Screening History (William E. Massey, Sr. Lectures in the History of American Civilization)

Vidal, Gore

ISBN 10: 0674795865 / ISBN 13: 9780674795860

Published by Cambridge, MA, U.S.A.: Harvard University Press, 1992, Cambridge, MA, U.S.A., 1992

About this Item

Hb. VG/VG. 1st. 96pp. Extremities book & Dj lightly rubbed; Dj extremities lightly scratched. Photos.

Seller Inventory # 041689

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Screening History (William E. Massey, Sr. Lectures in the History of American Civilization)
• Publisher: Cambridge, MA, U.S.A.: Harvard University Press, 1992, Cambridge, MA, U.S.A.
• Publication Date: 1992
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0674795865
• ISBN 13: 9780674795860
• Binding: Hb
• Edition: 1st.
• Condition: VG
• Dust Jacket Condition: VG

About this title

Synopsis

Gore Vidal saw his first talking picture in 1929 when he was four years old. In Screening History, Vidal intertwines fond recollections of films savored in the movie palaces of his Washington, D.C., boyhood with strands of autobiography and trenchant observations about American politics. At times poignant, often bitingly funny, this is Gore Vidal at his best.

Review

Witty and sweepingly disrespectful...Written versions of history are, in Vidal's opinion, no more to be trusted than movie versions, and a lot less memorable besides being a lot less fun...He relates history on the screen to its influence on, or by, the general concept of events, his personal experience, and his acerbic view of doings in Washington. Unadulterated Vidal and a small gem...On almost every page there is an observation worth admiring, whether it is about Hollywood and television, politics and history, or the paranoia and hypocrisy of the commercialized American dream. -- Herbert Mitgang "New York Times" includes Eudora Welty's wonderful "One Writer's Beginnings," screen to its influence on, or by, the general concept of events, his personal experience, and his acerbic view of doings in Washington. A delight from cover to cover...A thoroughly enjoyable memoir cum cultural and political analysis. -- Dave Wood "Minneapolis Star-Tribune" Vibrant...A reminiscence of Mr. Vidal's first 20 years (1925-1945), with a dual emphasis on the impact of films and of gossipy Washington politics on boy Gore...If the book belongs to a genre, it is the one that includes Eudora Welty's wonderful "One Writer's Beginnings," -- Michael Kammen "New York Times Book Review"