Janine Hiddlestone is a lecturer and tutor in politics, history and communications at James Cook University in Australia. She has a Ph.D. in political history and has published on the place of war in culture and history, and how pop culture became the centerpiece of so much of the public’s understanding—and misunderstanding—of events. She has explored the influence of technology on pop culture, and vice versa, and its pedagogical uses in encouraging students to develop an interest in political and historical issues. She has also attained infamy among her colleagues as a pop culture tragic.
Description
This is one essay from the anthology Coffee at Luke’s
In the fall of 2000, “Gilmore Girls” premiered on the WB and viewers were introduced to the quirky world of Stars Hollow and the Gilmores who had made it their home, mother-daughter best friends Lorelai and Rory Gilmore. With the show in its seventh season on the fledgling CW, Coffee at Luke’s is the perfect look at what has made the show such a clever, beloved part of the television landscape for so long.
What are the risks of having your mother be your best friend? How is “Gilmore Girls” anti-family, at least in the traditional sense? What’s a male viewer to do when he finds both mother and daughter attractive? And how is creator Amy Sherman-Palladino like Emily Gilmore? From the show’s class consciousness to the way the characters are shaped by the books they read, the music they listen to and the movies they watch, Coffee at Luke’s looks at the sometimes hilarious, sometimes heartbreaking underpinnings of smart viewer’s Tuesday night television staple, and takes them further into Stars Hollow than they’ve ever been before.
About the Author
Jennifer Crusie is a New York Times bestselling author whose novels include Bet Me, Faking It and Don’t Look Down (with Bob Mayer). She is a frequent contributor to the Smart Pop series, and editor of Flirting with Pride and Prejudice and Totally Charmed. She holds an M.A. in women’s lit and an M.F.A. in fiction. For more information visit www.jennycrusie.com.