Inside the Hollywood Fan Magazine

A History of Star Makers, Fabricators and Gossip Mongers
David L. Wolper Center, USC Libraries

Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday : Thursday, April 29, 2010 - Friday, October 1, 2010

University Park Campus
Doheny Memorial Library
David L. Wolper Center

Free


Charting the fan magazine, from the golden years to the decline into provocative headlines and titillation.

The fan magazine has often been viewed simply as a publicity tool, a fluffy exercise in self-promotion by the film industry. But as an arbiter of good and bad taste, as a source of knowledge, and as a gateway to the fabled land of Hollywood and its stars, the American fan magazine represents a fascinating and indispensable chapter in journalism and popular culture. This exhibition covers the medium’s rise and fall, from the launch of Motion Picture Story and Photoplay in 1911 to the decline in the 1960s.