A short history of celebrity Cover Image

Book

A short history of celebrity / Fred Inglis.

Summary:

Love it or hate it, celebrity is one of the dominant features of modern life--and one of the least understood. Fred Inglis sets out to correct this problem in this entertaining and enlightening social history of modern celebrity, from eighteenth-century London to today's Hollywood. Vividly written and brimming with fascinating stories of figures whose lives mark important moments in the history of celebrity, this book explains how fame has changed over the past two-and-a-half centuries.

Record details

ISBN: 9780691135625 (hardcover : alk. paper)
ISBN: 0691135622 (hardcover : alk. paper)
Physical Description: x, 311 p. : ill. ; 25 cm.
Publisher: Princeton : Princeton University Press, c2010.

Content descriptions

Bibliography, etc. Note:

Includes bibliographical references (p. [289]-302) and index.

Formatted Contents Note:

The performance of celebrity -- A very short history of the feelings -- The London-Brighton road (1760-1820) -- Paris: haute couture and the painting of modern life -- New York and Chicago: robber barons and the gossip column, 1880-1910 -- The geography of recognition: celebrity on its holidays -- The great dictators -- The stars look down: the democratisation of celebrity -- From each according to his ability: sport, rock, fashion, and the self -- Stories we tell ourselves about ourselves -- Envoi: Cherishing citizens.