, had the potential to portray a powerful and charismatic role. At the center of the story are the fourteen presidents of the cinematic era, from Herbert Hoover to Barack Obama. Since the 1920's, the president, like the lead actor in a movie, has been given the central place on the political stage under the intense glare of the spotlight. Like other American men, future presidents were taught by lead movie actors how to look and behave, what to say, and how to say it. Some, like John F. Kennedy and Richard M. Nixon, took particular care to learn from the grooming, gestures, movements, and vocal inflections of film actors and applied these lessons to their political careers. Ronald Reagan was a professional actor. Bill Clinton, a child of the post-World War II Baby Boom, may have been the biggest movie fan of all presidents. Others, including Lyndon Johnson, showed little interest in movies and their lessons for politicians. Presidents and other politicians have been criticized for cheapening their offices by hiring image and advertising consultants and staging their public events. Peretti analyzes the evolution and the significance of this interaction to trace the convoluted history of the presidential cinematic image. He demonstrates how movies have been the main force in promoting appearance and drama over the substance of governing, and how Americans' lives today may be dominated by entertainment at the expense of their engagement as citizens. 606 $aHistorical films$zUnited States$xHistory and criticism 606 $aMotion pictures and history 606 $aMotion pictures$xPolitical aspects$zUnited States 606 $aPresidents in motion pictures 615 0$aHistorical films$xHistory and criticism. 615 0$aMotion pictures and history. 615 0$aMotion pictures$xPolitical aspects 615 0$aPresidents in motion pictures. 676 $a791.43/658 700 $aPeretti$b Burton W$g(Burton William),$f1961-$01631350 801 0$bMiAaPQ 801 1$bMiAaPQ 801 2$bMiAaPQ 906 $aBOOK 912 $a9910817648203321 996 $aThe leading man$93970758 997 $aUNINA