Download Free American Fan Book in PDF and EPUB Free Download. You can read online American Fan and write the review.

There exists in America a peculiar, fascinating subculture. Its exotic rituals include withstanding subzero temperatures with an upper body clad only in brightly colored paint, shouting arcane statistics at talk-show broadcasters, adopting the graphic images of lucrative businesses in bursts of patriotic fervor, and finding a curious but tangible form of self-esteem in the spectacle of overgrown armored men banging each other into unconsciousness. Hello, sports fans, this is a book about you. In fact, about us! For true fans, sports are close to a religion, a substitute for politics, an outlet for the most violent tendencies, and an excuse to vent primal instincts -- in other words, to act like the maniacs we are. But for the professional leagues and the megacorporations that exploit them, sports is a lot more important than any number of brew-soaked stadium seats. It's a serious business with rules you don't break and customers you don't serve, and it makes a small group of talented and/or connected people very, very, very rich, often at the expense of "home team" taxpayers who never hear the crack of a bat or the swish of a net. In this scathing, passionate, hilarious book, Dennis Perrin, the acclaimed author of Mr. Mike, examines the species Sportus fannus from the point of view of a lifelong member. But his love of America's great games does not blind him to their routine, often cynical misuse by a sports marketing establishment that goes to absurd lengths to glorify, even deify, professional athletes, just to sell a few more pairs of sneakers to awestruck fans at home. With wit and vision, the author leads us on a no-holds-barred journey from a Midwestern high schoolbasketball rivalry to the dizzying pinstriped heights of Michael Jordan, Inc.; from the call-in-show sports "media" to the magnificent prose of legendary boxing writer A. J. Liebling; from the outrage of Dennis Rodman to the courage of Muhammad Ali; from the exultant beauty of sport to its slow desecration on the ever shorter stroll from the locker room to the board room, the one that tramples on sports fans every step of the way. Let's cut to the chase: win or lose, love or hate, rain or shine, one thing's for sure -- this book is about to start arguments in living rooms, bars, and broadcasts nationwide. So check it out for yourself. Grab a snack and a beverage, and dig in!
At a time when the expanded projection of US political, military, economic and cultural power draws intensified global concern, understanding how that country understands itself seems more important than ever. This collection of new critical essays tackles this old problem in a new way, by examining some of the hundreds of US films that announce themselves as titularly 'American'. From early travelogues to contemporary comedies, national nomination has been an abiding characteristic of American motion pictures, heading the work of Porter, Guy-Blaché, DeMille, Capra, Sternberg, Vidor, Minnelli and Mankiewicz. More recently, George Lucas, Paul Schrader, John Landis and Edward James Olmos have made their own contributions to Hollywood’s Americana. What does this national branding signify? Which versions of Americanism are valorized, and which marginalized or excluded? Out of which social and historical contexts do they emerge, and for and by whom are they constructed? Edited by Mandy Merck, the collection contains detailed analyses of such films as The Vanishing American, American Madness, An American in Paris, American Graffiti, American Gigolo, American Pie and many more.
Describes how Dominican baseball fosters national pride and competition with the United States while at the same time promoting acceptance of the North American presence in the country
A must-have for all fans! -Exclusive pix of the audition process, set, and contestants -"American Idol" explained! Everything you wanted to know and more! -Weekly recap and personal profiles of the Top 12 contestants -The Best of the Worst: Profiles of William Hung, Scat Girl and others -Behind the scenes gossip from the sound stage to the red carpet -What the judges had to say
Go behind the scenes of Season 4! ·Up close and personal with the Top 12 ·Sneak peak at creating an Idol ·Candid backstage photos ·Lifestyles of the Top 12 ·See what happens when the cameras aren't rolling ·Exclusive poster of your favorite contestants
Sports fandom--often more than religious, political, or regional affiliation--determines how millions of Americans define themselves. In We Average Unbeautiful Watchers, Noah Cohan examines contemporary sports culture to show how mass-mediated athletics are in fact richly textured narrative entertainments rather than merely competitive displays. While it may seem that sports narratives are "written" by athletes and journalists, Cohan demonstrates that fans are not passive consumers but rather function as readers and writers who appropriate those narratives and generate their own stories in building their sense of identity. Critically reading stories of sports fans' self-definition across genres, from the novel and the memoir to the film and the blog post, We Average Unbeautiful Watchers recovers sports games as sites where fan-authors theorize interpretation, historicity, and narrative itself. Fan stories demonstrate how unscripted sporting entertainments function as identity-building narratives--which, in turn, enhances our understanding of the way we incorporate a broad range of texts into our own life stories. Building on the work of sports historians, theorists of fan behavior, and critics of American literature, Cohan shows that humanistic methods are urgently needed for developing nuanced critical conversations about athletics. Sports take shape as stories, and it is scholars in the humanities who can best identify how they do so--and why that matters for American culture more broadly.
"This collection explores the current wave of US/UK television dramas, focusing on industry strategies, performance styles, issues of 'quality,' and audience receptions. It covers key programs including Black Mirror, Downton Abbey, Game of Thrones and Sherlock. Issues of national identity, streaming services, and transnational fan cultures are all explored"
"A rare combination of scientific and down-to-earth language, of objective analysis and philosophy, overlain with a concern for the future of all men, and a recognition of the need for understanding between the people of two great cultures." --Library Journal
Though Americans spend more than $25 billion a year on sports and sporting events, this book argues that the influence of sports on our lives is even more profound than this huge figure would seem to suggest. Exploring such topics as the role of sports in the creation of mass culture, cheating, the abuse of illegal drugs, the strange and fascinating role that numbers play in sporting events, and the future of spectator sport, this book surveys the outsized impact that sports have on American culture. The author draws from new work in such fields as history, economics, politics, sociology, psychology, and ethics to support his claims. Instructors considering this book for use in a course may request an examination copy here.