One of my favorite bloggers, Kelli Lawrence of State of the Skate, just had a book published. Skating on Air: The Broadcast History of an Olympic Marquee Sport is a look at the history of skating coverage on television. The book includes interviews with skaters such as Janet Lynn, Kurt Browning and Scott Hamilton. I just received my copy and hope to have a review and possible author interview up at some point in the not too distant future.
Here is more about the book:
Of all winter sports, none is so widely watched and commented upon by the media as figure skating, which is often considered the Winter Olympics’ centerpiece. This critical text examines the ways in which media attention has gradually altered and affected the sport, from the early appearances of Sonja Henie, to skating’s gradual audience growth via television, and to the ramifications of the scandals in the 1994 and 2002 Olympics. The topic is illuminated by more than 30 interviews with commentators, skaters, producers, directors and others. In addition to numerous photos, illustrations show the compulsory figures for which "figure skating" got its name, as well as a sample of the charted-out "camera blocking" for TV directors. Appendices include collected anecdotes from early broadcasting experiences; a profile of broadcaster Jim McKay; and commentary from Carol Heiss on her 1961 musical Snow White and the Three Stooges.
You can read about ways to buy the book here.
Anyone who's visited State of the Skate knows what an engaging writer Kelli is and she's been covering skating for years. I'm very excited to read the book.
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