Eric Schaefer

Eric Schaefer is a film historian and professor at Emerson College in Boston, specializing in exploitation cinema and American film history. His research focuses on marginalized and overlooked aspects of cinema, particularly exploitation films from the classical Hollywood era through the 1960s. Schaefer's most influential work is "Bold! Daring! Shocking! True!: A History of Exploitation Films, 1919-1959" (1999), which established him as a leading authority on exploitation cinema. The book provides a comprehensive examination of classical exploitation films, their distribution methods, and their cultural significance. His scholarship has helped legitimize the academic study of exploitation cinema, contributing to a broader understanding of how these films reflected and influenced American society. Schaefer's work examines how exploitation films addressed taboo subjects that mainstream Hollywood avoided, including drug use, sexuality, and social issues. Schaefer continues to publish on film history and serves as a frequent commentator on exploitation cinema, contributing to documentaries and academic publications. His research interests extend to media regulation, censorship, and the intersection of popular culture with social movements.

Readers value Schaefer's rigorous research and detailed documentation of exploitation cinema's history. Students and film enthusiasts cite "Bold! Daring! Shocking! True!" as a thorough resource that illuminates a previously under-documented area of film history. What readers liked: - Clear writing style that balances academic analysis with accessibility - Extensive archival research and primary sources - Comprehensive coverage of exploitation film industry practices and distribution - Cultural context provided for understanding the films' social impact What readers disliked: - Academic tone can be dry for general readers - Limited coverage of films after 1959 - High price point of academic press books - Some readers wanted more film stills and visual materials Ratings: - Goodreads: 4.1/5 (87 ratings) - Amazon: 4.5/5 (28 reviews) A film studies graduate student noted: "Schaefer's research methods should be a model for any serious film historian." A reviewer on Amazon wrote: "Dense with information but never loses sight of the cultural significance of these overlooked films."

Sex Scene: Media and the Sexual Revolution (2014) An academic study examining how different forms of media, including exploitation films, magazines, and underground publications, shaped public discourse around sexuality in the 1960s.

Bold! Daring! Shocking! True!: A History of Exploitation Films, 1919-1959 (1999) A historical analysis of early exploitation cinema in America, documenting the production, distribution, and exhibition of films that addressed taboo social issues.

"Dirty Little Secrets": Traffic and Race in Classical Hollywood (2003) An examination of how Classical Hollywood films addressed issues of race and human trafficking through coded language and imagery.

Massacre of the Innocents: Infanticide in Baltimore, 1860-1935 (1996) A historical study of infant mortality and infanticide cases in Baltimore during the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

David Hadju writes about counterculture, comics, and mass media history, focusing on social impact and moral panics. His work "The Ten-Cent Plague" examines comic book censorship in ways that parallel Schaefer's exploitation film analysis.

Joseph W. Slade focuses on pornography and media history through an academic lens. His research on forbidden media and the business of transgressive entertainment aligns with Schaefer's exploitation industry studies.

Linda Williams examines body genres and exploitation cinema through film theory frameworks. Her work on horror and pornography as cultural phenomena shares methodological approaches with Schaefer's research.

Thomas Doherty writes about Hollywood's relationship with censorship and social boundaries during the studio era. His examination of the Production Code era provides context for the exploitation industry Schaefer studies.

Joan Hawkins analyzes horror and exploitation through the lens of cultural studies and film history. Her work on paracinema and trash culture examines many of the same filmmakers and industrial practices as Schaefer's research.