{"product_id":"designed-for-success-better-living-and-self-improvement-with-midcentury-instructional-records-hardcover","title":"Designed for Success: Better Living and Self-Improvement with Midcentury Instructional Records - Hardcover","description":"\u003cp\u003eby \u003cb\u003eJanet Borgerson\u003c\/b\u003e (Author), \u003cb\u003eJonathan Schroeder\u003c\/b\u003e (Author)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eA charmingly illustrated history of midcentury instructional records and their untold contribution to the American narrative of self-improvement, aspiration, and success.\u003c\/b\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eFor the midcentury Americans who wished to better their golf game through hypnosis, teach their parakeet to talk, or achieve sexual harmony in their marriage, the answers lay no further than the record player. In \u003ci\u003eDesigned for Success\u003c\/i\u003e, Janet Borgerson and Jonathan Schroeder shed light on these endearingly earnest albums that contributed to a powerful American vision of personal success. Rescued from charity shops, record store cast-off bins, or forgotten boxes in attics and basements, these educational records reveal the American consumers' rich but sometimes surprising relationship to advertising, self-help, identity construction, and even aspects of transcendentalist thought. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eRelegated to obscurity and novelty, instructional records such as \u003ci\u003eSecrets of Successful Varmint Calling, You Be a Disc Jockey\u003c\/i\u003e, and \u003ci\u003eHow to Ski (A Living-Room Guide for Beginners)\u003c\/i\u003e offer distinct insights into midcentury media production and consumption. Tracing the history of instructional records from the inception of the recording industry to the height of their popularity, Borgerson and Schroeder offer close readings of the abundant topics covered by \"designed for success\" records. Complemented by over a hundred full-color illustrations, \u003ci\u003eDesigned for Success\u003c\/i\u003e is a wonderfully nostalgic tour that showcases the essential role these vinyl records played as an unappreciated precursor to contemporary do-it-yourself culture and modern conceptions of self-improvement.\u003ch3\u003eAuthor Biography\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003eJanet Borgerson is Senior Wicklander Fellow at DePaul University. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eJonathan Schroeder is William A. Kern Professor in the School of Communication at Rochester Institute of Technology. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eBorgerson and Schroeder are coauthors of \u003ci\u003eDesigned for Hi-Fi Living: The Vinyl LP in Midcentury America\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eDesigned for Dancing: How Midcentury Records Taught America to Dance\u003c\/i\u003e (both MIT Press).\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eNumber of Pages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 328\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:\u003c\/strong\u003e 0.9 x 10.25 x 8.23 IN\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublication Date:\u003c\/strong\u003e May 14, 2024\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Books by splitShops","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51764176421152,"sku":"9780262048835","price":39.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0974\/9764\/5344\/files\/16b81de5ca6c00b0aa1f7dd5b3cde844.webp?v=1780244849","url":"https:\/\/ebocreations.com\/products\/designed-for-success-better-living-and-self-improvement-with-midcentury-instructional-records-hardcover","provider":"The E-Book Oasis LLC","version":"1.0","type":"link"}