Conventional wisdom holds that John F. Kennedy was the first
celebrity president, in no small part because of his innate
television savvy. But, as Kathryn Cramer Brownell shows, Kennedy
capitalized on a tradition and style rooted in California politics
and the Hollywood studio system. Since the 1920s, politicians and
professional showmen have developed relationships and built
organizations, institutionalizing Hollywood styles, structures, and
personalities in the American political process. Brownell explores
how similarities developed between the operation of a studio,
planning a successful electoral campaign, and ultimately running an
administration. Using their business and public relations know-how,
figures such as Louis B. Mayer, Bette Davis, Jack Warner, Harry
Belafonte, Ronald Reagan, and members of the Rat Pack made
Hollywood connections an asset in a political world being quickly
transformed by the media. Brownell takes readers behind the camera
to explore the negotiations and relationships that developed
between key Hollywood insiders and presidential candidates from
Dwight Eisenhower to Bill Clinton, analyzing how entertainment
replaced party spectacle as a strategy to raise money, win votes,
and secure success for all those involved. She demonstrates how
Hollywood contributed to the rise of mass-mediated politics, making
the twentieth century not just the age of the political consultant
but also the age of showbiz politics.