Primer of Visual Literacy

Customer Reviews:

Great, if dated, information source.......1998-05-15

This is a wonderful book that brings understanding to visual/cognitive procedures that are usually assumed to be more instinctive than evident.

It would be nice to have this classic updated to include form and media from the 20-odd years that have passed since it was published

Average customer rating:
Primer of Visual Literacy
Donis A. Dondis
Manufacturer: MIT Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000K7YGCQ

Average customer rating:
PRIMER OF VISUAL LITERACY
DONIS A. DONDIS
Manufacturer: The MIT Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000OR9FD2

Average customer rating:
A Primer of Visual Literacy
Donis A. Dondis
Manufacturer: MIT Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000K9YVUQ

Book Description

Tamura arrives in Takeshi's place to receive Rin's plans for the Tokyo Tower renovation. To convince Tamura to take the situation seriously, he breaks a few of Tamura's bones. Haruhiko's bond with Tamura causes him to feel Tamura's pain, and suddenly he finds himself teleported to the scene in time to see Rin leaving. Later, Rin kidnaps Haruhiko, teleporting him to a rainy forest where a horrible truth is revealed.

Customer Reviews:

One of my old-time favorites.......2003-12-02

I saw the six episode OAV for Please Save My Earth long ago, fan subs and all. The series immediately captured my heart, and has been one of my all-time favorites for years. It's truly masterful storytelling, and the first volume is too hilarious for words ^^

Since I find the synopsis provided by the site unstatysfying, I'll help you out. Alice is a really shy, passive girl that just moved to Tokyo from far-off Hokkaido. She has an odd gift for communicating with plants and animals, so the urban setting doesn't thrill her much. To top things off, she's not fitting in at school, and her bratty (and cruel!) seven year old neighbor, Kobayashi Rin, torments her constantly. She ends up overhearing an (coughcough) *odd* conversation between classmate Ogura Jinpachi and his (coughcough) *friend* Nishikiori Issei. Alice, embarrassed to no end, runs off, but not before she steps on a leaf, notifying them of her presence. Later, Alice takes Rin to the zoo, where she runs into these two again. In an effort to clear up the misunderstanding, Jinpachi takes Alice and co. to a nearby coffee shop and begins to explain their situation. Turns out, he and his buddy Issei have been having dreams in a common setting since middle school, involving the same people and times. In this dream life, they are alien scentists living on a moon base, studying the Earth they adore from afar. Alice, fascinated by their story, is swept up in the magic of it all. But when an accident occurs, and feelings are running amok (as should happen in the shoujo manga world), Alice finds herself wrapped up in this "story" far more than she could have ever guessed...

Saki Hiwatari is truly a master of crafting a story and it's characters. Issei is my favorite because I'm in a situation so similar to his, I can truly relate to it. Her characters are so real, and the story is so magical and compelling. It takes some practice remembering all the names (Shion Mokuren Gyokuran Enju Shushuran Hiiragi Shukaido, say THAT 5 times fast!), but it's really easy to get into once you get the hang of it. PLEASE don't let the old school art deter you (PSME is from the 80's, after all...), it's really charming in it's own way, and it improves as Hiwatari-san gets closer to her characters.

For fans of the old OAVs- READ THIS. It has more comedy and more filler, and it actually FINISHES THE STORY!! The 6 OAVs could not possibly convey all that happens in this manga (spanning 20 plus volumes!!). This is a must-read, you heard it straight from the Otaku's mouth.

Book Description

Challenging conventional scholarship placing the origins of film noir in postwar Hollywood, Sheri Chinen Biesen finds the genre's roots firmly planted in the political, social, and material conditions of Hollywood during the war. After Pearl Harbor, America and Hollywood experienced a sharp cultural transformation that made horror, shock, and violence not only palatable but preferable. Hard times necessitated cheaper sets, fewer lights, and fresh talent; censors as well as the movie-going public showed a new tolerance for sex and violence; and female producers experienced newfound prominence in the industry.

Biesen brings prodigious archival research, accessible prose, and imaginative insights to both well-known films noir of the wartime period -- The Maltese Falcon, The Big Sleep, and Double Indemnity -- and others often overlooked or underrated -- Scarlet Street, Ministry of Fear, Phantom Lady, and Stranger on the Third Floor.

Customer Reviews:

Tantalizing Theory.......2006-09-27

Yes, Shari Chinen Biesen has detonated a landmine in the field of film noir studies with her contention that, far from being a postwar movement, noir is totally tied up with actual conditions of the war being felt and fought during Hollywood studio production; so we might come to see the heyday of film noir as not the release of OUT OF THE PAST, nor any of the location-dominated "March of Time" inspired docudramas, but much earlier on, with the filming of THIS GUN FOR HIRE with Alan Ladd and Veronica Lake.

She invites us to attend to the way WWII scared the daylights out of Los Angeles and curtailed social activity through a literal blackout in which the previously iconic klieglights were darkened "for the duration," while West Coast citizens and government officials and conspiracy theorists worried about how soon the Japanese would attack southern California by bomber or submarine or from within.

Secondarily the arrival of so many talented artists from Nazi-dominated Europe gave film a darker cast, both in front of the camera and behind. She points to STRANGER ON THE THIRD FLOOR, THE MALTESE FALCON, PHANTOM LADY, and DOUBLE INDEMNITY as beneficaries of this process. With the top male stars in uniform, like Gable, Jimmy Stewart, Robert Taylor, the studios had to improvise and invent a new sort of cinema, one in which their female stars would henceforward be paired with freaks--old men, foreign men, little boys--the refuse of the draft. This was a time when an actor like Albert Dekker, Orson Welles, Peter Lorre, Laird Cregar, George Sanders, could dreeam of Hollywood stardom; when super short actors like Alan Ladd were suddenly magnified; when gay actors who'd been declared unfit for military service could become huge box office draws, their heterosexuality reinscribed by press flacks; and older men found their stardom artificially extended by a decade or more (William Powell, Ronald Colman, guys like that.) A few remaining tall, handsome, young and heterosexual men remained employable--John Wayne, Ronald Reagan, becoming stars no little thanks to the vacuum around them. And they were talented too, of course.

And women moved behind the camera too, as editors, producers, writers: Joan Harrison, Catherine Tunney, Harriet Parsons, Virginia van Upp, Leigh Brackett. As BLACKOUT progresses towards the end of the war in 1945, we relive a strange moment in history in which Hollywood once again hardened itself for the invasion--the re-entry into their midst of all the returning vets, stars, writers, directors and miscellaneous personnel--who would put these trends on fast track and bring them outdoors.

Thorough, detailed, insightful and scholarly.......2006-09-14

"Blackout" is subtitled "World War II and the Origins of Film Noir," and Sheri Chinen Biesen, an assistant professor of radio, television and film studies at Rowan University, delivers the goods in this scholarly book. At the end of World War II, a large backlog of American films suddenly became available overseas. The French, seeing these films for the first time "all at once" instead of over a period of years, noticed a "dark" trend in them that had not been especially obvious to their American producers. French critics coined the term "film noir" to describe what they saw as virtually a new genre in filmmaking.

Films noir typically (but not exclusively) featured hard-boiled private detectives, alluring but deadly "femmes fatale," stories told in flashbacks, complex plots, unconventional camera angles and stark black-and-white photography. Many of them involved crimes gone wrong, double- and triple-crosses, murder and mayhem, and the nastier side of human relationships. "Blackout" shows how these characteristics arose from the political, social, cultural and material conditions that existed in America during World War II. For example, films noir are "dark" because: a) lights were in short supply, b) power was rationed, and c) the West Coast (where most films during the War were made) was blacked out nightly because of the fear of Japanese submarine attacks. Many film noir stories took place at night, because the Government prohibited daytime photography that could accidentally include defense installations--thus eliminating most of the favored movie-making locations in Southern California. Relationships between men, serving overseas in combat, and women, who now did many of the previously male-dominated jobs on the Home Front, changed during the War, and films noir could not help but reflect these changes.

One of the most fascinating aspects of film production in World War II was the interaction of the movie studios with the Production Code Administration (PCA). "Blackout" describes in detail how the PCA enthusiastically carried out its "responsibility" of censoring screenplays that the studios presented to it in order to obtain the important "seal of approval." For example, the PCA banned "excessive drinking...references to sex, suggestive dancing, [and] any condoning of divorce..." from the screenplay for "Phantom Lady." This is just one very minor example. One wonders not only how films made under the heavy hand of PCA censorship could be very good (which many are), but indeed how any meaningful films could possibly have been made at all.

"Blackout" covers the evolution of film noir trends in great depth. It focuses on genre classics such as "Double Indemnity," "This Gun For Hire," "The Postman Always Rings Twice," "Murder, My Sweet" and "Laura," but it also covers many other films. The text is detailed, readable and thoroughly footnoted, although I did find it somewhat repetitive in parts. For example, the point about location filming restrictions is similarly made many times. "Blackout" may be heavy going in some places for readers with just a casual interest in the subject, but it is nevertheless an excellent primer on the development of a uniquely American film style.

A historical and theoretical study informed by careful primary research.......2005-12-10

This volume stands out as one of, if not the, best book in English on film noir, a movement previously largely defined mostly through stylistic analysis and psychoanalytic interpretation. It differs from traditional approaches, offering background which the other books fail to include. By relying on historical sources and context, Biesen indicates noir's rise with the social and most particularly production circumstances brought about by World War II. None of this has been treated before, in any detail, and many of her points are original (such as the impact of realism on film noir). Demonstrating how actual wartime life and daily constraints led to the genre will be one of the ways this book will be important for historians of all types for this era and its culture. The book is simultaneously accessible yet sophisticated, vital and engaging, and is written to attract the widest possible audience.
The primary research mines lodes of information too often overlooked in film studies, demonstrating the manner in which such sources as censorship and studio publicity may enhance a critical and theoretical examination. Biesen demonstrates a familiarity with the films and supporting documentation which are the source of the book's assertions. Unlike so many studies marked by excessive theoretical speculation and cursory historical research, this book combines a wide range of examples with a determination to remain rooted in the evidence they offer.
Biesen merges close interpretation of individual films, production history, censorship records, publicity, critical response, audience reception, the star system, industry history, and genre analysis. Most studies use only two or three of these possibilities, and the author is to be commended for the depth and breadth of research.
Endemic of this exhaustive research is the usage of reviews beyond Variety and the New York Times, the indexed, reprinted journals which are as far as most studies go--although neither offer representative reviews. Few scholars have mined such treasures as the film pressbooks, especially with such fruitful results.
So too, Biesen's arguments have been carefully thought through; for instance, I was pleased to see the connections between noir and the espionage genre made, similar genres whose relation is too often overlooked. The role of female executives in producing noir was surprising. The linkage between realism and noir was a brilliant insight, and a case convincingly made by the author, one which will profoundly change conceptions of the genre. The relevance of HUAC in ending noir was also enlightening.
I was relieved to see, too, that the author knows to interpret documents, not simply taking them at face value. For instance, noting when filmmakers blithely disregarded censorship instructions will change conceptions of the role of censors.
I strongly and without reservation recommend this book.

Outstanding. Highly Recommended. Excellent Book........2005-10-30

Outstanding. Highly Recommended. Excellent Book. A fascinating, engaging, innovative and original work. A fine account of film noir and 1940s Hollywood filmmaking, film censorship and propaganda, and wartime conditions in America's movie capital during World War II. Ample noir stories of Los Angeles, Raymond Chandler, Humphrey Bogart, James M. Cain, Billy Wilder, Fritz Lang, Alan Ladd, Peter Lorre, Howard Hawks with hardboiled crime, venetian blinds, swirling cigarette smoke and smoldering seductive femme fatales like black widow Barbara Stanwyck, Veronica Lake and Rita Hayworth. A rich provocative study. Terrific and enjoyable read for film buffs, cineastes, film critics, movie fans, industry insiders, cultural historians, researchers and cinema scholars, and an insightful and compelling look at the unexplored history of film noir and wartime Hollywood in the 1940s. Biesen's Blackout is quite a find, a must-read book on film noir. Wonderful revelations and essential reading for lovers of film noir.

Customer Reviews:

A good study guide.......2000-12-17

If you are taking a music history course that uses A History of Western Music (Grout) then this would be a helpful study guide. It has a brief overview of the main points of each chapter. There are then many questions to answer about that chapter. It also uses the Norton recordings and Anthology of Western Music. If you did all the work in this book you would definitely do well in your course. The chapter overviews do NOT contain enough information to avoid reading the Grout text in case you wanted to be lazy.

I would highly recommend this for undergraduate or graduate music students taking a general music history course.

Average customer rating:

$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$

Great info, great format

Good info - didn't care for the format

average

I Agree - This is a Good Book

The Slot Machine Answer Book, 2nd Edition: How They Work, How They've Changed and How to Overcome the House Advantage
John Grochowski
Manufacturer: Bonus Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Gambling | Puzzles & Games | Entertainment | Subjects | Books
General | Puzzles & Games | Entertainment | Subjects | Books
General | Reference | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

Break the One-Armed Bandits!

Secrets of Modern Slot Playing

Powerful Profits From Slots

Slot Smarts: Winning Strategies at the Slot Machine

The Slot Expert's Guide to Playing Slots

ASIN: 1566252350

Book Description

This new edition of The Slot Machine Answer Book has the answers to every slot enthusiast's questions: What machines are likely to pay-off? Does it make a difference if the game is on video instead of having physical reels? Can the casino decide who wins?

Customer Reviews:

$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$.......2005-02-26

i spent 10 bucks for the book read it i made $660 the first time playing slots.......i say i made my money back....$660 stars,,,,

Great info, great format.......2002-06-06

I have to disagree with the previous reviewer ... a book doesn't get any easier to follow than this one. The start of each answer paraphrases the question. You can easily browse through, reading the answers as a series of essays on slots, without ever taking the quizzes. To me, breaking down the volume of information into short, digestible essays makes this one of the most user-friendly books on slots around. It goes beyond Break the One-Armed Bandits with information on video slots and slot clubs. Definitely a must for slot players.

Good info - didn't care for the format.......2002-05-30

The way that this book is set up is that the author gives you a series of questions, and then the answers. Personally I did not care for this format. Part of the problem is that by the time you get to the answers, it is easy to have forgotten the exact wording of the questions. I think that it is ok to have a quiz after the information is presented, like some of the Dummies and Idiots books might do, but I did not care for the quiz first format. If you know NOTHING about slots, this is not a good first book to read.

Some of the chapters were more interesting than others, and more useful. I did not really care for some of the chapters about the different manufacturers of the machines, and thought that it was pretty difficult to take a quiz on this information.

Many of the themes are repeated over and over, such as how the machine is random. Sometimes this becomes a dead horse that is beaten. I know there are a lot of misconceptions about slot machines, so maybe this is neccessary.

Overall a good book, but I preferred Break the one-armed bandits better. Perhaps that is because I read "Break" first, and it was such a ground breaker. This book even quotes "Break" a few times.

average.......2001-06-22

Book informed me of a few things I wasn't aware of but didn't much cover the small Indian casinos prevalent in our area which is all we play in. Would possible be O.K. for anyone that travels around some.

I Agree - This is a Good Book.......1999-10-21

I agree with Karl from New York that this and Scoblette's Break the One-Armed Bandits are the two best slot books on the market. I've read just about all the slots books so I know. What sets Grockowski and Scoblette apart is the fact that these writers can write. They are professional writers who know how to interest a reader. The information is accurate, the anecdotes fun and informative. Grockowski's book is filled with insights and stories. I love the way he tests your knowledge before he answers and elaborates on his information. His other book, The Casino Answer Book, is also a very fine book. I read that about a year ago. In a field, gambling writing, where semi-literates have dominated over the years, it is refreshing to have some good writers appear.

Customer Reviews:

A magnificent resource.......1999-09-26

Keith Howes's Broadcasting It is a magnificent resource. It must havetaken the author several lifetimes to compile it! With thousands of entries,Broadcasting It can be used by scholars for academic research, or just left on the coffee-table for an occasional browse. It is written with knowledge, love and appreciation of our (British) broadcasting heritage. It is a refreshing alternative to the usual stuffy, incomprehesible, academic media books we are subjected to. Keith Howes is a star.

This book lacked information and was poorly written........1999-01-11

This book had a "yeah" for homosexuals and I believe that that was very unproffesional. When I found this book I was interested in reading what the cover told about it, however all it did is supply me with useless information and I wish I could get my money back for not liking it!

Broadcasting It: An Encyclopaedia of Homosexuality on Film, Radio and TV in the Uk 1923-1993 (Cassell Lesbian and Gay Studies)

Average customer rating:

Broadcasting It: An Encyclopaedia of Homosexuality on Film, Radio and TV in the Uk 1923-1993 (Cassell Lesbian and Gay Studies)
Keith Howes
Manufacturer: Cassell
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Movies | Entertainment | Subjects | Books

Encyclopedias | Movies | Entertainment | Subjects | Books

General Broadcasting | Radio | Entertainment | Subjects | Books

General | Television | Entertainment | Subjects | Books

Art | Encyclopedias | Reference | Subjects | Books

Television | Encyclopedias | Reference | Subjects | Books

General | Foreign Languages | Reference | Subjects | Books

General | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

General | Performing Arts | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

Books:

Books Index

Books Home

Recommended Books