Research Catalog

Title

The genius of the system : Hollywood filmmaking in the studio era / Thomas Schatz.

Author

Schatz, Thomas, 1948-

Publication

New York, N.Y. : Henry Holt and Company, 1996.

Items in the Library & Off-site

Details

Description

xiv, 514 p. : ill.; 24 cm.

Summary

"At a time when the studio is making a stunning comeback, film historian Thomas Schatz provides an indispensable account of Hollywood's traditional blend of business and art. This book lays to rest the persistent myth that businesspeople and producers stifle artistic talent and reveals instead the genius of a system of collaboration and conflict. Working from industry documents, Schatz traces the development of house styles, the rise and fall of careers, and the making-and unmaking-of movies, from Frankenstein to Spellbound to Grand Hotel. Richly illustrated and highly readable, The Genius of the System gives the definitive view of the workings of the Old Hollywood and the foundations of the New."--Publisher's description.

Subjects

• History
• Motion picture studios > California > Los Angeles > History
• Motion picture industry > California > Los Angeles > History
• Motion pictures > California > Los Angeles > History

Genre/Form

History

Note

• "A Metro paperback."
• Originally published: 1st ed. New York : Pantheon Books, 1989. With new pref.

Bibliography (note)

• Includes bibliographical references (p. 493-507) and index.

Processing Action (note)

• committed to retain

Contents

Acknowledgments -- Preface: The Center of Gravity -- Introduction: "The Whole Equation of Pictures" -- Pt. I. The 1920s: Beginnings -- 1. Universal: The System Takes Shape -- 2. MGM: Dawn of the Thalberg Era -- 3. Selznick at MGM: Climbing the Executive Ranks -- 4. Warner Bros.: Talking Their Way to the Top -- Pt. II. 1928-1932: The Powers That Be -- 5. Selznick at Paramount: From Boom to Bust -- 6. Universal: Renaissance and Retrenchment -- 7. MGM and Thalberg: Alone at the Top -- 8. Selznick at RKO: At the Helm of a Foundering Studio -- 9. Warner Bros.: The Zanuck Era -- Pt. III. The 1930s: Golden Age -- 10. MGM in the Mid-Thirties: Charmed Interval -- 11. Selznick International Pictures: Going Independent -- 12. Warner Bros.: Power Plays and Prestige -- 13. Universal: Playing Both Ends Against the Middle -- 14. MGM: Life After Thalberg -- 15. Selznick and Hitchcock: Balance of Power -- Pt. IV. 1941-1946: War Boom -- 16. Warner Bros.: Warfare at Home and Abroad -- 17. David O. Selznick Productions: Packaging Prestige -- 18. Universal: The Best of Both Worlds -- 19. MGM: The High Cost of Quality -- 20. Selznick and Hitchcock: Separate Ways -- Pt. V. 1947-1960: Decline -- 21. Warner Bros.: Top of the World, End of the Line -- 22. MGM: Last Gasp of the Studio Era -- 23. Universal: Blueprint for the Television Age -- 24. Epilogue: Into the New Hollywood -- Notes on Sources -- Photograph Credits -- Index.

ISBN

0805046666 (acid-free paper)

LCCN

^^^96001707^

OCLC

• 34078123
• SCSB-10520131

Owning Institutions

Harvard Library