University of Kentucky UKnowledge Theses and Dissertations--English English 2018 “HE’LL JUST BE PAUL NEWMAN ANYWAY”: CINEMATIC CONTINUITY AND THE STAR IMAGE William Guy Spriggs University of Kentucky, [email protected] Author ORCID Identifier: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0913-3382 Digital Object Identifier: https://doi.org/10.13023/etd.2018.423 Right click to open a feedback form in a new tab to let us know how this document benefits ou.y Recommended Citation Spriggs, William Guy, "“HE’LL JUST BE PAUL NEWMAN ANYWAY”: CINEMATIC CONTINUITY AND THE STAR IMAGE" (2018). Theses and Dissertations--English. 82. https://uknowledge.uky.edu/english_etds/82 This Doctoral Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the English at UKnowledge. It has been accepted for inclusion in Theses and Dissertations--English by an authorized administrator of UKnowledge. For more information, please contact [email protected]. STUDENT AGREEMENT: I represent that my thesis or dissertation and abstract are my original work. Proper attribution has been given to all outside sources. I understand that I am solely responsible for obtaining any needed copyright permissions. I have obtained needed written permission statement(s) from the owner(s) of each third-party copyrighted matter to be included in my work, allowing electronic distribution (if such use is not permitted by the fair use doctrine) which will be submitted to UKnowledge as Additional File. I hereby grant to The University of Kentucky and its agents the irrevocable, non-exclusive, and royalty-free license to archive and make accessible my work in whole or in part in all forms of media, now or hereafter known. I agree that the document mentioned above may be made available immediately for worldwide access unless an embargo applies. I retain all other ownership rights to the copyright of my work. 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William Guy Spriggs, Student Dr. Pearl James, Major Professor Dr. Jill Rappoport, Director of Graduate Studies “HE’LL JUST BE PAUL NEWMAN ANYWAY”: CINEMATIC CONTINUITY AND THE STAR IMAGE _______________________________________ DISSERTATION _______________________________________ A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the College of Arts and Sciences at the University of Kentucky By William Guy Spriggs Fort Wayne, Indiana Director: Dr. Pearl James, Professor of English Lexington, Kentucky 2018 Copyright © William Guy Spriggs 2018 ABSTRACT OF DISSERTATION “HE’LL JUST BE PAUL NEWMAN ANYWAY”: CINEMATIC CONTINUITY AND THE STAR IMAGE Since performers first became credited for their on-screen work in the early twentieth century, stardom has been understood as a primary factor distinguishing cinema as a unique, discrete art form. Much of the work done by canonical film scholars emphasizes film as a continuous medium defined by relation, as well as the irreducible value of human presence in creating meaning that transcends the boundaries of film. These are important cornerstones of star studies, a subfield within film studies that interrogates how film performers accrue and project meaning and value. They also isolate continuity as a singular tool for developing approaches to understanding cultural and ideological value of film stars – determining why certain stars are such powerful commodities and addressing the deceptively elusive question of what they actually mean. Through careful inspection of the transactions between film production and culture, my dissertation – “He’ll Just Be Paul Newman Anyway: Film Continuity and the Star Image” – pursues two primary goals regarding the cultivation of stardom and our understanding of star persona. First, I reestablish the star image as a discrete force, informed by on-screen performances and off-screen biography but remaining distinct from both (following the framework of French film theorist Edgar Morin). I attempt to disentangle these figures, asserting star image – the intangible, ethereal collection of values, expectations, and investment constituted from both performer and character – as the central mechanism for interpreting human presence. Second, I explore the notion that narrow range of performance and on-screen consistency are more essential to developing stardom than the revelation of the performer’s actual self. This position applies both to the production of stars and to our critical understanding of them, creating compelling connections to central debates of film studies. In doing so, my goal is to reassert the star as the most valuable and definitive source of meaning in film. The combination of Paul Newman’s on-screen continuity, enduring persona, and career trajectory (rising to stardom during the fall of the studio system) makes him uniquely valuable for understanding the evolution of film stardom and encourages new perspective on the development and deployment of star image. Moreover, Newman is an ideal subject for investigating the star image as a discrete force and the function of range in its development. Through critical examination of his on-screen tendency to “go his own way,” I demonstrate the immense value stars can offer to our understanding of the moving image and surrounding culture(s). Moreover, in asserting star persona as a discrete force integral to interpreting the meaning of human presence in film, I also cultivate a contextual understanding of the rebel archetype in response to changing dominant cultural ideologies. In doing so, my work directly addresses valuable questions essential to and extending beyond film studies: why stardom is essential to defining film and understanding how it signifies, how star persona is accumulated and deployed in individual films and across a whole career, and what meanings are generated and revealed by the star as an projection of social values and ideals. KEYWORDS: Film Studies, Star Studies, Celebrity, Masculinity, Cultural Studies Multimedia Elements Used: JPEG (.jpg) _William Guy Spriggs_______________ _5 November 2018__________________ Date “HE’LL JUST BE PAUL NEWMAN ANYWAY”: CINEMATIC CONTINUITY AND THE STAR IMAGE By William Guy Spriggs _______________Pearl James_________________ Director of Dissertation _____________Jill Rappoport________________ Director of Graduate Studies __________5 November 2018______________ Date For Ashleigh and Ollie, my stars ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS There are many people I am indebted to for the invaluable support and direction they have provided me. I cannot thank all of you nearly enough, but I hope I have made you all proud. I am grateful to my chair Pearl James for helping me to better understand the demands of quality scholarship and for refining my ideas in ways that will shape all my future work. I owe the conception of this project to Virginia Blum, who recognized my passion for film studies and said I had to write about Paul Newman. Armando Prats empowered me as a reader of film, encouraging me to trust myself and building my confidence as a scholar and teacher. My film literacy was fruitfully expanded by Jeff Peters, whose perspective helped me see the value of my work. I will always appreciate Susan Larson for her openness and warmth, as well as for fostering my work as a dedicated mentor and educator. I am also thankful for my family and friends, who offered equally valuable moral support. My daughter Olympia has been an irreplaceable writing partner and research assistant, and provided much needed levity throughout the dissertating process. My parents and siblings offered encouragement and belief in my abilities – as they’ve done my entire life – even when they didn’t fully understand what I was doing. I was always uplifted by commiserating with my sister Barclay, a promising academic who consistently expressed unwavering confidence in my capabilities. My wonderful and talented peers at the University of Kentucky read my work and listened to my ideas at length, offering insights that figure throughout this project. Lastly and most importantly, this project could never exist without my incredible wife Ashleigh Hardin, who inspires me daily and whose brilliance and thoughtfulness I can only hope to equal. You are my silver spring. iii TABLE OF CONTENTS Acknowledgements……………………………………………………………………………………………. iii List of Figures…………………………………………………………………………………………………...… v Introduction: Cinematic Continuity and the Star Image………………………………………… 1 Chapter One: He Could Develop a Classic Character: Reading On-Screen Presence in the Absence of Star Persona………………………………………………………………………………. 20 Chapter Two: I Guess I Gotta Go My Own Way: Aesthetic and Ideological Continuity in Film Stardom………………………………………………………………………………………………… 66 Chapter Three: I Always Thought I Was Gonna Grow Up to Be a Hero: Beyond the Maximized Star……………………………………………………………………………………………….. 106 Conclusion: Beyond the Inescapable Star……………………………………………………….… 156 References…………………………………………………………………………………………………….... 163 Vita………………………………………………………………………………………………………………...