The novel chronicles the life of Doug Kenney, one of the original writers of National Lampoon. Before Kenney came on, Harold Ramis and Ivan Reitman had been working on a script called "Freshmen Year" based on Ramis's experience at Washington University. Ramis and Kenney then worked on a script called "Laser Orgy Girls" that involved aliens and a Charles Manson like character all in high school. Deciding to move the story to college, the two brought on Chris Miller who supplied frat stories from his times at Dartmouth. At a writer's meeting they all agreed that "at the heart of every great fraternity, there is a great animal." They all immediately thought of Belushi. (278) The main drive of their treatment would be a "renegade" fraternity bent on "fun and chaos in equal parts" against a "Nixonian administration" and a desire for the characters to "create chaos." (279) All three writers, especially Kenney, were confident that they would write the "ultimate youth comedy." (280) In the end, "their desire was to tear down the institution they despised while celebrating the anarchic, sex-obsessed, beer-swilling teenager that they believed was within every decent red-blooded American male." Karp realizes that Animal House was one of the first movies to look at, in an "unflinchingly honest manner," American taboos on "sex, masturbation, race, and other previously unspeakable topics." (313)
    Karp's biography of Doug Kenney provides useful insight into the working and beginnings of what would eventually become Animal House. One can see the formation of the dominant themes discussed in the other sources that became the staple of college comedies. More importantly, the writer spurposefully set out to make a college movie that had never been done before, with themes that they knew would resonate with not only the youth of the day, but with every "red-blooded American male."

    In her critique of fifty comedies, Bernheimer boldly claims that Animal House "changed the face of comedy forever." (112) Though not one of the best comedies, it so perfectly captured the sentiments of the era's youth subculture that it became a "milestone" in movie history. (109) The film took "antiauthoritarianism" to new highs, while at the same time pushing taste to a "new low." (109) This paved the way for an "endless" slate of "tasteless" comedies aimed at the youth market, forever changing the marketing that dictated Hollywood. (109) It was so successful amongst the youth culture because it brought the kind of "crude, rudely irreverent" comedy that was similar to that of improvisation groups and TV sketch comedy that was extremely popular with teenagers at the time. (110) The heroes of the film were identifiable misfits that refused to take college seriously or respect the "repressive forces" than want them to conform. (110) Belushi's character, Bluto, reminded the audience that even if you "goof off" in college, you could still succeed. (110) In fact, the movie was the first to make a "complete mockery" of the college institution. (112)
    This article confirms many theories of other articles, including the anarchist nature of the film, the lowbrow comedy, the misfit unity, and the attack on education. All of this transformed the depiction of college in film from an institution of higher learning to the college stereotype we now know. In addition, Bernheimer claims Animal House changed how college-themed movies were made and marketed in Hollywood. It made filmmakers realize that college-themed movies should be specifically made for and marketed to a youth audience by using the popular "crude" humor (and the six themes from Thomas and Heldenfel's article). As said in Bernheim's book, Animal House launched a series of similar comedies made specifically for its audience.

  Thomas and Heldenfel's homage to Animal House describes the film as a "raunchy, testosterone-laden, anarchic comedy." Before it was released, many believed it would be a forgettable, cheap comedy." Landis admitted that he had no idea how popular the film would become; it went on to gross over $100 million. Yet, Animal House was more than just a successful comedy. According to these two men, half a dozen modern comedic elements can trace their roots back to Animal House. Many comedies depict class warfare (Trading Places, 1983), especially when it comes to poking fun at the academic establishment. Marijuana is now almost always shown in college-themed comedies. The movie established sex as a major theme by "blowing away the notion of what was permissible in film comedies." Gross-out humor became an idea that future comedies built the entire movie around. Animal House brought about the concept of slackers banding together as one unit to fight back against their oppressors. Finally, John Belushi's presence in the film helped launch the film career of many other SNL cast members.
    This article confirms the hypothesis that Animal House was a major turning point in comedic film. Unlike the other articles, which deal with the more theoretical and symbolic changes of the college comedy, this article cites tangible movie elements that movies adopted from Animal House. Five specific aspects: class warfare, marijuana, sex, gross-out humor, and the slackers, became notable recurring themes of future films. Though Animal House was certainly not the first film to have these elements in them, it created the new college stereotype, which almost always included all of these five elements. This article shows what makes up the new stereotype of college after Animal House.
 

    Umphlett credits the 1932 Marx Brothers film Horse Feathers as the main influence of Animal House. The Marx Brothers movie still remains one of the best films where both the institution of college and college-genre films face "equal shares of ridicule." (52) While many college-oriented films in the 70s used nostalgia (by placing the movie in a previous decade) to bring the audience a sense of sentimental feeling, Animal House had inspired movies that take pleasure in "singling out and deflating" everything that makes college life a unique time for a student. (166) The inspiration for the movie is based on the quintessentially American conflict of authority and self-expression, manifesting itself here in the feud between the educational leaders and the "renegade element" of the student population. (168) The characters do this by participating in an "anarchist devotion" to revolutionizing the other students through sexual pleasure. (166)      
    Umphlett's book contributes to thesis for two reasons. It introduces the idea that Horse Feathers was an influence for Animal House (a fact made true in many interviews with writer Harold Ramis and director john Landis). There is however, another source solely devoted to that movie. The other key contribution is the way which Umphlett defines Animal House's breaking of the myth of higher education as a practice in anarchy. While previous films celebrated the togetherness of the leaders of the education system and the students, Animal House defines itself by the conflict between the two. What's more important is that Umphlett defines this as an "American" conflict, giving it more strength and meaning than otherwise. This conflict between establishment and anarchy (along with Rich's sex) has become a basic staple of most college-themed movies since Animal House.