Southerners Acting Southern: On Celebrities and Their Star Personas in the Imagined South

What is the difference between a star born in the South and a “southern star”? In Southerners Acting Southern, Tison Pugh answers this intriguing question, pondering the ways in which some performers from the South metamorphose into southern stars by accentuating their geographic and cultural roots as key aspects of their star personas.

Many celebrities, particularly actors, seek to transcend their hometown roots in favor of achieving an “all-American” appeal, but some stars born in the Sou...