Kaufmann, Eric P. and Ballatore, Andrea (2019) New York Yankees and Hollywood Anglos: the persistence of anglo-conformity in the American motion picture industry. Nations and Nationalism 25 (4), pp. 1153-1189. ISSN 1354-5078.
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Abstract
Ideal types have received less attention than membership criteria in the ethnicity and nationalism literature. This article uses crowdsourced genealogical data and onomastics software to show that British Isles surnames and ancestry remain overrepresented among American actors, especially in roles connected with the national narrative. Conformity to the WASP ideal type persists despite the fact American actors are disproportionately born in Los Angeles, New York and other large cities, where British ancestry is rare. Jewish actors are overrepresented, yet many have Anglo surnames. Compared to athletes and politicians, actors are significantly more likely to have Anglo surnames, especially those in genres depicting the nation. After declining among cohorts of stars born between the 1800s and 1961, the share of British Isles surnames has stabilized and remains in the majority. We argue that despite rising diversity, this reflects the continuing importance of the Anglo-Protestant ethnic imago for American national identity.
Metadata
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Additional Information: | This is the peer reviewed version of the article, which has been published in final form at the link above. This article may be used for non-commercial purposes in accordance with Wiley Terms and Conditions for Self-Archiving. |
| Keyword(s) / Subject(s): | anglo-conformity, ethnicity, family names, crowdsourcing, data science |
| School: | Birkbeck Faculties and Schools > Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences > School of Social Sciences |
| Research Centres and Institutes: | Data Analytics, Birkbeck Institute for |
| Depositing User: | Andrea Ballatore |
| Date Deposited: | 17 Dec 2018 09:39 |
| Last Modified: | 31 Jul 2025 23:04 |
| URI: | https://eprints.bbk.ac.uk/id/eprint/25499 |
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