Review by Choice Review
Although some may doubt the quality of film reference works, the reference shelves are full of them. In contrast, there are few reference sources that treat the art and industry of television and video. In the first instance, we have long needed a good guide to the crowded bibliographic and filmographic terrain. In the second, we require the basics. This book accomplishes both tasks, providing not only an excellent overview of film reference sources but also a thorough introduction to existing and newly published television sources. Entries are arranged in broad categories and further subdivided by motion picture and television/video sections. A typical entry includes author, title, place of publication, copyright date, ISSN or ISBN, and a factual annotation (often critical and comparative). Online databases, database vendors, and special archives are described and author, title, and subject indexes provided. Because this is outstanding bibliography-a concise, clear, and thorough introduction to reference and research sources-it is highly recommended for all reference collections, especially those serving undergraduate and graduate courses in film and television studies.-D.R. Brunning, Arizona State University
Copyright American Library Association, used with permission.
Review by Booklist Review
This aptly titled work provides a well-organized and insightful survey of more than 700 reference works essential for those working in the fields of film, television, and video. Coverage is limited to English-language titles from the U.S., Great Britain, Canada, and Australia with U.S. titles predominant; most of the works were published in the period 1960-85. Each chapter covers a specific type of reference tool, with chapters typically subdivided between works on film and those on television/video. A special effort was made to include online sources of all kinds full text, bibliographic, and numeric/statistical. Although the entries for the bibliographic databases refer back to the entries for the printed version, the reverse is not true in most cases. The Board feels that this should be corrected in any future edition. Order within each chapter/section is alphabetical by author or title, with the title in boldface. Standard bibliographic data appear for each entry, plus ISBNs (or ISSNs) and LC card numbers for most entries. An appendix lists database suppliers, and the work concludes with separate author/title and subject indexes. In addition to the traditional kinds of reference tools, chapters also cover important periodicals and information on research centers, archives, and associations (in the U.S. only) concerned with film and television. Possibly the most outstanding feature of this excellent guide is the trenchant annotation for each title. The work provides real guidance with such comments as ``somewhat dated, it offers a very basic starting point''; ``a more specific subject index would have been welcome''; ``this research guide is essential''; ``this title is not without errors and contradictions''; ``overlooked as a source of film-related material''; ``researchers should also consult the larger . . . and the more comprehensive . . . ''; and so forth. Thus, On the Screen will be especially useful for the beginning student and the librarian relatively unfamiliar with the field. Although On the Screen is deliberately limited to English-language works, the Board feels compelled to point out that, given the scholarly attention paid to non-English films, a guide incorporating foreign-language material would be helpful. The Board hopes that Fisher will eventually either expand his work into this area or possibly create another work limited to foreign-language material. On the Screen will undoubtedly become a standard tool in film/television collections of almost any size in both academic and public libraries. Given the large number of new titles that have appeared continuously in the past few years, the work will need to be updated relatively soon. The Board hopes that the high standard set for this series by On the Screen will be met in its future editions.
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Choice Review
Review by Booklist Review