For nearly two centuries, Americans have embraced the Western like no other artistic genre. Creators and consumers alike have utilized this story form in literature, painting, film, radio and television to explore questions of national identity and purpose. Westerns: The Essential Collection comprises the Journal of Popular Film and Television's rich and longstanding legacy of scholarship on Westerns with a new special issue devoted exclusively to the genre. This collection examines and analyzes the evolution and significance of the screen Western from its earliest beginnings to...

From its premiere in 1999, "The Sopranos "captivated viewers with its easily relatable protagonist who has troubles at work and home, and went on to be one of the most critically successful shows in television history. By demonstrating that TV could be at once artistic and profitable, complex and engaging, edifying and entertaining, the series also redefined the prime-time drama. In this volume, author Gary R. Edgerton delves into the entire run of "The Sopranos," integrating the existing scholarly literature, while also going much further than any previous source in exploring the series'...

Since premiering in July 2007, Mad Men has won many awards and been syndicated across the globe. Its imprint is evident throughout contemporary culture--from TV advertisements and magazine covers to designer fashions and online debate. Its creator, Matthew Weiner, a former executive producer on The Sopranos, has again created compelling, complex characters, this time in the sophisticated, go-go world of Madison Avenue of the 1960s, with smoking, drinking, and the playing out of prejudices and anxieties of an era long neglected in popular culture. As Edgerton and a host of...