This volume contains 29 historical and new readings relating to the topics of stardom and celebrity, by philosophers and sociologists such as Theodor Adorno, Roland Barthes, Jean Baudrillard, Walter Benjamin, and Max Weber, and contemporary theorists in areas such as sociology, film studies, and communications. The topics are explored in terms of cultural and economic shifts and through the lenses of multiple disciplines and approaches. The book does not offer an overview of the subject or a history of celebrity, but instead features selected arguments, and theoretical and methodological approaches, to offer insight on how fame has changed over time and the history of how it has been analyzed. Sections address intellectual arguments and positions in star and celebrity analysis, discuss theory, and consider the political economy of celebrity culture, the crafting of star images, and the role of the audience. Annotation ©2008 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)
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"This welcome addition to the literature on fame goes beyond goes beyond stardom--though Redmond and Holmes cover that topic well--to discuss stardom and celebrity in general."
-A.L. Knight, CHOICE
This book brings together some of the seminal interventions which have structured the development of star/celebrity studies, while crucially combining and situating these within the context of new essays which address the contemporary, cross-media and international landscape of today's fame culture. At the core of the collection is a desire to map out a unique historical trajectory - both in terms of the development of fame, as well as the historical development of star/celebrity studies.
