This balanced examination looks at America's pervasive celebrity culture, concentrating on the period from 1950 to the present day.Star Struck: An Encyclopedia of Celebrity Culture is neither a stern critic nor an apologist for celebrity infatuation, a phenomenon that sometimes supplants more weighty matters yet constitutes one of our nation's biggest exports. This encyclopedia covers American celebrity culture from 1950 to 2008, examining its various aspects-and its impact-through 86 entries by 30 expert contributors.Demonstrating that all celebrities are famous, but not all famous people are celebrities, the book cuts across the various entertainment medias and their legions of individual "stars." It looks at sports celebrities and examines the role of celebrity in more serious pursuits and institutions such as the news media, corporations, politics, the arts, medicine, and the law. Also included are entries devoted to such topics as paranoia and celebrity, one-name celebrities, celebrity nicknames, family unit celebrity, sidekick celebrities, and even criminal celebrities.

Whereas in former times, "the business of America was business," one might argue that today "the business of America is entertainment." Even the president of the United States has an aura of celebrity that morphed many voters into rabid fans attracted to his smile, his eloquence, and his photogenic family. But just what is that indefinable quality that vaults an individual to celebrity status?