Spy Television » (New Edition)

WESLEY BRITTON earned his Ph.D. in American Literature from the University of North Texas. Since then he has taught college-level English in Texas, Oklahoma, and Pennsylvania, and has published poetry, book reviews, scholarly, encyclopedia entries, and newspaper columns in various books and periodicals.

A writer and college English teacher traces the evolution of television spy series over the past half-century from the early 1960s anti-communist propaganda spy shows to today's high-tech global-international espionage programs. The 14 chapters explore topics including the genre's ideological roots, cultural contexts, analysis of a wide range of programs and characters, and the future of TV espionage. Annotation ©2004 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR

Library Journal

An English professor who does freelance writing, Britton has produced a comprehensive guide to the many espionage-oriented television series that have aired in the United States from the early 1960s to the present. Clearly enamored of his subject, he provides near blow-by-blow descriptions of the shows' production aspects, including interesting details about casting, network politics, the demands of a television audience, production schedules, and the like. Britton also brings contemporary shows such as 24, Alias, La Femme Nikita, and The X-Files into historical context by comparing them with earlier shows like The Prisoner, I Spy, The Bionic Woman, and The Scarecrow and Mrs. King. Despite some occasionally clumsy writing, the final product offers a fascinating window into an understudied genre. The first entry in a new series on television, this work is recommended for academic libraries that support television and popular culture programs and public libraries where demand exists. Andrea Slonosky, Long Island Univ., Brooklyn, NY Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.

Acknowledgments

Introduction

Defining a Genre

The Roots of a Family Tree

Bond, Beatles, and Camp: The Men from U.N.C.L.E

More British than Bond: John Steed, The Avengers, and Feminist Role-Playing

Cold War Sports and Games: I Spy and Radical Politics

The Cold War and Existential Fables: Danger Man, Secret Agent, and The Prisoner

The Page and the Screen: The Saint and Robin Hood Spies

Interchangeable Parts: Missions: Impossible

Bond on the Prarie: From The Wild Wild West to the Secret Adventures of Jules Verne

Tongues in Cheek to Tongues Sticking Out: Get Smart and the Spoofing of a Genre

Also Rans and New Branches: Network Secret Agents from 1963-1980

Reagan, Le Carre, Clancy, Cynicism, and Cable: Down to Earth in the 1980s and 1990s

The Return of Fantasy and the Dark Nights of Spies: The X-Files, La Femme Nikita, and the New Millennium

Active and Inactive FILES: Alias, 24, The Agency and 21st Century Spies

Conclusion

The Past, Present, and Future of TV Espionage: Why Spies?

Chapter Notes

References