Table of Contents

Acknowledgments Introduction I. Eras The Puritan Era and the Puritan Mind The 1890s The 1920s The 1930s The 1960s The 1970s The 1980s II. Wars and Other Major Events The American Revolution The Civil War and Reconstruction The Cold War The Korean War The Mexican-American War and the Spanish-American War The Vietnam War Westward Expansion and the Indian Wars World War I World War II: Documentaries World War II: Feature Films III. Notable People The Antebellum Frontier Hero Christopher Columbus The Founding Fathers Indian Leaders The Kennedys Abraham Lincoln Richard Nixon Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig Harry S. Truman George Washington IV. Groups African Americans After World War II Arab Americans Asian Americans Catholic Americans Children and Teenages in the Twentieth Century Irish Americans Italian Americans Jewish Americans Mexican Americans Native Americans Radicals and Radicalism Robber Barons, Media Moguls, and Power Elites Women from the Colonial Era to 1900 Women in the Twentieth Century V. Institutions and Movements Baseball City and State Government Civil Rights Congress The Family Football Journalism and the Media The Labor Movement and the Working Class Militias and Extremist Political Movements The Political Machine The Presidency After World War II Private Schools Public High Schools VI. Places The Midwest The "New" West and the New Western New York City The Sea The Small Town The South Space Suburbia Texas and the Southwest The Trans-Appalachian West VII. Themes and Topics Crime and the Mafia Drugs, Tobacco, and Alcohol Elections and Party Politics Feminism and Feminist Films Railroads Sexuality Slavery VIII. Myths and Heroes The American Adam The American Fighting Man Democracy and Equality The Frontier and the West Hollywood's Detective The Machine in the Garden Success and the Self-Made Man List of Contributors Index

Promotional Information

In this collection, more than seventy scholars examine how filmmakers have presented and interpreted the most important events, topics, eras, and figures in the American past, often comparing the film versions of events with interpretations by leading historians. Divided into eight broad categories-Eras; Wars and Other Major Events; Notable People; Groups; Institutions and Movements; Places; Themes and Topics; and Myths and Heroes-the volume features extensive filmographies (of discussed and relevant films), notes, and bibliographies of selected historical works and is united by a detailed index.

About the Author

Peter C. Rollins is Regents Professor of English and American Film Studies at Oklahoma State University and editor in chief of the scholarly journal, Film & History: An Interdisciplinary Journal of Film and Television Studies (www.filmandhistory.org). Peter C. Rollins is Regents Professor of English and American Film Studies at Oklahoma State University and editor in chief of the magazine Film & History (www.filmandhistory.org).

Reviews

"This handy collection of 79 essays... should be most helpful as a reference guide for newcomers to film studies, but advanced scholars will also benefit from the historical analyses and interpretations of film texts. Highly recommended." -- Choice "Rollins's reference allows readers to appreciate films in context, enhancing the experience. Film buffs will find the mix of history and cinematic analysis captivating, while historians will be intrigued by the book's analysis of popular culture." -- Publishers Weekly "This work flows well and would make a wonderful addition to any YA collection. It would benefit students interested in film production, history, or political science...it's just plain fun to thumb through." -- School Library Journal "It provides a solid introduction to many of the major themes of American history on film, and students will undoubtedly find it a very useful source." -- Michael Paris, Screening the Past "This is an excellent print source. This Columbia Companion that Rollins has crafted is highly recommended." -- Jim Agee, American Reference Books Annual "Rollins' book truly deserves to be called a standard work... Not only is The Columbia Companion to American History on Film a must-read for students and scholars of film studies but also in other fields like history, English, or American studies." " The Columbia Companion to American History on Film is yet another impressive volume on film and history edited by Peter C. Rollins." -- Leen Engelen, Historical Journal of Film, Radio, and Television "Offers a wealth of significant material that is extremely informative and entertaining for film scholars, teachers, and film buffs alike." -- Carol E. Mitchell, Journal of Popular Culture "The useful background information will greatly enhance one's view of historical movies." -- Paul Milner, FGS Forum

"This handy collection of 79 essays... should be most helpful as a reference guide for newcomers to film studies, but advanced scholars will also benefit from the historical analyses and interpretations of film texts. Highly recommended." -- Choice "Rollins's reference allows readers to appreciate films in context, enhancing the experience. Film buffs will find the mix of history and cinematic analysis captivating, while historians will be intrigued by the book's analysis of popular culture." -- Publishers Weekly "This work flows well and would make a wonderful addition to any YA collection. It would benefit students interested in film production, history, or political science...it's just plain fun to thumb through." -- School Library Journal "It provides a solid introduction to many of the major themes of American history on film, and students will undoubtedly find it a very useful source." -- Michael Paris, Screening the Past "This is an excellent print source. This Columbia Companion that Rollins has crafted is highly recommended." -- Jim Agee, American Reference Books Annual "Rollins' book truly deserves to be called a standard work... Not only is The Columbia Companion to American History on Film a must-read for students and scholars of film studies but also in other fields like history, English, or American studies." " The Columbia Companion to American History on Film is yet another impressive volume on film and history edited by Peter C. Rollins." -- Leen Engelen, Historical Journal of Film, Radio, and Television "Offers a wealth of significant material that is extremely informative and entertaining for film scholars, teachers, and film buffs alike." -- Carol E. Mitchell, Journal of Popular Culture "The useful background information will greatly enhance one's view of historical movies." -- Paul Milner, FGS Forum

Adult/High School-This scholarly work focuses on how Hollywood films have dealt with historical figures, places, and events from the silent era to the present day. Each section is filled with filmographies, lists of pertinent films, discussions by noted film critics, cross-references, and bibliographies of relevant materials in both print and nonprint formats. Each section also tries to ascertain what the key films on the topic are; if filmmakers have altered the facts to enhance the story; and if social, political, or technical factors have influenced the production. This work flows well and would make a wonderful addition to any YA collection. It would benefit students interested in film production, history, or political science. For film aficionados, it's just plain fun to thumb through, analyzing films that they've seen or building a list of must-sees.-John Kiefman, Fairfax County Public Library, VA Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.

The average person in the industrial world will spend nine years watching film and television, says Rollins, an American film studies professor at Oklahoma University and editor in chief of Film & History. He claims the sense of "popular memory" people get from watching movies provides a skewed sense of history, but what film and documentaries do illustrate, he says, are the attitudes of the director and the society at the time of production. Rollins organizes his book into eight chapters, on historical eras, famous personalities, movements, places and other prisms through which we can view history. He charges his contributors (scholars of history, communications, politics and other disciplines) with finding the messages behind the medium, be it the legend of Abraham Lincoln or John Kennedy or the mythology of small towns. All reveal the social expectations embedded in pop culture. Concise historical summaries precede examples of films to illustrate the shifting views of women, politics, race, etc. Although the book is structured by themes, the index allows readers to explore particular films from different perspectives: e.g., Hester Street is not only about Jewish immigration and assimilation, but its heroine may also be seen as an archetype of the modern woman. Rollins's reference allows readers to appreciate films in context, enhancing the experience. Film buffs will find the mix of history and cinematic analysis captivating, while historians will be intrigued by the book's analysis of popular culture. Photos. (Apr.) Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.