Steven Cohan - Hollywood by Hollywood: The Backstudio Picture and the Mystique of Making Movies

I presented portions of this book at several conferences of the Society of Cinema and Media Studies as well as at conferences organized by Console-ing Passions, the Modern Languages Association, and the Modernism/Modern Studies Association. In addition, I presented excerpts about A Star Is Born at the Cultural Studies Now! symposium hosted by the University of Pittsburgh in honor of Jane Feuer and at the Classical Hollywood Studies in the 21st Century conference at Wilfred Laurier University. I discussed the films trailer on In Media Res. As valuable to this books gestation, an invitation to speak at the University of Kentucky in 2010 gave me my first opportunity to think about films about Hollywood, and some of that early material has remained in my mind and in the book these many years later. I wish to take this opportunity to thank the organizers of these events for giving me these occasions at which I was able to try out my ideas about the backstudio picture.

Numerous friends and colleagues also shared their insights and provided helpful feedback (or just their friendship and support) during the long process of writing. I wish to thank Julie Abraham, Sarah Barkin, Harry Benshoff, Michael DeAngelis, Lindsey Decker, Mary Desjardins, Steven Doles, Mike Dwyer, Mike Goode, Sean Griffin, Julie Grossman, Karen Hall, Chris Hanson, Ina Hark, Nicola Jones, Coran Klaver, Barbara Klinger, Amy Lang, David Lugowski, Erin Mackie, Neepa Majumber, Adrienne McLean, Jolynn Parker, Andrea Scheibel, Linda Shires, Gohar Siddiqui, Jill Simpson, Staci Stutsman, T. J. West, and Pamela Wojcik. A special shout-out to Roger Hallas, Matt Fee, and Will Scheibel, who were always ready to talk Hollywood with me; our conversations over the years were of great value to this project from beginning to end. Merrill Schleier, Karen McNally, and Alan Nadel read all or parts of the book manuscript and provided very helpful comments. My work and Alans often cover similar ground, and I have benefited from his comments or questions at various stages of this books composition. Josh Stenger provided some invaluable source material and good advice as I began. Samantha Hake pointed out to me how Barton Fink is legible as a blacklist film. Eric Hoyt found material for me in the Lantern at the Media History Digital Library. I also dont want to forget Scotty Nicolini, Sarah Parsons, Mark Strodel, Vanessa Watts, and my friends at the dog park. Let me thank as well Norm Hirschy, my editor at Oxford University Press, whose excitement about this project never waned; and the people at the press who saw the book through productionLauralee Yeary, Judith Hoover, Celine Aenlle-Rocha, and, of course, Joellyn Ausanka. I should not forget the anonymous reviewers whose comments helped me to see more clearly what I have accomplished here.

Finally, I wish to thank the undergraduate students in the two versions of the course based on this book: your enthusiastic responses to the films were infectious and, in many instances, prompted me to linger on some in ways I had not anticipated, just as I know that your lively discussions in class remained in my mind afterward as I wrote certain sections. If you read this book you know who you are.

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