false 118823 2 In <i>Life the Movie: How Entertainment Conquered Reality</i>, Neal Gabler traces the evolution of high and low culture in American society through the 19th and 20th centuries, and describes how low-brow entertainment became so influential in the United States. This is his central argument: "It is not any ism but entertainment that is arguably the most pervasive, powerful, and ineluctable force of our time--a force so overwhelming that it has finally metastasized into life." Although Gabler uses the word "metastasized," he doesn't seem to regard infotainment as a cancer that is destroying our society, but rather as something that grows rapidly and certainly worthy of close study.<p> The scope of Gabler's investigation extends far beyond the movies to publishing, television news, paint brands, fashion--anything that seems to have been transformed by the national passion for low-brow entertainment. Along the way, Gabler raises a series of intriguing questions: Why do some people feel more passionately about celebrities than about their own loved ones? Why is Donald Trump a celebrity? Why was the broadcast of the 1996 Olympics packed with so many biopics that the sporting events seemed afterthoughts? Why does Ralph Lauren call the blue paint he sells "Lap Pool Blue"?<p> Movies promote the fantasy that there are simple narrative solutions for all of life's problems. Movies are full of sex, scandal, gossip, and action. If our lives were movies, they would be more full of what Zsa Zsa Gabor once called "enchanting make-believe." In this book, Gabler demonstrates how this fantasy has shaped our society. <I>--Jill Marquis</I> 114397 1998 Life: The Movie: How Entertainment Conquered Reality total:71|5:10|4:31|3:22|2:7|1:1| 71 255 122 14 1 0 false false Tue Jan 27 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Tue Jan 27 18:36:49 -0800 2009 Tue Jan 27 19:52:44 -0800 2009
Life: The Movie promised to be a thoughtful discussio...more...]]> 4 0 false false Wed Aug 26 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Wed Aug 26 21:28:25 -0700 2009 Wed Aug 26 21:32:05 -0700 2009 more...]]> 3 0 false false Sat Aug 01 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Wed Aug 05 11:22:08 -0700 2009 Wed Aug 05 11:23:30 -0700 2009
hi, my computer screen is more invasive than my tv sc...more...]]> 3 0 false false Mon Sep 21 08:33:44 -0700 2009 Mon Sep 21 08:35:11 -0700 2009 2 0 false false Sun Jan 04 14:42:30 -0800 2009 Sun Jan 04 14:42:49 -0800 2009 4 0 false false Thu Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2004 Wed Apr 25 15:22:25 -0700 2007 Wed Apr 25 15:25:22 -0700 2007 more...]]> 4 0 false false Sun Jun 01 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Wed Jul 09 12:12:35 -0700 2008 Wed Jul 09 12:12:35 -0700 2008 0 0 false false Mon Jan 14 12:25:50 -0800 2008 Mon Jan 14 12:27:15 -0800 2008 3 0 false false Thu Jun 14 18:43:49 -0700 2007 Thu Jun 14 18:50:22 -0700 2007 0 0 false false Mon Nov 01 00:00:00 -0800 1999 Wed Jan 23 22:13:23 -0800 2008 Wed Jan 23 22:18:05 -0800 2008 5 0 false false Sat Apr 01 00:00:00 -0800 2000 Thu Mar 29 11:42:19 -0700 2007 Thu Mar 29 11:43:35 -0700 2007 5 0 false false Mon Jan 28 12:27:00 -0800 2008 Mon Jan 28 12:27:12 -0800 2008 0 0 false false Fri Jun 06 03:54:36 -0700 2008 Fri Jun 06 03:54:53 -0700 2008 Consumed.]]> 4 0 true false Mon Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2001 Wed Jan 30 17:03:47 -0800 2008 Wed Jan 30 17:04:12 -0800 2008 3 0 false false Thu Mar 01 00:00:00 -0800 2007 Fri Oct 30 22:32:52 -0700 2009 Fri Oct 30 22:33:09 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Sun Oct 25 20:43:49 -0700 2009 Sun Oct 25 20:43:49 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Sun Oct 11 12:35:37 -0700 2009 Sun Oct 11 12:35:46 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Wed Sep 30 16:18:39 -0700 2009 Sun Oct 18 19:54:27 -0700 2009 3 0 false false Wed Sep 16 07:49:53 -0700 2009 Wed Sep 16 07:49:53 -0700 2009 2 0 false false Tue Sep 15 18:31:26 -0700 2009 Tue Sep 15 18:31:26 -0700 2009