please welcome our moderator, kimberly your rack coa and carrie pitzulo. >> thanks very much. it's such a pleasure to be here. [applause] thank you. and this is a fantastic book, a fascinating top you can and a really entertaining read, so i will be sure to leave time for questions at the end. but my first question is just what led you to focus your dissertation on playboy? it is a fascinating topic, but it's not sort of obvious how you would choose it. so what led you to the topic? >> it certainly wasn't obvious to me. i've been surprised not only by my own conclusions, but by the fact that i came to focus on this topic. i had always been fascinate with the the 1950s, in particular, popular culture. some of my early grad school work was on film, and then i read "the hearts of men," and in that book she talks about the way masculinity was changing after world war ii, and she has a chapter on playboy. so i began to think did this sexually-explicit magazine some people consider pornography -- i don't -- but how did that become mainstream in what was supposedly a very conservativ

up next carrie pitzulo who insist that over the years, "playboy" magazine has advanced the cause of women's rights more than many people realize. >> welcome to the 27 annual "chicago tribune" printers row lit fest. a special k tour sponsors. before begin today's programhon please turn off your cell phone and all other electronic devices.photog photography is notph permitted.. today's program will be broadcast live on broadcast live on c-span2's the. c-spanur watch this you would like to ws beogram again, our coverage will program and this is a fantastic book, a fascinating top you can and a really entertaining read, so i will be sure to leave time for questions at the end. but my first question is just what led you to focus your dissertation on playboy? it is a fascinating topic, but it's not sort of obvious how you would choose it. so what led you to the topic? >> it certainly wasn't obvious to me. i've been surprised not only by my own conclusions, but by the fact that i came to focus on this topic. i had always been fascinate with the the 1950s, in particular, popular culture. some of my

. >> and now carrie pitzulo argues that over the years of playboy magazine has advanced the cause of women's rights more than many people realize. this is a little over 45 minutes. >> it such a pleasure to be here. thankas you. an this is a fantastic book, a fascinating topic and a really entertaining read so i will be wille s sure to leave some time for questions at the end. but my first question is just what led you to focus your ph.d dissertation on playboy? tb it is a fascinating topic but it's not o hbvious how you woule choose it. what led you to the topic?d sury my own conclusions, but by the fact that i came to focus on this topic. i had always been fascinate with the the 1950s, in particular, popular culture. some of my early grad school work was on film, and then i read "the hearts of men," and in that book she talks about the way masculinity was changing after world war ii, and she has a chapter on playboy. so i began to think did this sexually-explicit magazine some people consider pornography -- i don't -- but how did that become mainstream in what was supposedly a very