Hollywood's Golden Age

Basically, the studio system controls everything from production to showing included the actors. Actors who worked with a studio were under contract with that studio and could only act in that studio's production. These contracts were seven years long and forbids the actors from doing any other projects, like radio or television along with regulating the actor’s lives. The studio actors that were under contract were mostly white; minorities did not get much contracted work. The actors were required to act in whatever film they were cast, do publicity for their films, promote product tie-ins and occasionally even be loaned out to other studios for a film or two. The actors were working six days a week and often for about 14 hours a day. It may have been a hectic schedule but they were putting out 10 to 20 films a year. Studios had everyone under contract from the actors to the directors, from the writers to the technical staff. I think there was an up and down side to the studio system. On the good side, all the employees were under contract and everyone was available when they were needed. Films were getting produced at much faster rate than they are today. I would think there would be less conflict between actors and directors because everyone would have to

Even though a vast majority of us wish that it was possible to turn back the hands of time and change or rewrite history. However, the truth of the matter is that we simply cannot. Everything happens for a reason, and we should learn to accept it. Accept it for what it is, rather than what we would like it to be.

The film industry operates in a continuous cycle, searching for the newest and best pieces to make their movies creative, interesting, and marketable. Historically, the film industry attempts to follow a set structure in an attempt towards success in such a volatile market, however, this approach creates a system much like that of Ford’s Model-T production line, invented in the 1910s, which involved each worker on the line doing a single job. Only a few years later, during the 1920s and 1940s, the film industry showed that they adopted a similar approach to their industry, with each person—actor, director, producer, writer, etc.—performing a distinct role. In the late 1920s, as Hollywood transitioned from silent films to “talkies”, actors and actresses were met with the challenge of adapting to a new role and many of them no longer fit the role required by the growing Hollywood machine. The film Sunset Boulevard (Billy Wilder, 1950) explores and critiques the landscape of the hierarchy and harsh realities of Hollywood. In the same vein as many films of the film noir style, the mood of pessimism and fatalism reflected in the form parallels the reality of many people in Hollywood during the 1900s.

Glory is a movie about the 54th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment, one of the first official all black units in the United States during the Civil War. It’s an inspirational story of how a young Union soldier, Robert Gould Shaw, is offered the chance to lead an army unit that will change not only his life, but the lives of many other Americans.

The Golden Age of Hollywood was a time when Hollywood hit its peak successfully and economically, starting with the late 1920s, and met its decline due to corruption in the late 1950s. One would ask the question: “Where did the name Hollywood come from?” The name came from Harvey Henderson Wilcox and his wife, Daeida, who were owners of a small ranch west of Los Angeles. According to u-s-history.com, “Daeida, who, while on a train trip east met a woman that described her country home in Ohio, that had been named for the Dutch settlement of Hollywood. Liking the name, Daeida christened their ranch 'Hollywood,' upon her return.” (History of Hollywood, California) Movies during this time period became a vital form of entertainment for all Americans during this time period. By the 1910s, Hollywood was combined into its neighboring city Los Angeles, and many motion-picture studios began to open. Moviemakers rushed to Hollywood, and competition started to become widespread between directors and producers. By 1910, the first motion picture was made in Hollywood, titled In Old California, and soon enough, Los Angeles became second to New York in producing films also because of it’s quintessential weather for movies to be made in all year long during this time. As Hollywood began to industrialize, filmmakers began to work on the image of a “star”; they would continuously use these highly-paid actors in order to achieve a form of comfort for the general audience of the movies. Seeing

The 1930’s is remembered as the “Golden Age of Hollywood,” when the glamourous fashions sported by silver screen stars were all the rage. To look ladylike by day in silk, rayon, or lightweight cotton florals or art deco prints was the goal, while evenings demanded elegant backless ballroom gowns in velvet or

The "star system" was a method of developing and advancing the popularity of Hollywood movie stars. The system, which began during the height of the Hollywood studio system era, emphasized the image of the actor instead on the actual acting. The movie studio's profits were driven by the popularity of the stars that appeared in their films. According to Rocco, the stars had long term contracts with the movie studios that paid them a weekly salary, and the stars were identified with specific types of characters that would often be repeated in many movies. Belton stated that "the star provides the studio with a tangible attraction, an image that can be advertized and marketed, offsetting the less tangible qualities of the story, directing,

I believe that the United States is in its golden age. I feel this way because their culture has been able to spread to almost every corner of the globe. The first reasons why I think the west are in a golden age; western medicine is at its peak. At this time we have more powerful and concentrated medicines that can help or treat problems that humanity could not treat in the past. Modern medicine is the kind of medicine usually used by the common doctors and it is frequently referred to Western medicine. Western music is also getting a creep upon the world; it is becoming more and more popular throughout the world. Although other countries have world changing advancements in technology America is blowing other countries out of the water, and

Hollywood has influenced American history since it began. It boosted and shaped the morale of a nation for almost a century. But Hollywood has not only been the influencing American society, it has been influenced by American society. In the 1920s, American society was booming; people were getting rich, spending and borrowing money, and they thought life was looking good. Then in October of 1929 the stock market crashed. Many people lost all they owned. People had invested all their money into the banks before the Crash. After the Crash, the banks had nothing. People were destitute. They had no money to pay for their houses, electrical bills, and food. It became the Great Depression. Likewise, Hollywood was impacted by the Great

Such drastic change proved detrimental to the studio system, starting the path to its demise. “As production costs rose and an assured market was lost with the breakup of vertical integration, American studios produced fewer movies,” no longer feeling the need to have a frequent program change to encourage repeat theater visits since studios could not own theaters anymore (Bernstein 199). The system of long-term contracts binding actors to a specific studio also started fading, as “the structure of the studio system of the previous three decades ended… and [converted to] alternative methods of production and distribution, and stars, producers, and directors began to operate independently rather than contractually,” (McElhaney 146). Instead, talent agencies would find actors and a director and present them as a package for a studio to hire on a production (Kuntz, Lecture 10). Wihout block booking, each film had to be sellable on its own and therefore made the business very risky. Because every film was either a hit or miss, studios started looking for filmmakers and directors who would be unafraid of taking those risks, who tended to be

The film industry has always been somewhat of a dichotomy. Grounded firmly in both the worlds of art and business the balance of artistic expression and commercialization has been an issue throughout the history of filmmaking. The distinction of these two differing goals and the fact that neither has truly won out over the other in the span of the industry's existence, demonstrates a lot of information about the nature of capitalism.

In essence one could describe the Studio system as a particular method of filming, where the studios in hollywood were in complete control of the production and distribution of a particular film (Lewis 2008). During the Golden Age of film the studio system was at its peak. Five major companies dominated the world of movies, they all were conglomerates that owned the production, distribution of their films. In the Golden Age, censorship was also at the forefront of the studio system. Originally, censorship was determined by local boards, so began the self censhipric policies and procedures of the hollywood world.

Most people get to know their co-workers well...and sometimes working together can even lead to romance especially on Hollywood movie sets. Some of the most famous couples in Hollywood history met while making a film, including Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor, Joanne Woodward and Paul Newman, and Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt. Here's a look at the famous actors and actresses whose chemistry set off sparks on the

Leadership is when the leader’s prophetic vision of the future resonates with people’s beliefs and values in such a way that people can understand and interpret the future into present-time action steps which involves inspiring, energizing, and unifying people towards the pursuit of the vision. (Winston and Patterson 2006).

During the 1930’s the Chinese Film Industry underwent several improvements in film techniques; improvements in film quality and the advancements in sound quality, which led to this period being called the “Golden Age” of Chinese film. Some very important directors of the time were Sun Yu, Yonggang Wu and Muzhi Yuan saw the potential to educate the masses through the film Industry. This was done by highlighting the problems in society; such as inequality between the genders. This was done by showcasing the plight and struggles of the lower classes who struggled against society’s Confucian morality and values. The main areas that these directors focus upon in their films were social issues, class struggles and urbanisation which can be seen in their films, Daybreak (1933) a film about a traditional rural couple moving to cosmopolitan Shanghai only to be corrupted by the city. The Goddess (1935) follow the life of a mother forced into prostitution and her struggle to put her son through education. She suffers abuse from a “Boss” but also experiencing the social abuse and stigma attached to her work. Street Angel (1937) which follows a group of friends who help each other in their dire, poor circumstances and stand up against the oppression of being exploited by society. Through these three films, these famous leftist directors educate the nation on the issues of the time.