Hollywood History

In the early 1900’s, as films stated centering their focus on profit, large scale studios came onto the film scene. The studios that were discussed in the chapter were: Universal, United Artists, Paramount, Warner Bros, MGM, Fox, Columbia, and RKO. These studios employed some of the biggest names in the film world at the time. Many of these studios are still in business today, and have given prominent actors and directors their shot at fame. Universal was the first studio to move to the west coast. They produced popular films such as The

The Santa Fe railroad gave way to the beginning of the now large and very prosperous city. During WWII they had the opportunity to research and develop high-tech aircraft that would make a difference in the war. The two things that Los Angeles has always been known for is Technology and tourism, those two things have been keeping the city of Los Angeles alive. The Native Americans were the first ones to live in the now Los Angeles area the natives of the area called it Poison Oak Place. The First Spanish settlers were a group that was called Los Pobladores named the town “The Town of Our Lady the Queen of the Angels of Porciúncula”. In April of 1992 the riots over the beating of Rodney king had 1.3 billion dollars resalting in 53 deaths and

The Revolutionary war, sparked by the colonist's anger towards taxation without representation, was a conflict between the United States and its mother country Great Britain. This event had been considered the most significant event in the American history. It separated the thirteen colonies from the tyrannical ruling of King George. The revolutionary war was not a big war, "The military conflict was, by the standards of later wars, a relatively modest one. Battle deaths on the American side totaled fewer than 5,000"1. However, the war proved that the thirteen colonies were capable of defeating the powerful Great Britain. Over the years there were many Hollywood films made based on the revolutionary

The film’s main focus largely represents the Hollywood star system to which Norma Desmond is a victim of. The film particularly highlights the fantasy world in which Norma lives in, the world where she is the ‘greatest star’ (Norma Desmond, Sunset Boulevard, 1950). Sunset Boulevard steps into Norma’s mixed up world where hundreds of photos of herself clutter her crumbling mansion and where she watches herself on screen on a weekly basis. The crumbling and deteriorating mansion could be seen as a metaphor for Norma’s fall from stardom, the collapse of her career.

In cinema’s early days, the film industry was based in New York, the nation’s theatrical center. Most movies were being filmed in New York, New Jersey, Chicago, and Florida. However, by the 1920’s, southern California had become the leading film capital due to its cheap land and labor. Films gained their popularity after Vaudeville actors striked in 1901. This left theaters scrambling for acts and films became the main event. Silent films were widely popular in the early 1920’s and were usually accompanied by live piano or organ music. Talking-pictures were first introduced in 1923, but did not become popular until 1927.

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 latter needed natural light in order to capture the image on film to produce the new medium of photo plays or flickers for the public. In a small community surrounded by orange groves and endless sunshine, Los Angles became the capital of the motion picture industry.

California, the Golden State, a place where people from around the world come to for the

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

“At the ending of 1932, it was estimated 34 million men, women, and children, which is 28 percent of the total population, that was without wages and had little money. These rates did not contain the total of 11 million citizens inhabiting on farms which is to say, 25 percent of the population who were trying to live off the land’’ (Grand Design: Hollywood as a Modern Business Enterprise 13).

On January 24, 1848 John W. Marshall discovered gold in California, which set its foundation for California’s future success. The Gold Rush gave California’s popular motto of, “Eureka” meaning “I’ve found it.” Also, the Gold Rush drew attention to California drawing cultures from around the world to seek better opportunities and make a greater extent of money than they would ever come across. This created California’s population to experience an influx during the 1840’s. Although it increased population in California, there were difficulties and problems with encounters between the Chinese immigrants, the rich, and miners that resulted in social conflict.

How did Los Angeles get it’s name? Forty-four settlers known as the “Los Pobladores”, founded the pueblo(town) called “El Pueblo de Nuestra Señora la Reina de los Ángeles de Porciúncula”. Then they took "los Ángeles" out of the name and made it the official name.

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

When Hollywood and its surrounding area were beginning to assume the geographic shape of an industrial district, the development was concentrated within few blocks of Sunset Boulevard, and two studios among the first Hollywood moguls, Lasky and Fox, have their studio set up on Sunset Boulevard, along with other smaller studios such as Christle Film Co., Fine Arts Studio, and Majestic-Reliance Studios2. Sunset Boulevard soon acquired the characteristics of industrial agglomeration with its “dense gathering together of many individual units of production in

We all know the big city that everyone loves to talk about and be a part of the experience of a lifetime which is Los Angeles, also known as L.A. It is one of the most known cities in California and around the world where people’s dreams come true. L.A. is best known for its beaches, entertainment, amusements, and the people around the city. It’s also known as “The City of Angels”, which is the spanish word for “Angeles”. It is the second most populous city in the United States after New York. I’ve always known L.A. as a big part of my life, being born in the city of luxury and fame. Growing up, I never knew how much of a big deal LA was until I was in high school. Being around so much popularity and seeing the opportunities that LA has brought to people was amazing to me. From the sports games, to the concerts, to the famous celebrities walking the red carpets brung so much excitement to me and I was glad to experience all of it.