Description
Book SynopsisThis collection of thirteen essays and supporting primary documents explores how films have changed and been changed by American society. Each chapter covers a distinct period and contains an introduction, essay, discussion questions, primary documents, and suggestions for further reading and film screenings.
Table of ContentsPreface ix
Preface to the First Edition x
Source Acknowledgments xiii
Introduction: Why Movies Matter 1
1 Going to the Movies: Early Audiences 14
Introduction to Article 14
“The Celluloid Stage: Nickelodeon Audiences” by Richard Butsch 15
Documents 32
Introduction to Documents 32
“The Nickel Madness” by Barton W. Carrie 32
Report of Censorship of Motion Pictures and of Investigation of Motion Picture Theatres of Cleveland 38
by Robert O. Bartholomew
“House Fly Panics Pittsburgh Movie Audience” 40
Readings and Screenings 41
2 Heroes and Heroines of Their Own Entertainment: Progressive-Era Cinema 43
Introduction to Article 43
“Front Page Movies” by Kay Sloan 44
Documents 58
Introduction to Documents 58
“The Social Uses of the Moving Picture” by W. Stephen Bush 59
“Los Angeles Socialist Movie Theater” 62
Readings and Screenings 64
3 The Rise of Hollywood: Movies, Ideology, and Audiences in the Roaring Twenties 66
Introduction to Article 66
“Fantasy and Politics: Moviegoing and Movies in the 1920s” by Steven J. Ross 67
Documents 91
Introduction to Documents 91
“The Deluxe Picture Palace” by Lloyd Lewis 92
“Petting at the Movies” by E. J. Mitchell 94
“The Actor’s Part” by Milton Sills 95
Readings and Screenings 98
4 Who Controls What We See? Censorship and the Attack on Hollywood “Immorality” 100
Introduction to Article 100
“Hollywood Censored: The Production Code Administration and the Hollywood Film Industry, 1930–1940” by Gregory D. Black 101
Documents 123
Introduction to Documents 123
Quotes from Censorship of the Theater and Moving Pictures edited by Lamar T. Beman 123
Readings and Screenings 129
5 Confronting the Great Depression: Renewing Democracy in Hard Times 130
Introduction to Article 130
“The Recreation of America: Hybrid Moviemakers and the Multicultural Republic” by Lary May 131
Documents 160
Introduction to Documents 160
Responses to Edward G. Robinson’s “Declaration of Democratic Independence” 161
Readings and Screenings 163
6 Alternatives Cinemas: Movies on the Margins 165
Introduction to Article 165
“Others’ Movies” by Thomas Cripps 166
Documents 185
Introduction to Documents 185
“The Negro and the Photo-Play” by Oscar Micheaux 185
“‘The Symbol of the Unconquered,’ New Play” 187
“Some New American Documentaries: In Defense of Liberty” by John H. Winge 188
Readings and Screenings 191
7 Seeing Red: Cold War Hollywood 193
Introduction to Article 193
“Hollywood and the Cold War” by John Belton 194
Documents 214
Introduction to Documents 214
FBI Report, “Communist Political Influence and Activities in the Motion Picture Business in Hollywood, California” 215
“The Waldorf Statement,” Issued by the Association of Motion Picture Producers 219
Readings and Screenings 220
8 Eisenhower’s America: Prosperity and Problems in the 1950s 222
Introduction to Article 222
“The Fifties” by Leonard Quart and Albert Auster 223
Documents 242
Introduction to Documents 242
“Teen Idol: Hedda Hopper Interviews James Dean” 243
Reviews of Rebel Without a Cause 246
Readings and Screenings 249
9 Race, Violence, and Film: From the Blaxploitation Era of the 1960s to the “Hood-Homeboy” Movies of the 1990s 252
Introduction to Article 252
“Black Violence as Cinema: From Cheap Thrills to Historical Agonies” by Ed Guerrero 253
Documents 269
Introduction to Documents 269
Variety Reports Reactions to Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner? 269
“Blaxploitation Movies: Cheap Thrills That Degrade Blacks” by Alvin F. Poussaint 271
Readings and Screenings 274
10 Vietnam and the Crisis of American Power: Movies, War, and Militarism 277
Introduction to Article 277
“Vietnam and the New Militarism” by Michael Ryan and Douglas Kellner 278
Documents 300
Introduction to Documents 300
Correspondence Regarding the Making of The Green Berets 300
“Platoon Marks ‘End of a Cycle’ for Oliver Stone” by Sean Mitchell 302
“Reunion: Men of a Real Platoon” by Jay Sharbutt 306
Readings and Screenings 308
11 Reagan’s America: The Backlash Against Women and Men 310
Introduction to Article 310
“Fatal and Fetal Visions: The Backlash in the Movies” by Susan Faludi 311
Documents 333
Introduction to Documents 333
Equal Rights Amendment, 1972 334
“A Backlash Manifesto” by Phyllis Schlafly 334
“A New Stereotype: The Crazy Career Woman” by Richard Cohen 338
Readings and Screenings 339
12 American Film in the Age of Terror: The Wars in Afghanistan and Iraq 342
Introduction to Article 342
“Limited Engagement: The Iraq War on Film” by Susan L. Carruthers 343
Documents 358
Introduction to Documents 358
“Why Iraq War Films Fail” by Tom Streithorst 359
“Total Receipts and Production Costs for Films About Afghanistan and Iraq” by John Markert 362
Readings and Screenings 363
13 Hollywood Goes Global: The Internationalization of American Cinema 365
Introduction to Article 365
“Why Hollywood Rules the World, and Whether We Should Care” by Tyler Cowen 366
Documents 382
Introduction to Documents 382
Testimony Before Congressional Hearings on Television Broadcasting and the European Community 383
“Global Box Office Climb Continues in 2011” 385
Readings and Screenings 386
Index 389
