Anita Ekberg
International Blonde
Edited by Richard Dyer, Tytti Soila and Ann-Kristin Wallengren
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Book Presentation:
Anita Ekberg was a major international star now chiefly remembered for her half-hour appearance in La dolce vita. She was a Swedish film star who worked extensively in the USA, Italy and elsewhere in Europe but never in Sweden. She was seen as a curvaceous blonde in the Marilyn Monroe mould whose roles and style were nothing like Monroe’s. She was celebrated or looked down on for her fabulous looks but never appreciated for her performance.
This collection looks at all these facets of Ekberg’s career, examining the nature of her star image and discussing her skills as actress and celebrity. It considers the perception of her body in different national contexts and genres and as she aged, the significance of casting, directors, dress and performance and the role of the press, class, ethnicity and her own agency in the production of this fascinating personality.
About the authors:
Richard Dyer is Professor Emeritus at King’s College London and professorial Fellow at St Andrews University. His books include La dolce vita (2017), Nino Rota (2010), White (1997), The Matter of Images (1993), Only Entertainment (Routledge 1992), Heavenly Bodies (1987), Stars (1979).Tytti Soila is Professor Emeritus at Stockholm University. She is co-editor and author of Now about all these women in the Swedish film industry (2023), Stellar encounters Stardom in Popular European Cinema (2009), Cinema of Scandinavia 24 Frames (2005), Att synliggöra det dolda(2004), Nordic National Cinemas (1998).Ann Kristin Wallengren is Professor in Film Studies at Lund University, Sweden. She is author and co-editor of Today’s Sounds for Yesterday’s Films: Making Music for Silent Cinema (2016), Den nya svenska filmen : kultur, kriminalitet & kakofoni (2014) and Welcome Home Mr Swanson. Swedish Emigrants and Swedishness in Film (2014).
Press Reviews:
For too long, Anika Ekberg was reduced to the image of a ‘blonde bombshell’ splashing ecstatically in Rome’s Trevi fountain under the appreciative gaze of Marcello Mastroianni in Fellini’s La dolce vita. This wonderful collection of essays gathered by Ann Kristin Wallengren, Richard Dyer and Tytti Soila finally brings out the complexity of Ekberg, the star and the woman – encompassing her triumphs and humiliations, her career, the subtlety of her acting and her importance as a truly international star. The book is a revelation and a must for anyone interested in the post-war film industry and in female stardom and celebrity. ― Ginette Vincendeau, Emeritus Professor in Film Studies at King’s College London
See the publisher website: Edinburgh University Press
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