ReFocus: The American Directors SeriesSeries Editors: Robert Singer and Gary RhodesThis series produces new critical volumes from an interdisciplinary perspective, bringing influential, yet neglected, American directors to the attention of a new audience of scholars and students in both Film Studies and American Studies.ReFocus: The Films of Preston Sturges'This book brings American cinema's most idiosyncratic, prodigious comic genius into deep focus for twenty-first-century readers. Hail the conquering editors Kozloff and Jaeckle, who have coaxed newly researched essays to converse with one another, writing in effervescent language worthy of the Master himself.'Claudia Gorbman, Professor Emerita of Film Studies, University of Washington TacomaDirector, screenwriter and comic genius, Preston Sturges has been an influence on filmmakers ranging from Orson Welles to the Coen Brothers. The first person to win an Oscar for Best Original Screenplay, he wrote and directed some of the most bizarre, controversial, and downright hilarious comedies of the 1940s, including Sullivan's Travels and Hail the Conquering Hero. He may be the most talented Hollywood filmmaker who has yet to receive the critical recognition he deserves.The Films of Preston Sturges is a pioneering collection of essays by renowned scholars that charts Sturges's contributions to Hollywood cinema, revealing his pivotal status as an early writer-director, exploring his inimitable style, and making a bold case for his ongoing influence today. Reawakening interest in this filmmaker's life and works, this book reminds readers why Sturges's movies remain not only immensely enjoyable, but of great cultural significance as well.Jeff Jaeckle is Instructor of Composition and Literature at Portland Community College.Sarah Kozloff is Professor of Film on the William R. Kenan Jr. Chair, Vassar College.Cover image: publicity photo, The Lady Eve, 1941 Dir. Preston Sturges © Paramount/The Kobal CollectionCover design: Stuart Dalziel[EUP logo]euppublishing.com

Introduction: An Agile Mind: The Many Stands of Preston Sturges, Jeff Jaeckle