Also during the post war era mental illnesses start to come into play and start to change the outcomes of the stars such as Judy Garland who attempted suicide. Judy was known for her “rich and exuberant voice” (“Judy Garland Biography”) in musicals also known as Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz. Louis Mayer signed her from studio MGM after he had heard her sing. He then changed her name from Frances Gumm to Judy Garland after a song called “Judy” and a film critic Robert Garland. Changing the stars name was a common thing that Hollywood did since it was also done to Villi. Judy became a very busy teenager at the age of fourteen. Her teen years being filled with musicals, films and songs. She was so busy that she was given a numerous amount of …show more content…
pills by the studio doctors to off set her tiredness. She was also put on amphetamines in order to keep her streamlined figure since her weight would fluctuate frequently. Judy began to take an abundant amount of pills at such a young age, which caused her become addicted to drugs. Since her body was so accustomed to them, she began to crave them. Hollywood was not only taking over her life but her health too, when she was persuaded to abort her baby to keep her “good-girl” image up. Judy aborted her baby to keep in the business, it was a decision she regretted the moment it was done and began to haunt her ever since. This simply displays what Hollywood does to their stars and the pressure that they are under to keep their reputation. “Realism would ‘mingle with illusion and fantasy”(Gundle). Hollywood would not let their stars live a genuine life the way they would want to. Judy was not allowed to carry her own child because she knew that her career was over if she had. Society craved over the glamorized lifestyles these stars have when in reality they are treated like animals in animal testing labs, they use every part of them for the benefits of their business and when they can’t use the animal away they move on to the next one and destroy their life too. On August 26th, Norma Jean Baker signed a contract with 20th Century-Fox and her name was changed to Marilyn Monroe. The changing of the name symbolizes how once you are a cog in the machine called Hollywood you are leaving your old self and starting a new chapter that was created for you. Something that both Judy Garland and Marilyn Monroe have in common is that they both came from a bad childhood filled with family struggles, which entices the women to be a part of Hollywood and fall in love with the idea of leaving their old self and starting a new fresh beginning. In one incident, Marilyn Monroe had to divorce her husband. She had to divorce her husband because nudes that were featured in an issue of Playboy leaked and turned into a huge scandal. Monroe had to tell the public that they were intended when in reality they were not. Yankee baseball player, Joe DiMaggio wanted her to stop, yet Hollywood made it clear that if she were to stop she would be a nobody again. Monroe had to keep her glamorous sex symbol reputation up to continue her career. She had to choose what was best for the “new” her rather than what the Norma Jean Baker would have wanted to do. Later that year, Monroe was fired due to her erratic behavior and was sent to a psychiatric clinic. Within a few months, Marilyn Monroe was found dead in her Los Angeles bungalow with an empty bottle of sleeping pills next her. There were many theories about her death, but the reason that people though was the cause of her death was that she though that her 36 year old self had become too old an ugly to survive in Hollywood any longer. Monroe and Garland’s lives were both at risk due to the stardom and constant pressure of Hollywood Marilyn Monroe’s death was a critical incident in collective memory.
In Barbie Zelizer’s Article “Covering the Body: The Kennedy Assassination, The Media, and the shaping of Collective Memory”’s introduction talks about the meaning of a critical incident. Critical incidents are “’hot moments’ or events through which a society or culture assesses its significance”(Zelizer 4). “Monroe’s image is one of the most lasting and widely seen of any star in the twentieth century” (“Marilyn Monroe Biography"). Monroe’s suicide was a milestone in history ad was glorified. Many people remember where they were and what they were doing at that time. They can recall the Reporters’ voices when announcing the news, and showing the footage and pictures. Associated to the event is what governs the collective memory of society. She was the icon of entertainment in America and people still today try to pinpoint the cause of her death. Monroe was in Billy Joel’s song “We Didn’t Start the Fire” in his album Storm Front, which is about the top one hundred headline events from 1949-1989. Ultimately, it is the media that sets the scene for how celebrities will be remembered since they are what presents the news to the public. I was not from Marilyn’s’ time period but I know that she was gorgeous due to the pictures that the media have of
her. Growing up under the spotlight is certainty not an easy thing. Britney Spears grew up loving to sing. It was one of her passions as a child. She started as a mouseketeer in The All New Mickey Mouse Club singing at the age of eleven. By the age of sixteen, she was a pop star sensation. But that came along with many controversial acts such as dressing as a Catholic schoolgirl with her midriff exposed. “On one hand, Britney was the perfect picture of innocence, declaring herself a Virgin until marriage yet, on the other hand, she was sexually charged and provocative” (“Britney Spears Biography”). Britney Spears was known as the “Pop Princess”. Hollywood forced Britney to grow up faster with the media constantly fixed on her every move. Britney was once a typical teenager that was then turned into a mature highly sexualized adult. She then spiraled out of control. After her divorce from Federline she was put into rehab due to her excessive clubbing and drugs as well as shaving her head. A few years later, she was hospitalized for mental evaluation and was diagnosed with bipolar. Since then, Britney has kept building her empire up in a more positive, age appropriate, light. We also see this with Miley Cyrus, who grew up in Tennessee. Miley was just like Britney Spears in the sense that she had a passion for singing. Miley Cyrus was seen as a role model first on the TV show Hannah Montana that was aired on Disney Channel. This allowed her to come into everyone’s home as a teenager as well as a role model, while at the same time show off her love for singing and acting. However as she approached adulthood controversy started. She started to grow up and wanted to leave her innocent self behind. She came to dress more riskily and had inappropriate lyrics in her songs. She now has a new album titled “Bangerz” which is more of an electric pop style music, very different from her old style of music. Hollywood changed the country girl who was an idol to all little girls to the now untamable wild adult who promotes illegal substances, such as marijuana. Demi Lavato is another child star that started out on Barney and then went onto Disney. She was featured in Camp Rock and The Jonas Brothers. However, the pressures of Hollywood got the best of her when she checked herself into rehab to get treatment. Since Demi was eleven years old she had severe depression, anorexia, bulimia and cutting. Demi put all that negative energy into an album, which helped her heal. It was an album that was beneficial to all of her fans and showed her true colors and how to overcome what she was going through. Demi Lavato, Miley Cyrus and Britney Spears are all a few examples of present daystars that just wanted to follow their dreams of singing. Living under the spotlight all that time is a very hard thing, which caused Britney’s head shaving rampage, Demi’s depression, and Miley being dependent on drugs. The pressure to stand out, be unique, and to try to please everyone is not an easy job to do. Especially when you grow up in the harsh business controlled by Hollywood. Social media also plays a huge role in stars lives today, being called names on their instagram feeds or being on headlines can take a toll on one’s confidence. It may seem glamorous living in that world but once you are in it is hard to get out and if you do you might not be the same as when you first entered. Since the humble beginning of Hollywood to the glamorous empire it has become today, there is immense pressure put on the stars. Back then, Stars had to follow a strict plan to be liked by society. They had to be the ideal body weight has the ideal hairstyles and the ideal personality. The star was automatically changed when they entered the community down to their names. They are stripped from their beliefs and are created into something new and are told what to do. But then we start to see Hollywood accept people for who they are such as Clifton Webb, but still having an impact on him such as his appearance. Today, Producers do not have the same amount of power as they once did, like telling one of their stars to get an abortion, how they did to Judy. The Media is definitely more involved in stars lives today, and can put pressure on them in different ways. Such as using Photoshop and trying to get people to reach an idealistic body image, but stars can reach it because they have the money and tools to reach it. I sense that Hollywood has a big influence in our everyday lives to be able to live up to their glamorous life style, which has been like this since the very beginning of Hollywood. Media plays such a huge and important role in our lives. If we asked anyone about what they remember from the death of Marilyn Monroe they would say I heard it on the radio, or I read it in the newspaper, which are all outlets of media. Media surrounds us and it influences us more than we actually think. It is the root for people to have mental illnesses that are important to us, whether they are Demi Lovato or a cousin who starves herself just so she can look like Arianna Grande.
Florence Mills a Pioneer of The Silver Screen. Florence Mills never had a memorial in her own nation, but the tiny country of Grenada recently issued a stamp in her honor. It was part of a set as a tribute to pioneers of the silver screen. The stamp illustrated a poster from the Palace Theatre, the place to be for top vaudeville performances. Florence never actually made it to the big screen, but was the first black star, male or female, to headline at the Palace.
A man and woman, both soldiers, were killed in a helicopter accident in Fort Bragg, NC. The accident occurred due to an equipment malfunction that happened while the soldiers were doing maintenance work (“2 Soldiers Killed While Working on Helicopter” 7A). Meanwhile, in Texas, Karla Faye Tucker became the first woman to be executed in Texas in over 130 years. Tucker was accused of beating a man and woman to death. Although she pleaded for mercy, she was given no pity, for there was a 16-0 vote for her to be executed (Holmes 7A). In the medical world, there was a tremendous breakthrough in the treatment of AIDS. The number of patients with AIDS in the U.S. lowered 44%. This is largely due to the newest treatment of AIDS, which was benefiting all races and genders. Over 21,000 patients died of AIDS in 1996, but numbers plummeted to 12,000 by 1998 (Haney 7A). One of the most talked about happenings in the U.S. is the affair between Bill Clinton and Monica Lewinsky. Monica refused to confess to the famous affair that was brought to federal courts. The judges believed that Clinton had told her to keep quiet, so the 24 year-old ex-White House intern diligently obeyed (Yost
During the 60s through Esquire magazine covers, at that period all around the world was changing. Using the covers, George Lois would display messages that made the public feel the need to speak up against issues like racism, feminism, and the Vietnam War. He created impact, drawing the attention of the readers to pick up the magazines that displayed debatable images. Lois told Insight: Essentials that “It became an important part of not reflecting the culture but of helping to lead the culture.” The magazines displayed the history of this era as the world was changing. One of the magazine covers, that sparked a wake-up call to the nation, was one of simply words of a U.S soldier: “Oh my God-we hit a little girl.” This risk made the nation open their eyes to the war’s horr...
There are similarities and differences in how the authors of “American History” and “ TV Coverage of JFK’s Death Forged Mediums’ Role” use Kennedy’s assassination in their writing. The intended effect of “American History” was to entertain and show how TV news and news in general affects people. In contrast the intended effect of “Tv Coverage…” was to inform readers how John F. Kennedy's assassination affected the news. The author Joanne Ostrow and Judith Ortiz Cofer both use Kennedy’s assassination in their writing to explain how TV news affects people in a community.
Slowly she asked "Is anyone there?" as she walked down the dark deserted road. When she heard a loud sound she turned abruptly trying again "Hello?" Met with only silence she picked up here pace almost running down the dirt road. Her nerves had just began to calm when she heard "WRRRREEENNNNNRRRRRRR" as a chainsaw started behind her. Running she started looking behind her hoping that whoever it was, wouldn’t catch her. With her lack of concentration she tripped over her high heels and face plants into the dirt, giving the murderer a chance to catch up. Slowly he lowered the chainsaw and began cutting --CUT -- This is a common plot used in horror movies today. Movies have changed over the years. They were different five years ago, fifty years ago, and even a almost a century ago. Technologies have unthinkable things possible. They have allowed us to re-sink "the unsinkable ship." They have allowed us to see dinosaurs in all their brutal glory. We have seen imaginary creatures, only ever mentioned in stories brought to life. Movies have moved so far from the 1920's and 1930's. They have developed ideals, rules and even standards; but where did they begin? Did movies just fall out of the sky? Did they just come into being? No they began slowly, silently moving towards a new era, the era we today call "Pre-code Hollywood"
Media sensationalism is the first thought to come to mind when analyzing this piece from “Losing Matt Shepard”, by Beth Loffreda. A young man tied to a fence, sitting on the ground, beaten and found near death, would grab a reader’s attention, enough to shake our head and wonder what this world is coming to. A young man, slight and youthful in appearance, homosexual, tied to a fence “like a scarecrow” (238), beaten so badly that “the only spots not covered in blood were the tracks cleansed by his tears” (238), leaves the impression of stark brutality, meant to horrify the reader and leave an impression on an emotional level. Leaving an impression the media did, however, not an impression based on fact. The exaggerated journalism exercised in reporting the events of Matt Shepard is not uncommon; the media is catering to the preference of the masses. The public is the media’s platform and the more sensational the event is, the more we gravitate to it, regardless of the integrity of the piece.
Bonila, Denise M., and Levy, Beth, Eds. The Power of the Press. H. W. Wilson, 1999.
Technology is growing fast, as is the new generations branching off with new forms of media and devices that provide us with the news. News and politics have had difficulty when informing its public and community of the events that happen in their community. Now the media and news are growing to reform to the earlier generation’s way of receiving the news and events related to them, by using media and popular culture. According to Wodak, for politics to air and to engage and intrigue its public, it must need scandal, rumour, and speculation (45). The West Wing, is a clear example of where the news and politics enter into the world of entertainment, but still informing its audience of the political world and events they may face. I will be analyzing The West Wing television series in relation to the representations of gender, race, and politics with support from examples and scholarly sources.
Looking the historical moment we are living at, it is undeniable that the media plays a crucial role on who we are both as individuals and as a society, and how we look at the...
The whitewash days of the Kennedy period were over. The press was willing to examine and cross-examine. This was a significant departure from the mentality of the press the day Kennedy was assassinated and his alleged assassin incredibly unprotected and gunned down two days later. The country had changed significantly by the early seventies. The passive public was not quite so willing to be blindly led anymore. The press was now activist in nature. Archilbald Cox stated "the Watergate experience is the convincing evidence… of the ability of the American people to come together in times when abuses of political power appear and threaten our political system." The people were not willing to accept without question the proclamations of presidential press secretaries. In the process, the peoples' self-image had to change. They matured and of course were willing to challenge authority. This is something that was unheard of in the 1950's. The effect on our political institutions was dramatic...
The image has a huge effect in society. A celebrity’s image can characterize, shape and circulate societal myths in Hollywood. Marilyn Monroe was an American actress, singer, and model. People think her figure and beauty make her become a popular icon and sex symbol in the 1950s. When people talk about the name of Marilyn Monroe, a blonde beautiful sexy female's image will appear in people's minds. What has the beauty standard shown us through Marilyn Monroe in the mid-20th century? Besides the beauty what other things did she need in order for her to be famous at that time? Marilyn Monroe's status as a sex symbol has influenced many artists since her time, even though the beauty standard has been different since then. If we look at the celebrities today, we can find many imitators of Marilyn Monroe: Madonna, Britney Spears, Lindsay Lohan, and even Lady Gaga. They do this not only because of marketing and media needs, but also because people today still “worship” the image Monroe created. A half-century has passed since Marilyn Monroe's death, so why is she still relevant today? As time has passed, Marilyn Monroe's image is becoming even more meaningful and valuable. Think about the image she has created, the main point I want to study is: how does a woman who passed away at thirty-six years old, after starring in only a handful of movies, has such on the impact on women, especially young women, in the 21st century? To find the answer of how she has an impact on young women today will also show how some of the young celebrities today became successful.
With this newfound distrust, the media became extremely vigilant about reporting on anything that occurred in politics that would be of any interest to anyone and has played a deciding factor in the success and the failure of different political figures. An example of this would be President Bill Clinton's affair. Such extensive coverage of this public embarrassment was blown out of proportion relative to the size of other scandals of the past century that absorbed less media attention.
Media coverage of news events can be disseminated to the general public in any number of different ways and media biases often “reflects certain organizational and/or professional preferences or values” (Bennett 2011, 173). In fact, Lundman (2003) points out “that journalists assess the newsworthiness of homicides occurrences using the relative frequency of particular types of murders and how well specific murder occurrences mesh with stereotypical race and gender typifications (357).” In addition, Johnson (2012) felt that the real job of media was to “create a message that…grabs public attention (62).” In other words, can the media grab the public’s attention and hold it?
A notable example of inappropriate intrusion involved the deaths of Princess Diana and Dodi Fayed, who were killed on August 31 1997 in a high-speed car chase in Paris, France while being chased by the paparazzi. The death brought a lot of criticism to the media and its newsgathering techniques, especially those by the paparazzi. The media’s attention to celebrities has caused a loss of privacy and a skewed view on private and public issues for celebrities. This loss comes from the categorization of celebrities as public figures, meaning their every day lives are subject to an extensive scrutiny unlike an average person. The public thrives on the intrusion into the lives of celebrities because of their obsession with wanting to know every bit of gossip. The paparazzi fulfill this fixation by gathering the information that the public longs to consume.
Curran, J. and Gurevitch, M. (eds.) Mass Media and Society: fourth edition. Arnold, pp. 29-43.