Hitchcock’s ‘Blackmail’ and the Birth of the British Talkies
Consideration of both the sound and the silent versions of Alfred Hitchcock’s ‘Blackmail’ provides a unique opportunity to explore the methods of an artist and industry in transition.
Michael Curtis Nelson
Michael Curtis Nelson has a Ph.D. from Indiana University, where he is Director of Publications and Graphics.
Huddled Masses and New Media: ‘How the Other Half Looks’
How America's ur-ghetto, New York's Lower East Side, changed the way we see ourselves.
‘Voices from the Rust Belt’: Dispatches from one of America’s Most Misunderstood Regions
The daughters and sons of the embattled, resilient US heartland map out its personal, cultural, and historical landscape.
Pause and Effect: How to Stop Jumping to Conclusions
A sociologist offers hope for finding better solutions to complex problems by asking better questions about causation.
‘Vampyr’ Is the Best Vampire Movie You’ve Never Seen
Carl Theodor Dreyer had his way, his 1932 film Vampyr would now be a Halloween vampire movie tradition.
Shelter from the Norm: Umbrellas Aren’t Always What They Seem in ‘Brolliology’
Mary Poppins, Mrs. Gamp, Egyptian deities, a Japanese umbrella spirit, and a supporting cast of hundreds of brollies fill Marion Rankine's lively history.
The Complicated Story of Race and Rock ‘n’ Roll in the ’60s
In Just Around Midnight, Jack Hamilton explains what happened over the course of the '60s that turned rock 'n' roll white.
‘The Rhapsodes’: When an Aesthetic Approach to Film Criticism Was Novel
It’s hard to imagine now, but in the '40s it was a daring thing to champion film. These four critics did just that, and did it very well.
Night Riders and Matinee Movies: The Relationship Between the KKK and American Film
This book could not be timelier, given the nativist and racist rhetoric inflaming discourse among America's Republican Party presidential hopefuls.
‘The Annotated Poe’ Is So Thoroughly Poe
Kevin J. Hayes' thorough analysis includes backgrounds on when and where each poem was first published, its contemporary reception, and critical assessments since.
There’s No Resting in Peace in Roger Corman’s ‘Premature Burial’
So burdened is Ray Milland by the trappings of horror convention that you marvel he doesn’t smother on the spot, even though he is safely above ground.