Book contents
- The Greatest of All Time
- The Greatest of All Time
- Copyright page
- Dedication
- Contents
- Figures
- Acknowledgments
- Introduction
- 1 The Economics of American Greatness
- 2 The Problem of the Great All-Knowing Answer Man
- 3 The Rise and Fall of the Great Changemakers
- 4 How the Babe Became the Greatest (and the Roosevelts, Too)
- 5 The Great Counterculture Conundrum
- Conclusion
- Index
3 - The Rise and Fall of the Great Changemakers
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 23 January 2025
Book contents
- The Greatest of All Time
- The Greatest of All Time
- Copyright page
- Dedication
- Contents
- Figures
- Acknowledgments
- Introduction
- 1 The Economics of American Greatness
- 2 The Problem of the Great All-Knowing Answer Man
- 3 The Rise and Fall of the Great Changemakers
- 4 How the Babe Became the Greatest (and the Roosevelts, Too)
- 5 The Great Counterculture Conundrum
- Conclusion
- Index
Summary
This chapter studies the interlocked biographies of three interwar figures: Charlie Chaplin, Charles Lindbergh, and Mickey Mouse. All three achieved renown as changemakers and the title “greatest of all time” in their various social/cultural arenas. More importantly, for this chapter, all three figures undergo a steep decline, forcing the American public to reconsider the contours of greatness. Chaplin is branded a Communist. Lindbergh a Nazi. Mickey Mouse is eventually seen as too unmasculine to support patriotism during World War II and is therefore swapped by Walt Disney for Donald Duck. The chapter highlights the historical contingencies of greatness.
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- The Greatest of All TimeA History of an American Obsession, pp. 81 - 121Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2025