Celebrity Culture and Crime


Book Description

In the 21st century celebrities and celebrity culture thrives. This book explores the much noted but little analyzed relationship between celebrity and crime. Criminals who become celebrities and celebrities who become criminals are examined, drawing on Foucault's theory of governance.




Celebrities and Crime


Book Description

Examines instances where celebrities have been involved in crimes, either as victims or perpetrators.




Celebrity Curse


Book Description

Why do so many Celebrities die young from prescription overdoses? The tabloids and the news media have raised so many questions about Celebrity overdose deaths that this book will examine what causes it. Also we examine why other Celebrity deaths not connected to overdoses go unsolved. Then we examine how the Stalking of the Stars by obsessed fans can be so disruptive of a Celebrities life. On other occasions the Celebrity may be the target of an extortion attempt based on risqué photos that may have been taken years earlier. We examine the lives of the following celebrities: MARILYN MONROE, ANNA NICOLE SMITH, MICHAEL JACKSON, JOHN BELUSHI, NATALIE WOOD, THELMA TODD, CAMERON DIAZ, TERESA SALDANA, REBECCA SCHAEFFER, MADONNA, MEL GIBSON, CATHERINE ZETA JONES, JOHN CUSACK, STEVEN SPIELBERGThe purpose of this book is to inform the public that there is a high price one has to pay if one wants to live the Celebrity life style. In some ways the non-Celebrity life may be less stressful and one can better 'smell the roses' as one travels through life.




Natural Born Celebrities


Book Description

Jeffrey Dahmer. Ted Bundy. John Wayne Gacy. Over the past thirty years, serial killers have become iconic figures in America, the subject of made-for-TV movies and mass-market paperbacks alike. But why do we find such luridly transgressive and horrific individuals so fascinating? What compels us to look more closely at these figures when we really want to look away? Natural Born Celebrities considers how serial killers have become lionized in American culture and explores the consequences of their fame. David Schmid provides a historical account of how serial killers became famous and how that fame has been used in popular media and the corridors of the FBI alike. Ranging from H. H. Holmes, whose killing spree during the 1893 Chicago World's Fair inspired The Devil in the White City, right up to Aileen Wuornos, the lesbian prostitute whose vicious murder of seven men would serve as the basis for the hit film Monster, Schmid unveils a new understanding of serial killers by emphasizing both the social dimensions of their crimes and their susceptibility to multiple interpretations and uses. He also explores why serial killers have become endemic in popular culture, from their depiction in The Silence of the Lambs and The X-Files to their becoming the stuff of trading cards and even Web sites where you can buy their hair and nail clippings. Bringing his fascinating history right up to the present, Schmid ultimately argues that America needs the perversely familiar figure of the serial killer now more than ever to manage the fear posed by Osama bin Laden since September 11. "This is a persuasively argued, meticulously researched, and compelling examination of the media phenomenon of the 'celebrity criminal' in American culture. It is highly readable as well."—Joyce Carol Oates




Popular Crime


Book Description

Originally published: 2011. With new addendum.




Listverse.com's Ultimate Book of Bizarre Lists


Book Description

FREAKS OF NATURE, ODD CRIMES, SHOCKING DEATHS, DEVASTATING DISASTERS, BLOOD-CURDLING RITES, CRAZY CONSPIRACIES & MUCH, MUCH MORE -Gruesome Torture Devices -Mass Hysteria Outbreaks -Unbelievable Miniatures -Disturbingly Scary Clowns -Outer Space Mysteries -Astonishing Aphrodisiacs -Disgusting Ancient Jobs -Spooky Sports Curses -World-Famous Penises -Mail-Order-Bride Shockers -Brutal Pope Deaths -Outrageous Wedding Locales -Grossest Edible Animals -Appalling Religious Practices




Lord Byron and Scandalous Celebrity


Book Description

This book examines the relationship between Lord Byron's life and work, and the Regency culture of scandal.




Hollywood Godfather


Book Description

Hollywood Godfather is Gianni Russo's over-the-top memoir of a real-life mobster-turned-actor who helped make The Godfather a reality, and his story of life on the edge between danger and glamour. Gianni Russo was a handsome 25-year-old mobster with no acting experience when he walked onto the set of The Godfather and entered Hollywood history. He played Carlo Rizzi, the husband of Connie Corleone, who set her brother Sonny—played by James Caan—up for a hit. Russo didn't have to act—he knew the mob inside and out: from his childhood in Little Italy, where Mafia legend Frank Costello took him under his wing, to acting as a messenger for New Orleans mob boss Carlos Marcello during the Kennedy assassination, to having to go on the lam after shooting and killing a member of the Colombian drug cartel in his Vegas club. Along the way, Russo befriended Frank Sinatra, who became his son's godfather, and Marlon Brando, who mentored his career as an actor after trying to get Francis Ford Coppola to fire him from The Godfather. Russo had passionate affairs with Marilyn Monroe, Liza Minelli, and scores of other celebrities. He went on to become a producer and starred in The Godfather: Parts I and II, Seabiscuit, Any Given Sunday and Rush Hour 2, among many other films. Hollywood Godfather is a no-holds-barred account of a life filled with violence, glamour, sex—and fun.




Punishment Without Crime


Book Description

A revelatory account of the misdemeanor machine that unjustly brands millions of Americans as criminals. Punishment Without Crime offers an urgent new interpretation of inequality and injustice in America by examining the paradigmatic American offense: the lowly misdemeanor. Based on extensive original research, legal scholar Alexandra Natapoff reveals the inner workings of a massive petty offense system that produces over 13 million cases each year. People arrested for minor crimes are swept through courts where defendants often lack lawyers, judges process cases in mere minutes, and nearly everyone pleads guilty. This misdemeanor machine starts punishing people long before they are convicted; it punishes the innocent; and it punishes conduct that never should have been a crime. As a result, vast numbers of Americans -- most of them poor and people of color -- are stigmatized as criminals, impoverished through fines and fees, and stripped of drivers' licenses, jobs, and housing. For too long, misdemeanors have been ignored. But they are crucial to understanding our punitive criminal system and our widening economic and racial divides. A Publishers Weekly Best Book of 2018




Crimes of Famous & Infamous Criminals


Book Description

Infamous Criminals Caught in True Crime Cases "A fascinating read that will haunt you, that will keep you up at night.” ―Aphrodite Jones, author of Cruel Sacrifice and host of the ID series, True Crime with Aphrodite Jones #1 New Release in Mass Murder Biographies & Memoirs Actors, musicians, TV personalities, and other public figures in the spotlight aren’t always who they appear to be. You might be surprised by just how many have led nefarious, double lives, and have become infamous criminals! Power, status, and a rich lifestyle aren’t barriers to criminal behavior. Yes, people from all walks of life commit crimes. But the people featured here are not your typical neighbors or subway passengers—they are household names and Hollywood stars. Get the stories behind these public figures, both contemporary and historical, who have traveled down the murky pathway toward criminal activity. After committing their crimes, the world may have kept on turning, but their legacies as infamous criminals remain strong worldwide. This book offers a fascinating assortment of true crime cases from around the world and from various time frames. Like the previous anthologies in The Best New True Crime Stories series, this volume contains all new and original nonfiction accounts penned by international writers from across the literary spectrum, including true crime, crime fiction, and journalism. Inside, you’ll find: True crime cases that would make any true crime addict scream in delightful horror The stories of Hollywood stars and famous criminals who went down the wrong path Encounters that feature the cases of infamous criminals like Robert Blake, Jimmy Savile, Fatty Arbuckle and more If you enjoyed Mitzi’s last book in her series, The Best New True Crime Stories: Unsolved Crimes & Mysteries, and books like American Predator, and The Family Next Door, then you’ll love The Best New True Crime Stories: Crimes of Famous & Infamous Criminals.