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ScreenAge: How TV shaped our reality, from Tammy Faye to RuPaul’s Drag Race
'Like a superheated kernel of corn, the world has gone Pop... Drag has become mainstream. Being gay became cool. From being the criminal outsider, being queer has even become representative of the way the outsider voice is common to us all.'
When he moved to New York in 1982, Fenton Bailey saw the world go Pop. Together with filmmaking partner Randy Barbato, their production company World of Wonder would pioneer the genre of Reality TV and chronicle the emerging Screen Age through their extraordinary programs and outrageous subjects - from Bible Belt televangelists and conspiracy theories to pioneering drag queens.
Working with icons such as Britney Spears, Tammy Faye Bakker and RuPaul, the production company's shows tell a wider story of how television has fundamentally shifted our reality.
Packed with glorious insider gossip and amazing celebrity stories, these are the riotous tales behind the shows that would make ScreenAgers of us all.
When he moved to New York in 1982, Fenton Bailey saw the world go Pop. Together with filmmaking partner Randy Barbato, their production company World of Wonder would pioneer the genre of Reality TV and chronicle the emerging Screen Age through their extraordinary programs and outrageous subjects - from Bible Belt televangelists and conspiracy theories to pioneering drag queens.
Working with icons such as Britney Spears, Tammy Faye Bakker and RuPaul, the production company's shows tell a wider story of how television has fundamentally shifted our reality.
Packed with glorious insider gossip and amazing celebrity stories, these are the riotous tales behind the shows that would make ScreenAgers of us all.
- GenresNonfictionHistoryLGBTArt
375 pages, Kindle Edition
Published November 17, 2022
9 people are currently reading
283 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
June 23, 2024
A short history of queer television from Bravo to Logo to World of Wonder. The actual title of the book and its subtitle are a bit misleading as if they were trying to get more eyes on the book. If this were advertised as a book about the struggle to tell more queer stories on TV, that would have been more accurate. Likewise, I would have liked to read a little more about the background behind the founding of Logo and World of Wonder networks and how they are continuing to thrive in today's digital age.
That being said, this was a really interesting collection of stories about the work that Fenton Bailey did to tell the stories that he wanted to tell. Learning a little bit about the background in the making of Party Monster and The Eyes of Tammy Faye gave more insight in the people behind these stories. The snippets of artists like Andy Warhol and Robert Mapplethorpe helped me see a different side of these people than what I already knew. Though it does seem that with RuPaul being mentioned on the subtitle of the book, there would be more behind the scenes stories than what was actually given.
The book reads a bit slow, but is packed with some good depth on the topics that it decides to discuss. If you're looking for a book on queer history, check this one out.
That being said, this was a really interesting collection of stories about the work that Fenton Bailey did to tell the stories that he wanted to tell. Learning a little bit about the background in the making of Party Monster and The Eyes of Tammy Faye gave more insight in the people behind these stories. The snippets of artists like Andy Warhol and Robert Mapplethorpe helped me see a different side of these people than what I already knew. Though it does seem that with RuPaul being mentioned on the subtitle of the book, there would be more behind the scenes stories than what was actually given.
The book reads a bit slow, but is packed with some good depth on the topics that it decides to discuss. If you're looking for a book on queer history, check this one out.
March 19, 2023
More than a memoir, this personal insight into over three decades of film and television makes for a fascinating read. Of course it's helped by the fact that the author is Fenton Bailey, one half of World of Wonder, and responsible for films as diverse as Party Monster (about killer club kid Michael Alig) and The Eyes of Tammy Faye (about the televangelist who showed compassion towards people with AIDS when this was thin on the ground). Together with partner Randy Barbato, Bailey also brought us the world conquering RuPaul's Drag Race. In other words, he knows his stuff.
From the outset, it isn't Bailey who dominates the narrative but Andy Warhol, the pop artist who saw so much of this coming. Bailey makes a convincing case for Warhol as the original influencer and forerunner of reality television. The films Warhol made with Paul Morrissey weren't populated by actors, but by people being themselves – or at least a version of themselves. Referring to them as 'super stars' posed little or no threat to Hollywood but did help shape the future of television.
These days, of course, we really are living in the screen age. Screens dominate our lives, be it the TV, computer or smart phone. Bailey traces the journey from public access television to YouTube, and Warhol's audition tapes to Instagram, where everyone can be famous for 15 minutes - and monetise their mini-celebrity through corporate branding or directing viewers to their OnlyFans.
But mainly this is about the stories that caught the imaginations of Bailey and Barbato, and how television has changed their fortunes and fundamentally reshaped our reality. It's also a book about the journey from the margins to the mainstream, from queer underground artists David Wojnarowiz and Robert Mapplethorpe to former Downtown denizen Madonna and RuPaul's Drag Race. I came away with the feeling that this truly is a world of wonder – and we're living in it.
From the outset, it isn't Bailey who dominates the narrative but Andy Warhol, the pop artist who saw so much of this coming. Bailey makes a convincing case for Warhol as the original influencer and forerunner of reality television. The films Warhol made with Paul Morrissey weren't populated by actors, but by people being themselves – or at least a version of themselves. Referring to them as 'super stars' posed little or no threat to Hollywood but did help shape the future of television.
These days, of course, we really are living in the screen age. Screens dominate our lives, be it the TV, computer or smart phone. Bailey traces the journey from public access television to YouTube, and Warhol's audition tapes to Instagram, where everyone can be famous for 15 minutes - and monetise their mini-celebrity through corporate branding or directing viewers to their OnlyFans.
But mainly this is about the stories that caught the imaginations of Bailey and Barbato, and how television has changed their fortunes and fundamentally reshaped our reality. It's also a book about the journey from the margins to the mainstream, from queer underground artists David Wojnarowiz and Robert Mapplethorpe to former Downtown denizen Madonna and RuPaul's Drag Race. I came away with the feeling that this truly is a world of wonder – and we're living in it.
March 11, 2023
Award-winning director/producer/writer Bailey’s combination memoir and social commentary examines how TV and other small screens have impacted, expanded, and changed the way people see the world and queer culture. In the introduction, Graham Norton calls Bailey “the Forrest Gump of popular and tabloid culture. If it created headlines, he was there.”
Bailey describes how the TV landscape changed, beginning with the birth of MTV, the Home Shopping Network, infomercials, and the commercialization of true crime (the coverage of Rodney King, the Los Angeles riots, murder trials featuring the Menendez brothers and O.J. Simpson). “Reality TV, that most maligned of all genres in that most maligned of all mediums, has done to television what rap did to rock and roll—taken it over and reinvented it,” writes Bailey.
The author became part of that scene when he and partner Randy Barbato created the film and TV company World of Wonder in 1991 and "RuPaul’s Drag Race" in 2009. Bailey offers loving tributes to pop and queer culture icons, including Andy Warhol, RuPaul, and Tammy Faye Baker.
This is an eye-opening exploration and essential reading for readers interested in pop or queer culture.
Bailey describes how the TV landscape changed, beginning with the birth of MTV, the Home Shopping Network, infomercials, and the commercialization of true crime (the coverage of Rodney King, the Los Angeles riots, murder trials featuring the Menendez brothers and O.J. Simpson). “Reality TV, that most maligned of all genres in that most maligned of all mediums, has done to television what rap did to rock and roll—taken it over and reinvented it,” writes Bailey.
The author became part of that scene when he and partner Randy Barbato created the film and TV company World of Wonder in 1991 and "RuPaul’s Drag Race" in 2009. Bailey offers loving tributes to pop and queer culture icons, including Andy Warhol, RuPaul, and Tammy Faye Baker.
This is an eye-opening exploration and essential reading for readers interested in pop or queer culture.
October 17, 2023
Unique concept, as this is equal parts memoir, testimony of the importance of inclusiveness and diversity, and a description of the process of transforming an idea for a show into fruition (that's a great pun, don't you think?)
I think this would be a fun and informative book for an LGBTQ book group. It would be so much more fun to talk about it with other people who had read it because there is so much information to digest.
I think this would be a fun and informative book for an LGBTQ book group. It would be so much more fun to talk about it with other people who had read it because there is so much information to digest.
March 13, 2024
I never really understood the phrase “a love letter to…” and suspected it was one of those self-indulgent phrases people use to make them sound like they have a true grasp of something. However, reading this book, it truly is a love letter to reality TV— Bailey clearly loves what he does in the medium he does it in, and, perhaps even more so, loves when other people do it well do. A genuinely enjoyable book.
February 15, 2025
It could use an edit.
Sufficiently gay.
Sufficiently gay.
September 17, 2024
Fenton Bailey and Randy Barbato are co-founders of World of Wonder Productions, which create documentaries and films that often have an LGBTQ focus and explore queer topics. The company was founded in 1991 and they have produced programmes for a range of channels.
Their most famous programme to date is RuPaul's Drag Race and they have been involved in managing RuPaul since the 1990s.
This book is a wonderful and wild ride through the evolution of television and reality TV.
Bailey explores how the greater access to and affordability of recording equipment from the 1990s onwards allowed for a broader range of creators and forever changed the relationship between the viewer and the content producer.
There was a removal of corporate control for a while and a levelling of access and ability to share and make stories.
Bailey highlights that there are still barriers with funding and access from the larger networks, but that the internet has also allowed more people than ever to give a view of their lives and perspectives.
Bailey examines a variety of topics with references to his work and history, and he challenges the mainstream conceptions about pornography, art, worldviews, celebrities and history.
A very interesting book with a strong and confident voice.
Their most famous programme to date is RuPaul's Drag Race and they have been involved in managing RuPaul since the 1990s.
This book is a wonderful and wild ride through the evolution of television and reality TV.
Bailey explores how the greater access to and affordability of recording equipment from the 1990s onwards allowed for a broader range of creators and forever changed the relationship between the viewer and the content producer.
There was a removal of corporate control for a while and a levelling of access and ability to share and make stories.
Bailey highlights that there are still barriers with funding and access from the larger networks, but that the internet has also allowed more people than ever to give a view of their lives and perspectives.
Bailey examines a variety of topics with references to his work and history, and he challenges the mainstream conceptions about pornography, art, worldviews, celebrities and history.
A very interesting book with a strong and confident voice.
March 2, 2023
The first half of this had me absolutely enthralled, as someone who obsesses over media history and 80s and 90s queer history. The chapter about the importance of cameras in early 90s crime reporting (Rodney King, OJ, the Menendez brothers) had me completely hooked. I want to go watch all of these documentaries IMMEDIATELY.
The last third started to drag a little, and I don't know if I can blame anything more than my own disinterest in rehashing some more recent history, but I really enjoyed this until the point that I was ready for it to be over.
(I do wonder how many people will expect this to be a Drag Race book. It's not. I think it's BETTER for not being a drag race book but if someone is coming in looking for that they'll be disappointed.)
The last third started to drag a little, and I don't know if I can blame anything more than my own disinterest in rehashing some more recent history, but I really enjoyed this until the point that I was ready for it to be over.
(I do wonder how many people will expect this to be a Drag Race book. It's not. I think it's BETTER for not being a drag race book but if someone is coming in looking for that they'll be disappointed.)
September 22, 2016
Fabulous collection of photographs to honor and celebrate the history and rise to success of World of Wonder Productions founded by Randy Barbatio and Fenton Bailey. Most famously known for producing the Emmy winning reality-television series RuPaul's Drag Race and riveting documentaries like Party Monster (or Disco Bloodbath).
July 12, 2023
I don’t know what I was expecting from this book but I was pleasantly surprised by the amount of incredible stories I read about. Tammy Faye and the way queer history was shaped by television. One of my favorite chapters was the one where the author talked about the difference between David Wojnarowicz and Robert mapplethorpe. Well done
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews