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OverviewDeconstructing Dr. Strangelove examines how well the Cold War crisis films stack up against historical reality, or at least as much of that reality as we can reconstruct with confidence. The 1964 comedy film Dr. Strangelove, or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb has achieved cult and now iconic status in popular culture. It is also the flagship of an entire genre of Cold War nuclear crisis films, which is employed in numerous academic disciplines to depict what many view as the prime absurdity of the Cold War: nuclear deterrence and its possible failure. The films of the Cold War nuclear crisis genre are regularly used by educators to illustrate nuclear warfare theories of the time. However, the further we get away from those dangerous years, the more art takes over from life/history/reality. There were (and remain) layers of absurdity in places like the RAND Corporation and in other ""think tanks."" However, those who also served should get their due. And Dr. Strangelove does not give it to them. Dr. Strangelove, Fail-Safe, The Bedford Incident, and others are about the internal and external failures of the deterrent system. That system did not fail in real life. Why is that? How is that? Can we use Dr. Strangelove and related films as vehicles to help us understand the answers to those questions? What was really going on in that secretive world? Answering those questions was impossible in the 1970s. Years after the end of the Cold War, we have much better insight. And now we can know. AUTHOR: Sean M. Maloney (PhD) is a professor of history at the Royal Military College of Canada and served as the Historical Advisor to the Chief of the Land Staff during the war in Afghanistan. Since 2001, Maloney has focused nearly exclusively on the war against the Al Qaeda movement and its allies. He has written several books based on his research and experience, including Enduring the Freedom: A Rogue Historian in Afghanistan (Potomac, 2005), Learning to Love the Bomb: Canada's Nuclear Weapons During the Cold War (Potomac, 2007), Confronting the Chaos: A Rogue Historian Returns to Afghanistan (Naval Institute Press, 2009), and more. Maloney has appeared on several programs, including Rex Murphy's Cross Canada Check Up on CBC and in the U.S. on the John Bachelor Show. 22 photographs, 13 illustrations, 5 maps, 1 table Full Product DetailsAuthor: Sean M. MaloneyPublisher: Potomac Books Inc Imprint: Potomac Books Inc ISBN: 9781640121928ISBN 10: 1640121927 Pages: 498 Publication Date: 01 July 2020 Audience: General/trade , General Format: Hardback Publisher's Status: Active Availability: Manufactured on demand  We will order this item for you from a manufactured on demand supplier. Table of ContentsList of Illustrations List of Tables Acknowledgments Introduction 1. Book! Movie! The Literary Genesis of the Cold War Nuclear Crisis Film 2. Purity of Essence I: The Nuclear Leader and the Psychological Dimension in Fact and Fiction 3. Purity of Essence II: The Men and the Mission 4. Purity of Essence III: The LeMay-Power Deterrent Campaign and Dr. Strangelove 5. Peace Is Our Profession: Gen. Thomas Power and Nuclear Crisis Behavior 6. Theater of War: Fighting in the War Room 7. Plan R: Positive Control, Airborne Alert, and the Nuclear Crisis Films 8. Strategic Underground Command: The ICBM Force in Film and History 9. Dr. Strangelove Goes to Sea: Cold War Nuclear Naval Operations on Film Epilogue Notes Bibliography IndexReviewsDeconstructing Dr. Strangelove is a worthwhile study that sheds light on an important slice of Cold War history. It will urge readers to explore--or revisit--a fascinating body of film narratives and wonder what really happened and what might have been. --Hiroshi Kitamura, Strategy Bridge-- (3/11/2021 12:00:00 AM) I'm pleased to have read Deconstructing Dr. Strangelove and will keep it on my shelf for reference. I wish I'd had Maloney's book on hand when I wrote the Cold War chapter for my 2014 book about cinema and historical memory, War on the Silver Screen. Maloney knows as much as can be known about nuclear weapons procedures and his knowledge on the authors and content of the novels adapted into Cold War movies is vast and inviting. There is much more to the film and literature of the Cold War than Dr. Strangelove and Fail Safe. Maloney offers a fascinating survey. --David Luhrssen, Shepherd Express-- (9/4/2020 12:00:00 AM) In his introduction, Sean Maloney writes: 'The further we get away from those dangerous years, the more art takes over from life, history, and reality.' These words set the stage for his detailed and factual account, validated by meticulous research, of an era as experienced by this Cold War Strategic Air Command veteran. --Lt. Col. Earl J. McGill, USAF (Ret.), author of Jet Age Man: SAC B-47 and B-52 Operations in the Early Cold War-- (9/25/2019 12:00:00 AM) In his introduction, Sean Maloney writes: 'The farther we get away from those dangerous years, the more art takes over from life, history, and reality.' These words set the stage for his detailed and factual account, validated by meticulous research, of an era as experienced by this Cold War Strategic Air Command veteran. --Lt. Col. Earl J. McGill, USAF (Ret.), author of Jet Age Man: SAC B-47 and B-52 Operations in the Early Cold War-- (09/25/2019) Author InformationSean M. Maloney is a professor of history at Royal Military College and served as the Canadian Army’s historian for the war in Afghanistan from 2003 to 2014. He is the author of Enduring the Freedom: A Rogue Historian in Afghanistan (Potomac Books, 2005), Learning to Love the Bomb: Canada’s Nuclear Weapons during the Cold War (Potomac Books, 2007), and Operation Kinetic: Stabilizing Kosovo (Potomac Books, 2018). For more information about the author visit seanmmaloney.com. Tab Content 6Author Website:Countries AvailableAll regions |
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