Vincent van Gogh continues to fascinate more than a century after his death in 1890. Yet how much of what is commonly known about this world-renowned artist is accurate? Though he left thousands of works and a trove of letters, the definitive Van Gogh remains elusive. Was he a madman who painted his greatest pieces in a passionate fury or a lifelong student of art, literature and science who carefully planned each composition? Was he a loner dedicated only to his craft or an active collaborator with his contemporaries? Why is he best known for self-mutilation and "The Starry Night"?

This book has biographers, scriptwriters, lyricists, actors, museum curators and tour guides, among others, presenting diverse interpretations of his life and work, creating a mythic persona that may, in fact, help us in the search for the real Van Gogh.

“offers chapters on the artist and print media, museums and galleries, the theater world, films, television, music, and online formats. In a sense, each of these cultural areas shed varied light on the artist’s sometimes-tortured life”—Communications Booknotes Quarterly.

The late Lynnette Porter was a professor in the Humanities and Communication Department at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Daytona Beach, Florida. She wrote extensively on television and film.