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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

Serial murderers --- Crime in popular culture --- Serial murders in mass media. --- Fame. --- Celebrity --- Renown --- Glory --- Mass media --- Popular culture --- Multiple murderers --- Repetitive murderers --- Serial killers --- Murderers --- Public opinion. --- Serial murders in mass media --- Fame --- Public opinion --- Serial murderers - United States - Public opinion --- Crime in popular culture - United States --- serial killers, fame, celebrity, press, transgression, evil, murder, violence, masculinity, john wayne gacy, ted bundy, jeffrey dahmer, popular culture, horror, silence of the lambs, x files, prostitute, lesbian, aileen wuornos, gay, queer, lgbt, devil white city, 1893 worlds fair, hh holmes, nonfiction, history, biography, mass media, criminal, terrorism, bin laden, fear, consumerism, jack ripper, fbi, hollywood, normality, monstrosity, monster, film, television, true crime.

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Congreve, William,

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Why has crime fiction become a global genre? How do writers use crime fiction to reflect upon the changing nature of crime and policing in our contemporary world? This book argues that the globalization of crime fiction should not be celebrated uncritically. Instead, it looks at the new forms and techniques writers are using to examine the crimes and policing practices that define a rapidly changing world. In doing so, this collection of essays examines how the relationship between global crime, capitalism, and policing produces new configurations of violence in crime fiction – and asks whether the genre can find ways of analyzing and even opposing such violence as part of its necessarily limited search for justice both within and beyond the state. .

Literature. --- Comparative literature. --- Literature, Modern --- Transnational crime. --- Contemporary Literature. --- Comparative Literature. --- Transnational Crime. --- 20th century. --- 21st century. --- Globalization in literature. --- Detective and mystery stories --- History and criticism. --- Literature, Modern-20th century. --- Multinational crime --- Transborder crime --- Crime --- Comparative literature --- Literature, Comparative --- Philology --- History and criticism --- Literature, Modern—20th century. --- Literature, Modern—21st century.

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Zombie Talk offers a concise, interdisciplinary introduction and deep analytical set of theoretical approaches to help readers understand the phenomenon of zombies in contemporary and modern culture. With essays that combine Humanities and Social Science methodologies, the authors examine the zombie through an array of cultural products from different periods and geographical locations: films ranging from White Zombie (1932) to the pioneering films of George Romero, television shows like AMC's The Walking Dead, to literary offerings such as Richard Matheson's I am Legend (1954) and Seth Grahame-Smith's Pride, Prejudice and Zombies (2009), among others.

Culture --- United States --- Communication. --- Film genres. --- Democracy. --- Sociology. --- Mass media. --- Cultural and Media Studies. --- Media and Communication. --- Genre. --- American Culture. --- Cultural Theory. --- Media Research. --- Study and teaching. --- Zombies in motion pictures. --- Zombies in literature. --- Zombies in popular culture. --- Zombies. --- Popular culture. --- Globalization --- Social aspects. --- Culture, Popular --- Mass culture --- Pop culture --- Popular arts --- Zombis --- Communication --- Intellectual life --- Mass society --- Recreation --- Dead --- Popular culture --- Motion pictures --- United States-Study and teaching. --- Culture-Study and teaching. --- Genre films --- Genres, Film --- Motion picture genres --- Communication, Primitive --- Mass communication --- Sociology --- Self-government --- Political science --- Equality --- Representative government and representation --- Republics --- Plots, themes, etc. --- United States—Study and teaching. --- Culture—Study and teaching. --- Social theory --- Social sciences