British Masculinity in Transatlantic Cinema - by Carolyn Owen-King (Hardcover)

About the Book

"Through exploring transatlantic film history, this book uncovers the ways in which these men were presented in media and on screen, arguing that they carry with them, even in films made at the height of censorship, an appealing and attractive queerness. Owen-King expands on Eve Kosofsky Sedgewick's theory of homosocial/homosexual continuum and offer readings of film texts that use her theories to survey gender and sexual identities within Hollywood's Golden Era"--

Book Synopsis

British Masculinity in Transatlantic Cinemaexplores the Hollywood careers and stardom of British male actors who had fought in the first World War.

In an apparently incongruous development in the years after the armistice, some of the men who fought in Scottish regiments during World War I found some degree of career success in Hollywood's film industry, two of which included Ronald Colman and Basil Rathbone. Through exploring transatlantic film history, this book uncovers the ways in which these men were presented in media and on screen, arguing that they carry with them, even in films made at the height of censorship, an appealing and attractive queerness. Owen-King expands on Eve Kosofsky Sedgewick's theory of homosocial/homosexual continuum and offer readings of film texts that use her theories to survey gender and sexual identities within Hollywood's Golden Era.

Review Quotes

British Masculinity in Transatlantic Cinema is a fascinating and original study of British masculinity, as it was reimagined in Hollywood films. Employing gender theory, rich critical analysis, and archival research, it opens up new ways of studying and understanding important films and film stars.
Mark Glancy, Professor of Film History, Queen Mary University of London, UK

This stimulating new study brings together two themes - Anglo-American film culture and the cultural history of masculinities - in a highly original way. Carolyn Owen-King deftly combines extensive primary source research with nuanced readings of performance, demonstrating that there was much more to Colman and Rathbone's stardom than their most popular roles, Bulldog Drummond and Sherlock Holmes. British Masculinity in Transatlantic Cinema deserves to be afforded major intellectual currency as it prompts us to reconsider our appreciation of popular stardom during the golden age.
James Chapman, Professor of Film Studies, University of Leicester, UK

About the Author

Carolyn Owen-King is an independent researcher interested in twentieth century British and North American cultural history. Her research is focused mainly in the areas of star studies and fan cultures, gender representation in classical cinema, adaptation of literature to film, and theatre history.