Charlotte Greenspan
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- September 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780195111101
- eISBN:
- 9780199865703
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195111101.003.0007
- Subject:
- Music, History, American
This chapter focuses on the Hollywood career of Dorothy Fields and Jimmy McHugh. McHugh and Fields went to Hollywood as a songwriting team, like Rodgers and Hart, or George and Ira Gershwin. They ...
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This chapter focuses on the Hollywood career of Dorothy Fields and Jimmy McHugh. McHugh and Fields went to Hollywood as a songwriting team, like Rodgers and Hart, or George and Ira Gershwin. They signed their first contract with MGM studios on October 3, 1929, just a few weeks before the stock market crash. The first film that Dorothy and Jimmy provided songs for, Love in the Rough (1930), was the sort of cheery fare that would become typical of musicals produced during the Depression.Less
This chapter focuses on the Hollywood career of Dorothy Fields and Jimmy McHugh. McHugh and Fields went to Hollywood as a songwriting team, like Rodgers and Hart, or George and Ira Gershwin. They signed their first contract with MGM studios on October 3, 1929, just a few weeks before the stock market crash. The first film that Dorothy and Jimmy provided songs for, Love in the Rough (1930), was the sort of cheery fare that would become typical of musicals produced during the Depression.
Richard Barrios
- Published in print:
- 2009
- Published Online:
- February 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780195377347
- eISBN:
- 9780199864577
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195377347.003.0015
- Subject:
- Music, Popular
Numerous factors accounted for the precipitous decline in musicals starting in mid-1930. The stock market crash and the Pathé studio fire in 1929 were dire omens, and the overabundance of backstage ...
More
Numerous factors accounted for the precipitous decline in musicals starting in mid-1930. The stock market crash and the Pathé studio fire in 1929 were dire omens, and the overabundance of backstage films and unsuitability of filmed revues and operettas played a prominent role. Songs were cut from a number of (former) musicals such as The Life of the Party, while some major projects were aborted shortly before shooting. Most calamitous was MGM's The March of Time, a lavish and shapeless revue that was tinkered with incessantly and finally abandoned, a symbol of the hubris and miscalculation of the era.Less
Numerous factors accounted for the precipitous decline in musicals starting in mid-1930. The stock market crash and the Pathé studio fire in 1929 were dire omens, and the overabundance of backstage films and unsuitability of filmed revues and operettas played a prominent role. Songs were cut from a number of (former) musicals such as The Life of the Party, while some major projects were aborted shortly before shooting. Most calamitous was MGM's The March of Time, a lavish and shapeless revue that was tinkered with incessantly and finally abandoned, a symbol of the hubris and miscalculation of the era.
Richard Barrios
- Published in print:
- 2009
- Published Online:
- February 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780195377347
- eISBN:
- 9780199864577
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195377347.003.0004
- Subject:
- Music, Popular
The Broadway Melody, produced by MGM, is the first true musical film. Unlike other films preceding (and following it), it was constructed with meticulous care directed toward both ...
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The Broadway Melody, produced by MGM, is the first true musical film. Unlike other films preceding (and following it), it was constructed with meticulous care directed toward both the technology and the audience. The film's huge success can be seen as the watershed that established sound film as viable entertainment, instead of a Jolson-style showcase or stunt. The film's use of early two-color Technicolor was extremely influential, as was its use of a newly-written musical score by Nacio Herb Brown and Arthur Freed. Its central performance, by Bessie Love, was vital in forging new paths for vocal acting on the screen. While its backstage story spawned scores of imitators, it would retain a powerful hold on its audiences' affections.Less
The Broadway Melody, produced by MGM, is the first true musical film. Unlike other films preceding (and following it), it was constructed with meticulous care directed toward both the technology and the audience. The film's huge success can be seen as the watershed that established sound film as viable entertainment, instead of a Jolson-style showcase or stunt. The film's use of early two-color Technicolor was extremely influential, as was its use of a newly-written musical score by Nacio Herb Brown and Arthur Freed. Its central performance, by Bessie Love, was vital in forging new paths for vocal acting on the screen. While its backstage story spawned scores of imitators, it would retain a powerful hold on its audiences' affections.
Richard Barrios
- Published in print:
- 2009
- Published Online:
- February 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780195377347
- eISBN:
- 9780199864577
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195377347.003.0008
- Subject:
- Music, Popular
Another distinctive trend was the all-star revue film, as produced by most of the major studios. Each would serve as a guidepost to its company's reigning aesthetic as it addressed the new world of ...
More
Another distinctive trend was the all-star revue film, as produced by most of the major studios. Each would serve as a guidepost to its company's reigning aesthetic as it addressed the new world of sound films. With The Hollywood Revue, MGM triumphed through a wise use of stars and production knowhow. With Show of Shows, Warner Bros. failed through a misspent budget and indifferent material. While Fox's Happy Days was tepid, Paramount on Parade was witty and resourceful. Universal's King of Jazz, by far the most spectacular of the revues, found artistic success at the expense of diminished audience favor. Seldom, after 1930, would such work ever be tried again.Less
Another distinctive trend was the all-star revue film, as produced by most of the major studios. Each would serve as a guidepost to its company's reigning aesthetic as it addressed the new world of sound films. With The Hollywood Revue, MGM triumphed through a wise use of stars and production knowhow. With Show of Shows, Warner Bros. failed through a misspent budget and indifferent material. While Fox's Happy Days was tepid, Paramount on Parade was witty and resourceful. Universal's King of Jazz, by far the most spectacular of the revues, found artistic success at the expense of diminished audience favor. Seldom, after 1930, would such work ever be tried again.
Jeffrey Spivak
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- September 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780813126432
- eISBN:
- 9780813135663
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University Press of Kentucky
- DOI:
- 10.5810/kentucky/9780813126432.003.0016
- Subject:
- Film, Television and Radio, Film
Buzz and Eta moved to Palm Desert, 140 miles east of Hollywood. They settled for a quieter life, less demanding, in a climate that suited them both. Weather notwithstanding, the fact was that the ...
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Buzz and Eta moved to Palm Desert, 140 miles east of Hollywood. They settled for a quieter life, less demanding, in a climate that suited them both. Weather notwithstanding, the fact was that the Palm Desert abode made Buzz happy. Despite years of inactivity, Buzz retained his membership in the Directors Guild of America. Jumbo had a choppy history. For this film, Buzz's first in almost eight years, his credit was to be “second unit director”. But, Buzz had nothing to do with Jumbo's ultimately disappointing finale, “Sawdust and Spangles and Dreams”. Buzz was correct in his assessment. The film opened in December 1962 to middling reviews and seriously underperforming ticket sales. Buzz returned to the desert and kept himself busy dictating new story ideas to a professional secretary. There were three titles that never found a publisher, if publication was ever pursued.Less
Buzz and Eta moved to Palm Desert, 140 miles east of Hollywood. They settled for a quieter life, less demanding, in a climate that suited them both. Weather notwithstanding, the fact was that the Palm Desert abode made Buzz happy. Despite years of inactivity, Buzz retained his membership in the Directors Guild of America. Jumbo had a choppy history. For this film, Buzz's first in almost eight years, his credit was to be “second unit director”. But, Buzz had nothing to do with Jumbo's ultimately disappointing finale, “Sawdust and Spangles and Dreams”. Buzz was correct in his assessment. The film opened in December 1962 to middling reviews and seriously underperforming ticket sales. Buzz returned to the desert and kept himself busy dictating new story ideas to a professional secretary. There were three titles that never found a publisher, if publication was ever pursued.
Joseph McBride
- Published in print:
- 2013
- Published Online:
- May 2014
- ISBN:
- 9780813142623
- eISBN:
- 9780813145242
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University Press of Kentucky
- DOI:
- 10.5810/kentucky/9780813142623.003.0012
- Subject:
- Film, Television and Radio, Film
This chapter deals with Hawks’ work for MGM, focusing on the film Viva Villa!. He talks about Irving Thalberg, the difficulties of filming in a violent part of Mexico, his experiences with guns, and ...
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This chapter deals with Hawks’ work for MGM, focusing on the film Viva Villa!. He talks about Irving Thalberg, the difficulties of filming in a violent part of Mexico, his experiences with guns, and his uncredited work on the MGM film The Prizefighter and the Lady.Less
This chapter deals with Hawks’ work for MGM, focusing on the film Viva Villa!. He talks about Irving Thalberg, the difficulties of filming in a violent part of Mexico, his experiences with guns, and his uncredited work on the MGM film The Prizefighter and the Lady.
Tom Mankiewicz
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- September 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780813136059
- eISBN:
- 9780813141169
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University Press of Kentucky
- DOI:
- 10.5810/kentucky/9780813136059.003.0011
- Subject:
- Film, Television and Radio, Film
Tom has the best filming experience, Delirious, and some of the worst, Taking the Heat and a film with Burt Reynolds which never gets off the ground. Mankiewicz is getting tired of dealing with ...
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Tom has the best filming experience, Delirious, and some of the worst, Taking the Heat and a film with Burt Reynolds which never gets off the ground. Mankiewicz is getting tired of dealing with agents and producers - the suits. He'd rather be on a film set with gafers, makeup artists, actors, script supervisors. His father, Joe, passes away in 1993. Mankiewicz reflects on what he learned from papa Joe.Less
Tom has the best filming experience, Delirious, and some of the worst, Taking the Heat and a film with Burt Reynolds which never gets off the ground. Mankiewicz is getting tired of dealing with agents and producers - the suits. He'd rather be on a film set with gafers, makeup artists, actors, script supervisors. His father, Joe, passes away in 1993. Mankiewicz reflects on what he learned from papa Joe.
Danielle Birkett and Dominic McHugh (eds)
- Published in print:
- 2019
- Published Online:
- December 2018
- ISBN:
- 9780190663179
- eISBN:
- 9780190663216
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/oso/9780190663179.001.0001
- Subject:
- Music, Popular
This new multiauthor volume will examine The Wizard of Oz and its surrounding culture, centering on three areas of study: early adaptations of Baum’s novels, insights into the MGM film, and the ...
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This new multiauthor volume will examine The Wizard of Oz and its surrounding culture, centering on three areas of study: early adaptations of Baum’s novels, insights into the MGM film, and the legacy of The Wizard of Oz on the popular stage. Although the articles will devote some attention to the genesis of the musical and the biographical profiles of the creative team, the book will prioritize critical and analytical readings. Authors will primarily illuminate the reasons why The Wizard of Oz has become iconic in the history of the movie musical, acknowledging the great lengths to which MGM went in making it an exceptional project, and why it continues to hold so much appeal in the twenty-first century. The development of the score will receive particularly close attention, filling an important gap in the literature and addressing the fact that the songs are key to the movie’s popularity. Two central chapters will address the music in the MGM film, considering the interaction between the songs and the underscore, and also reflecting on the enduring appeal of the musical numbers. But the significance of the music in early stage productions and later reinterpretations will also be given careful attention: several of the authors will question how the music is employed alongside other components—on stage and screen—and to what effect. Ultimately, the book will incorporate a variety of scholarly approaches, to present an authoritative and engaging understanding of one of the most significant movie musicals that will appeal to film lovers and academics alike.Less
This new multiauthor volume will examine The Wizard of Oz and its surrounding culture, centering on three areas of study: early adaptations of Baum’s novels, insights into the MGM film, and the legacy of The Wizard of Oz on the popular stage. Although the articles will devote some attention to the genesis of the musical and the biographical profiles of the creative team, the book will prioritize critical and analytical readings. Authors will primarily illuminate the reasons why The Wizard of Oz has become iconic in the history of the movie musical, acknowledging the great lengths to which MGM went in making it an exceptional project, and why it continues to hold so much appeal in the twenty-first century. The development of the score will receive particularly close attention, filling an important gap in the literature and addressing the fact that the songs are key to the movie’s popularity. Two central chapters will address the music in the MGM film, considering the interaction between the songs and the underscore, and also reflecting on the enduring appeal of the musical numbers. But the significance of the music in early stage productions and later reinterpretations will also be given careful attention: several of the authors will question how the music is employed alongside other components—on stage and screen—and to what effect. Ultimately, the book will incorporate a variety of scholarly approaches, to present an authoritative and engaging understanding of one of the most significant movie musicals that will appeal to film lovers and academics alike.
Gerald Horne
- Published in print:
- 2006
- Published Online:
- March 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780520243729
- eISBN:
- 9780520939936
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of California Press
- DOI:
- 10.1525/california/9780520243729.003.0005
- Subject:
- History, American History: 20th Century
John Howard Lawson was torn apart with conflict and inner doubt, even though his life was driving inescapably to a resolution. Harold Clurman “watched with shock and anger” as Lawson was upbraided by ...
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John Howard Lawson was torn apart with conflict and inner doubt, even though his life was driving inescapably to a resolution. Harold Clurman “watched with shock and anger” as Lawson was upbraided by Communists and leftists at a meeting of the radical John Reed Club. Though Clurman had become not only a staunch supporter but one of his severest critics, it was scathing criticism from another corner that pushed Lawson definitely and defiantly toward a more unbendable commitment. Organizing writers and sojourning in the South deepened his “conviction that commitment is essential to the artist's creative growth; what we call the sensibility of the artist is deadened if he does not respond generously to the human reality that surrounds him; to observe and report, to laugh or weep, are not enough.” Lawson was “fired” from MGM because of his union organizing. Still, he was “popular” as a union leader.Less
John Howard Lawson was torn apart with conflict and inner doubt, even though his life was driving inescapably to a resolution. Harold Clurman “watched with shock and anger” as Lawson was upbraided by Communists and leftists at a meeting of the radical John Reed Club. Though Clurman had become not only a staunch supporter but one of his severest critics, it was scathing criticism from another corner that pushed Lawson definitely and defiantly toward a more unbendable commitment. Organizing writers and sojourning in the South deepened his “conviction that commitment is essential to the artist's creative growth; what we call the sensibility of the artist is deadened if he does not respond generously to the human reality that surrounds him; to observe and report, to laugh or weep, are not enough.” Lawson was “fired” from MGM because of his union organizing. Still, he was “popular” as a union leader.
Philip Furia and Laurie Patterson
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780195337082
- eISBN:
- 9780199852789
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195337082.003.0002
- Subject:
- Music, Popular
In January of 1929, Paramount released its first all-talking picture, and in March Fox announced its decision to produce films. MGM was one of the last to produce sound films, not even making ...
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In January of 1929, Paramount released its first all-talking picture, and in March Fox announced its decision to produce films. MGM was one of the last to produce sound films, not even making part-talkies until 1929. And in 1928, the head of the production of MGM, Thalberg, initially saw sound as merely an adjunct to silent film. Thalberg, together with his brother-in-law, added a synchronized score as well as sound effects to the other silent film, and in the same year he ordered the reshooting of two reels of the completed silent movie ;Alias Jimmy Valentine. Thalberg realized how profoundly sound could transform movies. Once Thalberg did realize the appeal of sound in film, however, it was not song but dialogue that intrigued him, and so he started reading “Whoopee” by Edmund Goulding. As his enthusiasm for “Whoopee” grew, he decided to make it an all-talkie film to which he added original songs.Less
In January of 1929, Paramount released its first all-talking picture, and in March Fox announced its decision to produce films. MGM was one of the last to produce sound films, not even making part-talkies until 1929. And in 1928, the head of the production of MGM, Thalberg, initially saw sound as merely an adjunct to silent film. Thalberg, together with his brother-in-law, added a synchronized score as well as sound effects to the other silent film, and in the same year he ordered the reshooting of two reels of the completed silent movie ;Alias Jimmy Valentine. Thalberg realized how profoundly sound could transform movies. Once Thalberg did realize the appeal of sound in film, however, it was not song but dialogue that intrigued him, and so he started reading “Whoopee” by Edmund Goulding. As his enthusiasm for “Whoopee” grew, he decided to make it an all-talkie film to which he added original songs.
Philip Furia and Laurie Patterson
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780195337082
- eISBN:
- 9780199852789
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195337082.003.0007
- Subject:
- Music, Popular
MGM had created and presented songs imaginatively and lavishly. Arthur Freed, a lyricist and producer, had brought a songwriter's understanding to how song should be presented in film. Freed imparted ...
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MGM had created and presented songs imaginatively and lavishly. Arthur Freed, a lyricist and producer, had brought a songwriter's understanding to how song should be presented in film. Freed imparted to MGM his experience, earned in traveling all over the world, to acquire a taste and knowledge for music and art. Freed found a position as an assistant director at Paramount, where he also played mood music on the sets. He and Brown wrote “Singin' in the Rain” for the 1927 edition of the annual Hollywood Music Box Revue, and after two years, Irving Thalberg hired the two songwriters to write the score for MGM's Broadway Melody. In 1934, while he was still a staff lyricist at MGM, Freed hired a young piano player and vocal arranger named Roger Edens. Freed and Edens shared the conviction that song must be integral, expressive, and dramatic.Less
MGM had created and presented songs imaginatively and lavishly. Arthur Freed, a lyricist and producer, had brought a songwriter's understanding to how song should be presented in film. Freed imparted to MGM his experience, earned in traveling all over the world, to acquire a taste and knowledge for music and art. Freed found a position as an assistant director at Paramount, where he also played mood music on the sets. He and Brown wrote “Singin' in the Rain” for the 1927 edition of the annual Hollywood Music Box Revue, and after two years, Irving Thalberg hired the two songwriters to write the score for MGM's Broadway Melody. In 1934, while he was still a staff lyricist at MGM, Freed hired a young piano player and vocal arranger named Roger Edens. Freed and Edens shared the conviction that song must be integral, expressive, and dramatic.
Eve Golden
- Published in print:
- 2013
- Published Online:
- September 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780813141626
- eISBN:
- 9780813142579
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University Press of Kentucky
- DOI:
- 10.5810/kentucky/9780813141626.003.0006
- Subject:
- Film, Television and Radio, Film
John Gilbert's first year at MGM (1924), starring in such hits as He Who Gets Slapped (with Lon Chaney), His Hour, The Snob (with Norma Shearer, who became a lifelong friend). Bacground on MGM, Louis ...
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John Gilbert's first year at MGM (1924), starring in such hits as He Who Gets Slapped (with Lon Chaney), His Hour, The Snob (with Norma Shearer, who became a lifelong friend). Bacground on MGM, Louis B. Mayer, Irving Thalberg, and Gilbert's costars and competition at the studio. His marriage to Leatrice Joy ends in 1924.Less
John Gilbert's first year at MGM (1924), starring in such hits as He Who Gets Slapped (with Lon Chaney), His Hour, The Snob (with Norma Shearer, who became a lifelong friend). Bacground on MGM, Louis B. Mayer, Irving Thalberg, and Gilbert's costars and competition at the studio. His marriage to Leatrice Joy ends in 1924.
Eve Golden
- Published in print:
- 2013
- Published Online:
- September 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780813141626
- eISBN:
- 9780813142579
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University Press of Kentucky
- DOI:
- 10.5810/kentucky/9780813141626.003.0007
- Subject:
- Film, Television and Radio, Film
John Gilbert has his two first big hits, the World War drama The Big Parade and Erich von Stroheim's The Merry Widow (both 1925), rocketing him to stardom. At the top of the heap, he costars with ...
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John Gilbert has his two first big hits, the World War drama The Big Parade and Erich von Stroheim's The Merry Widow (both 1925), rocketing him to stardom. At the top of the heap, he costars with Lillian Gish in La Boheme. He buys a movie-star mansion on Tower Grove Drive, in which he will live for the rest of his life.Less
John Gilbert has his two first big hits, the World War drama The Big Parade and Erich von Stroheim's The Merry Widow (both 1925), rocketing him to stardom. At the top of the heap, he costars with Lillian Gish in La Boheme. He buys a movie-star mansion on Tower Grove Drive, in which he will live for the rest of his life.
Eve Golden
- Published in print:
- 2013
- Published Online:
- September 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780813141626
- eISBN:
- 9780813142579
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University Press of Kentucky
- DOI:
- 10.5810/kentucky/9780813141626.003.0008
- Subject:
- Film, Television and Radio, Film
In 1926, John Gilbert costars with Greta Garbo in Flesh and the Devil, and the two embark on an affair that sets Hollywood on its ear. Background on Garbo, and the truth about the supposed "broken ...
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In 1926, John Gilbert costars with Greta Garbo in Flesh and the Devil, and the two embark on an affair that sets Hollywood on its ear. Background on Garbo, and the truth about the supposed "broken engagement" in Sept. 1926 that led to a much-debated fistfight with Mayer. This was, according to legend, the beginning of the end for Gilbert at MGM.Less
In 1926, John Gilbert costars with Greta Garbo in Flesh and the Devil, and the two embark on an affair that sets Hollywood on its ear. Background on Garbo, and the truth about the supposed "broken engagement" in Sept. 1926 that led to a much-debated fistfight with Mayer. This was, according to legend, the beginning of the end for Gilbert at MGM.
Jeffrey Spivak
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- September 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780813126432
- eISBN:
- 9780813135663
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University Press of Kentucky
- DOI:
- 10.5810/kentucky/9780813126432.003.0009
- Subject:
- Film, Television and Radio, Film
Buzz made the move to Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) with none of the grief he had suffered from Sam Goldwyn under similar circumstances. The Wizard of Oz notwithstanding, Buzz's first true test at MGM ...
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Buzz made the move to Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) with none of the grief he had suffered from Sam Goldwyn under similar circumstances. The Wizard of Oz notwithstanding, Buzz's first true test at MGM was Broadway Serenade. Soon after Broadway Serenade wrapped, Buzz got his first assignment: a job directing two of the biggest movie stars in the world, Mickey Rooney and Judy Garland. The studio screening of Babes in Arms went well, and Louis B. Mayer was pleased. Meanwhile Gertrude liked Claire James. Busby Berkeley, then forty-six years old, married Claire James, then twenty-two years old, in Las Vegas on March 29, 1942. Whatever was said or written about Buzz, it is to his credit that he never, on the record, spoke deprecatingly about anyone. The news got worse for Buzz. Despite the numerous comments on the record about his marital tranquility, Claire James-Berkeley instructed her lawyer to file divorce papers just weeks after Buzz's dismissal from Girl Crazy.Less
Buzz made the move to Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) with none of the grief he had suffered from Sam Goldwyn under similar circumstances. The Wizard of Oz notwithstanding, Buzz's first true test at MGM was Broadway Serenade. Soon after Broadway Serenade wrapped, Buzz got his first assignment: a job directing two of the biggest movie stars in the world, Mickey Rooney and Judy Garland. The studio screening of Babes in Arms went well, and Louis B. Mayer was pleased. Meanwhile Gertrude liked Claire James. Busby Berkeley, then forty-six years old, married Claire James, then twenty-two years old, in Las Vegas on March 29, 1942. Whatever was said or written about Buzz, it is to his credit that he never, on the record, spoke deprecatingly about anyone. The news got worse for Buzz. Despite the numerous comments on the record about his marital tranquility, Claire James-Berkeley instructed her lawyer to file divorce papers just weeks after Buzz's dismissal from Girl Crazy.
Daniel Goldmark
- Published in print:
- 2005
- Published Online:
- May 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780520236172
- eISBN:
- 9780520941205
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- University of California Press
- DOI:
- 10.1525/california/9780520236172.001.0001
- Subject:
- Music, History, American
This book presents an examination of music written for Hollywood animated cartoons of the 1930s through the 1950s. Enormous creative effort went into setting cartoons to music, and this effort shaped ...
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This book presents an examination of music written for Hollywood animated cartoons of the 1930s through the 1950s. Enormous creative effort went into setting cartoons to music, and this effort shaped the characters and stories that have become embedded in American culture. Focusing on classical music, opera, and jazz, the book considers the genre and compositional style of cartoons produced by major Hollywood animation studios, including Warner Bros., MGM, Lantz, and the Fleischer studios. It discusses several well-known cartoons in detail, including What's Opera, Doc?, the 1957 Warner Bros. parody of Wagner and opera that is one of the most popular cartoons ever created. The book pays particular attention to the work of Carl Stalling and Scott Bradley, arguably the two most influential composers of music for theatrical cartoons. Though their musical backgrounds and approaches to scoring differed greatly, Stalling and Bradley together established a unique sound for animated comedies that has not changed in more than seventy years. Using a range of sources including cue sheets, scores, informal interviews, and articles from hard-to-find journals, the book evaluates how music works in an animated universe. Reminding readers of the larger context in which films are produced and viewed, it looks at how studios employed culturally charged music to inspire their stories, and explores the degree to which composers integrated stylistic elements of jazz and the classics into their scores.Less
This book presents an examination of music written for Hollywood animated cartoons of the 1930s through the 1950s. Enormous creative effort went into setting cartoons to music, and this effort shaped the characters and stories that have become embedded in American culture. Focusing on classical music, opera, and jazz, the book considers the genre and compositional style of cartoons produced by major Hollywood animation studios, including Warner Bros., MGM, Lantz, and the Fleischer studios. It discusses several well-known cartoons in detail, including What's Opera, Doc?, the 1957 Warner Bros. parody of Wagner and opera that is one of the most popular cartoons ever created. The book pays particular attention to the work of Carl Stalling and Scott Bradley, arguably the two most influential composers of music for theatrical cartoons. Though their musical backgrounds and approaches to scoring differed greatly, Stalling and Bradley together established a unique sound for animated comedies that has not changed in more than seventy years. Using a range of sources including cue sheets, scores, informal interviews, and articles from hard-to-find journals, the book evaluates how music works in an animated universe. Reminding readers of the larger context in which films are produced and viewed, it looks at how studios employed culturally charged music to inspire their stories, and explores the degree to which composers integrated stylistic elements of jazz and the classics into their scores.
Ronny Regev
- Published in print:
- 2018
- Published Online:
- May 2019
- ISBN:
- 9781469636504
- eISBN:
- 9781469636771
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of North Carolina Press
- DOI:
- 10.5149/northcarolina/9781469636504.003.0001
- Subject:
- History, American History: 20th Century
This chapter provides an overview of the main themes of the book. It explains Working in Hollywood’s main objective: to redraw the glamorous image of Hollywood and demonstrate that the film ...
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This chapter provides an overview of the main themes of the book. It explains Working in Hollywood’s main objective: to redraw the glamorous image of Hollywood and demonstrate that the film industry’s golden age (1920-1950) was not only defined by film content and celebrities but also by the people employed in the studio system, their work practices, and interactions on the job. It suggests there is much to learn by shifting our gaze from the pictures to the people who made them. In addition, the chapter offers a short timeline of the studio system, from the formation of Paramount, MGM, Twentieth Century-Fox, and RKO – the five vertically integrated major companies, in the 1920s, to the system’s disintegration in the 1950s.Less
This chapter provides an overview of the main themes of the book. It explains Working in Hollywood’s main objective: to redraw the glamorous image of Hollywood and demonstrate that the film industry’s golden age (1920-1950) was not only defined by film content and celebrities but also by the people employed in the studio system, their work practices, and interactions on the job. It suggests there is much to learn by shifting our gaze from the pictures to the people who made them. In addition, the chapter offers a short timeline of the studio system, from the formation of Paramount, MGM, Twentieth Century-Fox, and RKO – the five vertically integrated major companies, in the 1920s, to the system’s disintegration in the 1950s.
Michael Sragow
- Published in print:
- 2013
- Published Online:
- January 2015
- ISBN:
- 9780813144412
- eISBN:
- 9780813145235
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University Press of Kentucky
- DOI:
- 10.5810/kentucky/9780813144412.003.0014
- Subject:
- Film, Television and Radio, Film
Fleming signed a lucrative contract with MGM in 1931. He met and befriended screenwriter John Lee Mahin, and the two would go on to become one of the best-known screenwriter/director pairs of their ...
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Fleming signed a lucrative contract with MGM in 1931. He met and befriended screenwriter John Lee Mahin, and the two would go on to become one of the best-known screenwriter/director pairs of their time. Mahin and Fleming revitalized the play Red Dust into the smash-hit movie of the same name in 1932. It starred Clark Gable, who became an even bigger star thanks to his work with Fleming. Fleming found romance with friend Lu Rossen. As Rossen’s marriage fell apart, she and Fleming began an affair.Less
Fleming signed a lucrative contract with MGM in 1931. He met and befriended screenwriter John Lee Mahin, and the two would go on to become one of the best-known screenwriter/director pairs of their time. Mahin and Fleming revitalized the play Red Dust into the smash-hit movie of the same name in 1932. It starred Clark Gable, who became an even bigger star thanks to his work with Fleming. Fleming found romance with friend Lu Rossen. As Rossen’s marriage fell apart, she and Fleming began an affair.
Barry Langford
- Published in print:
- 2009
- Published Online:
- September 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780748638574
- eISBN:
- 9780748671076
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Edinburgh University Press
- DOI:
- 10.3366/edinburgh/9780748638574.003.0006
- Subject:
- Film, Television and Radio, Film
During the mid-1960s, the Hollywood film industry seemed more becalmed than in crisis. Yet overall there was little sense of dynamism or innovation. The films of the European New Waves were causing ...
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During the mid-1960s, the Hollywood film industry seemed more becalmed than in crisis. Yet overall there was little sense of dynamism or innovation. The films of the European New Waves were causing enormous excitement at festivals and art houses, but how such radical departures from convention could be imported into the American commercial film industry was unclear. Meanwhile, television was no longer the upstart newcomer but a ubiquitous presence in American culture and economy, and a crucial financial lifeline for the struggling Hollywood behemoths such as MGM, Walt Disney, Paramount, and Columbia. In October 1966, Charles Bluhdorn's industrial conglomerate Gulf and Western Industries, Inc. (Gulf + Western) bought Paramount for $144 million, setting off a wave of such buyouts. By the end of the decade only Columbia, Disney and Fox would remain as independent film companies. Alongside the vaunted emergence of an American art cinema, a less heralded but ultimately more influential trend was also taking shape: the shift away from traditional genres and towards both the forms and the associated practices of exploitation film.Less
During the mid-1960s, the Hollywood film industry seemed more becalmed than in crisis. Yet overall there was little sense of dynamism or innovation. The films of the European New Waves were causing enormous excitement at festivals and art houses, but how such radical departures from convention could be imported into the American commercial film industry was unclear. Meanwhile, television was no longer the upstart newcomer but a ubiquitous presence in American culture and economy, and a crucial financial lifeline for the struggling Hollywood behemoths such as MGM, Walt Disney, Paramount, and Columbia. In October 1966, Charles Bluhdorn's industrial conglomerate Gulf and Western Industries, Inc. (Gulf + Western) bought Paramount for $144 million, setting off a wave of such buyouts. By the end of the decade only Columbia, Disney and Fox would remain as independent film companies. Alongside the vaunted emergence of an American art cinema, a less heralded but ultimately more influential trend was also taking shape: the shift away from traditional genres and towards both the forms and the associated practices of exploitation film.
Daniel Goldmark
- Published in print:
- 2005
- Published Online:
- May 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780520236172
- eISBN:
- 9780520941205
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of California Press
- DOI:
- 10.1525/california/9780520236172.003.0001
- Subject:
- Music, History, American
Cartoons are typically lumped together as a self-contained genre because they happen to have been created through the same process: animation. The medium of animation requires that music for cartoons ...
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Cartoons are typically lumped together as a self-contained genre because they happen to have been created through the same process: animation. The medium of animation requires that music for cartoons be conceived and constructed differently than traditional feature film music. We can best see these differences by examining two issues: who helped to establish the paradigmatic sound of Hollywood cartoons, and how music was used to enhance and intensify cartoons as a whole. This book presents a set of case studies rather than an all-encompassing history of cartoon music, focusing on two broad ideas: genre and compositional style. It discusses the methods of Carl Stalling and Scott Bradley, who it considers to be the two most influential composers of music for theatrical cartoons, at the one studio where each had the most historical significance. For Bradley, that studio is necessarily MGM; for Stalling, a choice is possible. The book concentrates on Warner Bros., where Stalling came into his own as a composer and employed popular music in his scores.Less
Cartoons are typically lumped together as a self-contained genre because they happen to have been created through the same process: animation. The medium of animation requires that music for cartoons be conceived and constructed differently than traditional feature film music. We can best see these differences by examining two issues: who helped to establish the paradigmatic sound of Hollywood cartoons, and how music was used to enhance and intensify cartoons as a whole. This book presents a set of case studies rather than an all-encompassing history of cartoon music, focusing on two broad ideas: genre and compositional style. It discusses the methods of Carl Stalling and Scott Bradley, who it considers to be the two most influential composers of music for theatrical cartoons, at the one studio where each had the most historical significance. For Bradley, that studio is necessarily MGM; for Stalling, a choice is possible. The book concentrates on Warner Bros., where Stalling came into his own as a composer and employed popular music in his scores.
