The Fifties
Resources for History Workshop, the Fifties. Professor Rachel Devlin
Websites
Books
Keepers of the flame NFL films and the rise of sports media by
NFL Films changed the way Americans view football. Keepers of the Flame: NFL Films and the Rise of Sports Media traces the subsidiary's development from a small independent film production company to the marketing machine that Sports Illustrated named "perhaps the most effective propaganda organ in the history of corporate America." Drawing on research at the NFL Films Archive and the Pro Football Hall of Fame and interviews with media pioneer Steve Sabol and others, Travis Vogan shows how NFL Films has constructed a consistent, romanticized, and remarkably visible mythology for the National Football League. The company packages football as a visceral and dramatic sequence of violent, beautiful, graceful, and heroic gridiron battles. Historically proven formulas for presentation--such as the dramatic voiceovers once provided by John Facenda's baritone, the soaring scores of Sam Spence's rousing background music, and the epic poetry found in Steve Sabol's scripts--are still used today. From the Vincent Price-narrated Strange but True Football Stories to the currently running series Hard Knocks, NFL Films distinguishes the NFL from other sports organizations and from other media and entertainment. Vogan tells the larger story of the company's relationship with and vast influence on our culture's representations of sport, the expansion of sports television beyond live game broadcasts, and the emergence of cable television and Internet sports media. Keepers of the Flame: NFL Films and the Rise of Sports Media presents sports media as an integral facet of American popular culture and NFL Films as key to the transformation of professional football into the national obsession commonly known as America's Game.
Call Number: RUonlineISBN: 0252079914Publication Date: 2014-02-12
In its own image : how television has transformed sports by Call Number: Alexander, Carr, Douglass, Dana, Robeson GV742.3.R33 1984ISBN: 002925700X
Sports on Television by
Television has always augmented its dramatic and variety programming with sports. After covering wrestling and boxing matches for several years, ABC added the hugely popular Roller Derby between 1949 and 1951, and later, college and pro football. Today, there is a multitude of pay and cable networks devoted exclusively to baseball, football, golf, hockey, tennis, ice-skating, and auto racing. Rather than focusing on live sports broadcasts, however, this book chronicles the history of sports-themed comedies and dramas, to see how our national fictions have affected our authentic sports experiences, and vice versa. Sports dominate the television landscape today, and still the demand for more is so great that pay and cable networks continue to find funding and success, even when devoted exclusively to a single sport. But this is really nothing new: television has always augmented its dramatic and variety programming with sports. Live sports have had a tremendous impact on what we see on television, and on how we see it. Rather than focusing on live sports broadcasts, however, this book takes a critical look at sports-themed comedies and dramas, to see how our authentic sports affect our national fictions as well. From the character studies that supplement Olympic coverage, to nightly highlight reels, to reality programming on ESPN, sports both echo and help shape the myths that pervade our culture. "Sports on Television" covers the changing relationship between live sports broadcasts and television dramas, as well as the important technological developments and cultural shifts that have changed the way we view the reality of sports. In 1949, after covering wrestling and boxing matches for several years, ABC added the hugely popular Roller Derby, and later moved on to college and pro football, where humble beginnings have since developed into a national obsession. In the early sixties Jimmy Stewart played a disgraced baseball player in "Flashing Spikes"-which was also one of the rare ventures into television for veteran director John Ford. On HBO the Yankees have been the subject of both "61*" - about Roger Maris's quest to top Babe Ruth's home run record - and "The Bronx Is Burning," about the 1977 Yankees team. And there have been sports-themed TV sitcoms as well, such as "Sports Night," Aaron Sorkin's critically lauded but commercially unsuccessful project, which preceded his work on "The West Wing." Meanwhile "American Gladiators" a strange blend of canned programming and authentic athletic endeavor that in effect puts television audiences in an arena with what amounts to professional athletes is quickly becoming one of the most popular shows on primetime. Here, Marill gives due time to all of these unique projects."
Call Number: RUonlilneISBN: 1282420712Publication Date: 2008-01-01
The Use of Sports to Promote the American Way of Life During the Cold War by
This work investigates the use of sport in the first two decades of the Cold War to resist Communism by strengthening the American Way of Life. Each of the Cold War's key players used athletics as a means of advancing political ideologies. The book also evaluates the gains and losses of minorities in this era.
Call Number: RUonlineISBN: 0773416994Publication Date: 2008-04-29
Mavericks, Money, and Men: The AFL, Black Players, and the Evolution of Modern Football by
The American Football League, established in 1960, was innovative both in its commitment to finding talented, overlooked players--particularly those who played for historically black colleges and universities--and in the decision by team owners to share television revenues. In Mavericks, Money and Men, football historian Charles Ross chronicles the AFL's key events, including Buck Buchanan becoming the first overall draft pick in 1963, and the 1965 boycott led by black players who refused to play in the AFL-All Star game after experiencing blatant racism. He also recounts how the success of the AFL forced a merger with the NFL in 1969, which arguably facilitated the evolution of modern professional football. Ross shows how the league, originally created as a challenge to the dominance of the NFL, pressured for and ultimately accelerated the racial integration of pro football and also allowed the sport to adapt to how African Americans were themselves changing the game.
Call Number: RUonlineISBN: 1439913080Publication Date: 2016-04-29
Sports capitlism: The Foreign Business of American Professional Leagues by Call Number: RUonlineISBN: 1138620653Publication Date: 2017See chapter on National Football League.
