The Big Picture: Hollywood History 101: Part 1

[JakobBloch]

Damn it. I was so into this. For someone who takes his trivia in 2+ hours blocks this was really unsatisfying. Not unsatisfying in the "this was not good" way but unsatisfying in the "I need more" way. You know... the good way.

I look forward to the next instalment.

 

[Coldster]

So are those businessmen "robber barons" or intelligent entrepreneurs? I'd like to see an episode on that.

 

[TitsMcGee1804]

i didnt really see it in the sillouette but i was thinking the internet

I guess im getting ahed of myself, maybe that is for part 3 lolol

 

[chstens]

Ah, reminds me of the movie history 101 class I had in school. For me, this is nothing new, but it's always good with a refresher, and this is really good stuff.

 

[Daniel Floyd]

I've learned a few new things! Thanks for the history lesson.

 

[Draconalis]

More like: You're Bob
And that's part of the Big Picture.

 

[Jyggalag]

Another day, a little bit wiser. Thanks, Bob. Most episodes remind me of how young and oblivious I am. I mean that in the most positive way possible.

 

[vivster]

did not know that stuff... and do not regret knowing it now
nice educational watch
looking forward to next time

 

[scarab7]

Entertaining education! There's something you rarely see. Kind of getting sick of the fact Movie Bob has to put a disclaimer about his condensed histories. It's a summary (well the first part) of a industry which left a massive impact on global culture then and now... In under five minutes, don't think he can cover everything.

 

[tigermilk]

Fantastic. I love when you demonstrate your undeniable authority on the history of film and film criticism, Bob.

Was TV the main culprit though? I've read that the UK and other European film industries (especially the French and Italian) rose to dominance in the 1950s and 60s and posed a very real threat to Hollywood. I'm hoping you touch on that as well, as it's always interested me.

I agree, TV in the fifties and HBO in the seventies (PPV films) only had an effect on box ofice receipts (it is important to factor in TV becoming more affordable and the baby boomers moving to the suburbs).

As Falseprohet says there is an important European influence. A number of German/Jewish ex-patriots worked within the "studio system" bringing their own influence (the German Expressionistic influence upon "film noir" being the most overt). More important and timely was the rise of European art cinema in the fifties/sixties (Bergman, Fellini, Truffaut etc) fed a cine-literate audience looking for something with a more sophisticated dominant mode of address than typical Hollywood fare. This of course would inform the rise of post-classical/new Hollywood in the sixties and seventies where to some extent the gap between the two modes of production was closed to some extent.

 

[King Toasty]

Oooh, I'm learning knowledge. Movie knowledge.

 

[Callate]

Yeah, the studio system produced some excellent movies, but... Let's not forget that they also produced the four crappy movies they forced their theaters to show to get that excellent movie. I think between our here-and-now awareness of the volume of crap Hollywood shuffles on to us and the fact that you're more likely to see Sunset Boulevard or Casablanca on television than any of the movies MST3K mocks played straight often leads to a kind of rose-colored-glasses nostalgia that isn't an entirely accurate picture of the so-called "golden days". We're not going to be seeing a lot of rebroadcasting of Ecks vs. Sever in thirty years, either.

 

[The Grim Ace]

I just recently finished an Early Film History class and you were able to better explain all of that history in five minutes than my professor could in sixteen weeks. Yay Bob, loved the review.

 

[Redlin5_v1legacy]

Hehehe, this brings me back to my first year of University. Nice to see it condensed like this though! XD

 

[TitanAura]

It's understandable how much this relates to the history of animation (my expertise). Disney was another one of those "brilliant but diabolical" businessmen who absolutely dominated everything in the industry at least during the golden age of animation (1928-1941). Probably the most insidious of his tactics was gaining exclusive rights to Technicolor for 3 years so that no one else could use it and thereby shutting out every other studio at the time.

Not to say Disney was some kind of monster though. I'm just a former Disney employee who knew better than to accept the standard "Walt was a god among men" idealism that has penetrated every level of the Walt Disney Company over the years. Yes, the man innovated a relatively young medium FAR beyond its years and left a smoke trail for others to eventually follow, but he was also human. A terribly paranoid, blacklisting human.

Anywho, can't wait for part two. I expect Saturday morning cartoon serials will at least be part of the discussion. I'll be sure to add additional information in the comments section.

 

[daxterx2005]

thanks for the info bob