Popular Culture Review 31.2 • Spring 2020 Guest Editor ’ s Note
I asked Felicia if I could pen this issue ’ s Note , as I am stepping down from the Popular Culture Review after three years as Associate Editor . I have enjoyed working on the journal , encouraging fellow conference goers to submit in fields a bit outside our traditional fare , like law and music , and being supported by the fantastic team at Westphalia Press as we designed a new online site , worked to diversify cover art , and improved other aspects like layout and copyediting . It has been a great experience , and I ’ m happy to hand over my role to the next PCR supporter knowing that we have a really strong system in place .
In the current issue , we have a wide variety of articles that continue to draw upon the wealth of connections between popular culture and various mediums . Regina Judge ’ s “ Twitter in the Courtroom ” examines social media , real-time reporting , and courtroom etiquette at a cross section . Senne Schraeyen reminds us that Susan Sontag ’ s “ Melancholy Object ” continues to influence social perspectives , and William and Patricia Kirtley examine the art and architecture of Las Vegas ’ Guardian Angel Cathedral . Historian David Schwartz delves into the literary body of Mario Puzo , highlighting the connections between capitalism , gambling , and cynicism . Kenneth Payne explores Algernon Blackwood ’ s gothic tales from a perspective of extreme forms of extra-sensory perception .
We have several articles on films this issue : Todd Giles ’ piece on the film adaptation of American Psycho offers a retrospective look at American masculinity in the 1980s . Isa Flores gives us an eco-critical reading of Darren Aronofsky ’ s film Mother !, while Carl Rollyson scrutinizes Falkner ’ s The Left
vii doi : 10.18278 / pcr . 31.2.1