reclassified contributions bibliographies bio-bibliography

books:

American Dark Comedy: Beyond Satire (Contributions to the Study of Popular Culture)
Wes D. Gehring

Greenwood Press, 1996

From Charlie Chaplin's The Gold Rush to Quentin Tarantino's Pulp Fiction, Gehring presents a compelling theory of the black comedy film genre. Placing the movies he discusses in a historical and literary context, Gehring explores the genre's obession with death and the characters' failure to be shocked by it. Movies discussed include: Slaughterhouse Five, Catch-22, Clockwork Orange, Harold and Maude, Heathers, and Natural Born Killers.

Laurel and Hardy: A Bio-Bibliography (Popular Culture Bio-Bibliographies)

2 reviews
Wes D. Gehring

Greenwood Press, 1990

Laurel and Hardy-essential reading on The Boys-
Wes Gehrings' essential volume on the greatest film comedy team of all time approaches his material from a more scholarly/academic and methodical approach than all other previous books.But do not let this fool you.The results are much more of an unbiased and objective view and the book is a treasure trove of previously unavailable information and references to where much more can be obtained if ...

Seeing Red : The Skelton in Hollywood's Closet

2 reviews
Wes D. Gehring

Robin Vincent Publishing LLC, 2001

Gehring Dood It!
Being a huge fan of Red Skelton, I was naturally eager to read about his life. But, after having read the Arthur Marx biography about him, I was a bit leery about reading Seeing Red because I didn't want my illusion of Red destroyed. Wes Gehring's extensive research shows because he gives the reader information from all points of view, and he leaves it up to readers to use their own judgments. ...

Groucho and W. C. Fields: Huckster Comedians (Studies in Popular Culture Series)

1 review
Wes D. Gehring

University Press of Mississippi, 2007

GOOD FOR DIE-HARD FANS & SCHOLARS, BUT NOT FOR GENERAL FANS
Gehring's book is like a text book. Like a thesis. It's good on that level; but there's always the ultimate question: Why analyze comedy at all? Once you start to explain it on a serious, scientific level, you've drained it from all it's fun. This book will help understand W.C. Fields & Groucho's worth in the history of Comedy and Satire, but it won't win them new fans. I love Groucho & ...

The Marx Brothers: A Bio-Bibliography

1 review

Greenwood Press, 1987

Be the first Marx Brothers expert on your block!
Make a snack, sit down in your favorite chair and get ready for all there is to know about the Marx Brothers. This book is a reference guide to dates, names, films and darn near anything else that occurred in the life of this amazing team. It is chock full of interesting stories, fascinating facts and just plain silly stuff that kept me captivated the whole way through. Its one drawback was ...

James Dean: Rebel With A Cause (Indiana Biography) (Indiana Biography Series)

3 reviews
Wes D. Gehring

Indiana Historical Society, 2005

James Dean
"James Dean: Rebel With A Cause" is about the life of James Dean. It starts off with the day he died in a car accident at the age of 24 and then rewinds back to the day he was born. It goes through his Indiana roots and his time in California, from his Broadway debut to his star-making role. We knew him as Cal Trask, a unloved son in "East of East", Jim Stark, an angst-ridden teen in "Rebel ...

Irene Dunne: First Lady of Hollywood (Filmmakers Series)

4 reviews
Wes D. Gehring

The Scarecrow Press, Inc., 2006

She Should Never Be Forgotten
This is a lovely book about a woman who certainly did her best in her field and private life. She was indeed unique as one can easily tell when watching her wonderful films....old and well as the later ones. I think the author did a wonderful job researching his subject. I wanted more and didn't want the story to end. Thank you.

Carole Lombard, the Hoosier Tornado (Indiana Biography Series)

5 reviews
Wes D. Gehring

Indiana Historical Society, 2003

Nobody did it better
Reviewed for H-Indiana by Randy Roberts (rroberts@sla.purdue.edu), Department of History, Purdue University Nobody did it better. She did not invent the type, the scatterbrained blond who spoke faster than she thought, but Carole Lombard made it her own. When I think of her my mind wanders first to My Man Godfrey (1936), a film that without Lombard would be forgotten today. Except for a few ...

"Mr. B" or Comforting Thoughts About the Bison: A Critical Biography of Robert Benchley (Contributions to the ...

1 review
Wes D. Gehring

Greenwood Press, 1992

"Mr. B" not bad but could "B" better
Wes Gehring contributes a great deal to Benchley scholarship, being the first Benchley biographer to sift through the letters and extant diaries. His investigations have been extensive, and aside from beating the whole "antihero" theme to death, he offers intelligent commentary on Benchley's life and work. But this self-professedly scholarly study (listed at so high a price) is full of ...

Film Classics Reclassified: A Shocking Spoof of Cinema
Wes D. Gehring

Robin Vincent Publishing LLC, 2001

A parody of film criticism, Gehring spoofs such watershed films as Psycho, Chinatown, The Wizard of Oz, and several others. Whether it is healthy or not, it is sometimes good to step back and have fun with all the time we spend in the dark. Spoofing allows more laughter and maybe a modicum of insight about the films we love. If nothing else, it gives us something to talk about between the next double feature.

Charlie Chaplin: A Bio-Bibliography (Popular Culture Bio-Bibliographies)
Wes D. Gehring

Greenwood Press, 1983

"The biography is as good an introduction to Chaplin's life and films as has been published. The bibliographical essay . . . offers clear and reliable evaluations of the works considered. The filmography carefully lists everyone involved in each Chaplin film." Choice

Handbook of American Film Genres

Greenwood Press, 1988

With the increased sophistication of film scholarship in recent decades, the traditional motion picture categories are often found too limited to provide a workable basis for exploring the medium. Addressing the need for an expanded conceptual framework, this new handbook offers eighteen informative genre essays by recognized film scholars, together with selected filmographies and bibliographies for each category discussed. Written in a ...

Film Clowns of the Depression: Twelve Defining Comic Performances
Wes D. Gehring

McFarland & Company, 2007

The 1930s are routinely considered sound film's greatest comedy era. Though this golden age encompassed various genres of laughter, clown comedy is the most basic type. This work examines the Depression decade's most popular type of comedy-the clown, or personality comedian. Focusing upon the Depression era, the study filters its analysis through twelve memorable pictures. Each merits an individual chapter, in which it is critiqued. The films ...

search for books
bibliographies, bio-bibliographies, bio-bibliography, contributions, reclassified

Impressum / about us