Shoup Hall 207 Tom Henderson, speaker SPJ TONIGHT! 7 p.m. Shoup Hall 207 Tom Henderson, speaker JAMM 100

From Flickering Images to Hollywood Studios & Stars Movies: Part II From Flickering Images to Hollywood Studios & Stars JAMM 100

Technology Motion pictures combine: 1. Still photography 2. Persistence of vision 3. Projection of images JAMM 100

Early technologies Celluloid film stock Kinetograph and kinetoscope JAMM 100 K. Bird Early technologies Celluloid film stock Goodwin, 1889, who sold patents to Eastman Kinetograph and kinetoscope Dickson and Edison, 1890s Projection system Lumiere Brothers, 1895 Vitascope Edison, 1896 Nickelodeons boomed 1907- 10 JAMM 100 Movies History 11/07/04

Photography 1727: Chemists discover silver nitrate reacts to light 1839: Louis Daguerre used pewter, later copper for prints (daguerreotypes) JAMM 100

Photography George Eastman 1884: invents flexible film (cellulose) Calls his portable camera “Kodak” 100 exposures JAMM 100

Persistence of Vision Peter Roget 1824 Images stay in memory for 1/10 second Pictures on spinning wheel JAMM 100

Persistence of Vision Eadward Muybridge Won bet with California Gov. Leland Stanford (1877) Did all 4 feet of a galloping horse leave ground at once? JAMM 100

Persistence of Vision JAMM 100

Motion Pictures Thomas Edison JAMM 100 K. Bird Motion Pictures Thomas Edison Envisioned image device similar to phonograph 1887: 1st patent for motion picture camera 1891-95: Camera tested by assistant, William Dickson JAMM 100 Movies History 11/07/04

Projection Systems Auguste, Louis Lumiere (France) Projected movies onto large screen Made possible multiple viewing 35mm standard JAMM 100

Projection systems JAMM 100

JAMM 100 K. Bird Early film styles Lumiere Brothers in Paris shot documentary scenes of everyday life. French magician Georges Melies: fairy tales and science fiction stories American cameraman Edwin S. Porter created early narrative structures. JAMM 100 Movies History 11/07/04

Early Films No story, just motion Viewers fascinated by simple scenes Fred Ott’s sneeze JAMM 100

1902: A Trip to the Moon George Melies (France) Storytelling 10-minute shorts Slow motion, animation JAMM 100

1903: The Great Train Robbery Edwin S. Porter 1st U.S. movie to tell a story 12 minutes long 1st Western Editing to create suspense JAMM 100

1915: Birth of a Nation D.W. Griffith 3 hours long Shot without a script Civil War, Reconstruction Criticized for racial stereotypes Praised for technical innovations JAMM 100

Three basic economic divisions of the movie industry JAMM 100 K. Bird Three basic economic divisions of the movie industry PRODUCTION: camera and projector technology, scripting, filming DISTRIBUTION: marketing and delivering films into theaters EXHIBITION: the theater industry that delivers movies to the public JAMM 100 Movies History 11/07/04

Thomas Alva Edison, Inventor and Entrepreneur JAMM 100 K. Bird Thomas Alva Edison, Inventor and Entrepreneur Desired control over all three facets of the motion picture industry--production, distribution, exhibition His strategy: to gain control over PATENTS to movie technology How? Accused other inventors of violating his patents to tie them up in lawsuits. JAMM 100 Movies History 11/07/04

THE MOTION PICTURE PATENTS COMPANY (MPPC) JAMM 100 K. Bird THE MOTION PICTURE PATENTS COMPANY (MPPC) Thomas Edison formed MPPC (the “Trust”) in 1908 as a Patents Pool. Cooperative of leading U.S. and French film companies Dominated the film industry from 1908-1915 JAMM 100 Movies History 11/07/04

How MPPC controlled the industry JAMM 100 K. Bird How MPPC controlled the industry Controlled (but did not own) means of production, distribution, and exhibition. The MPPC was a monopoly (also called a trust), and excluded other film studios from the available technology. Eastman sold film only to members JAMM 100 Movies History 11/07/04

WHY did the MPPC fail? Could not meet product demand JAMM 100 K. Bird WHY did the MPPC fail? Could not meet product demand Independent producers bought film stock from overseas. Independent producers attracted viewers with longer feature films and recognizable stars. Independent distributors set up a non-MPPC distribution network. 1912 Antitrust case in Supreme Court (Fox) JAMM 100 Movies History 11/07/04

JAMM 100 K. Bird In 1915, by Supreme Court order, the MPPC disbanded. However, by that time, it had already fallen apart due to challenges of “independents.” JAMM 100 Movies History 11/07/04

Who were these “independents”? JAMM 100 K. Bird Who were these “independents”? Ironically, the very same people who would institute a far more effective and long-lived oligopoly to control the industry--the Hollywood Studio System JAMM 100 Movies History 11/07/04

THE RISE OF THE HOLLYWOOD STUDIO SYSTEM (1925-1948) JAMM 100 K. Bird THE RISE OF THE HOLLYWOOD STUDIO SYSTEM (1925-1948) From Monopoly (the MPCC) to Oligopoly (the Studio System) JAMM 100 Movies History 11/07/04

Silent Pictures Harold Lloyd Comedy: ‘Safety First’ Did his own stunts JAMM 100

The Talkies Sound on film (SOF) Microphones Sound recording Amplifiers Synchronization JAMM 100

1927 The Jazz Singer Al Jolson 2 songs 354 words of dialogue JAMM 100

1920s: Studio system Producers moved from New York to southern California Attempt to avoid patent lawsuits by MPPC Popular actors became stars JAMM 100

The “Big Five” and the “Little Three” JAMM 100 K. Bird The “Big Five” and the “Little Three” The “Big Five” or the Majors: Warner Brothers Paramount 20th Century Fox Loew's (MGM) RKO (owned by RCA) The “Little Three” or the Minors: United Artists Columbia Universal JAMM 100 Movies History 11/07/04

Control over Production JAMM 100 K. Bird Control over Production Produced 60 percent of all U.S. feature films. Produced 75 percent of "A" films (blockbusters). Each of these studios produced about fifty movies a year. JAMM 100 Movies History 11/07/04

Applied Factory Principles JAMM 100 K. Bird Applied Factory Principles Centralized production and lots of employees Division and specializing of labor Standardizing and specializing of product Grading films JAMM 100 Movies History 11/07/04

Control Over Distribution JAMM 100 K. Bird Control Over Distribution Eight studios collected 95 percent of all national film rental fees. Trade practices effectively closed the market to films made outside the studio system. Block booking Marketing U.S. films in Europe JAMM 100 Movies History 11/07/04

Control over exhibition JAMM 100 K. Bird Control over exhibition Studio ownership of theaters created a need for studios to produce films for them. Much money was invested in the building of theaters themselves, especially movie palaces. JAMM 100 Movies History 11/07/04

How’d studios control exhibition? JAMM 100 K. Bird How’d studios control exhibition? Studio-owned theaters (first-run): the studios owned only 15 percent of U.S. theaters, but 90 percent of nation's box office receipts Movie palaces Mid-city theatres JAMM 100 Movies History 11/07/04

JAMM 100 K. Bird What went wrong? No one reason : four large factors came together in late 1940s The Red Scare (The Hollywood Ten) The Paramount Decision of 1948 Postwar Changes in Society The Rise of Television JAMM 100 Movies History 11/07/04

Red Scare and HUAC Hearings JAMM 100 K. Bird Red Scare and HUAC Hearings Cold War paranoia about Communist messages in mass entertainment Congress formed House UnAmerican Activities Committee (HUAC) 1941 and 1947 HUAC hearings were "witch hunts" to remove so-called subversives from the industry (led by Senator Joseph McCarthy). JAMM 100 Movies History 11/07/04

EFFECT OF HUAC HEARINGS JAMM 100 K. Bird EFFECT OF HUAC HEARINGS Blacklisting of talented members of Hollywood community Tarnished the Hollywood “Dream Machine” image Created a climate of fear and dampened creativity within the industry Wounds continue even today JAMM 100 Movies History 11/07/04

THE PARAMOUNT DECISION JAMM 100 K. Bird THE PARAMOUNT DECISION In 1948, Supreme Court ruled studio violation of Sherman Anti-trust Act, restricting fair trade. Court ordered the Big Five studios to divest their theater chains. EFFECTS: studios cut their film production by half; opened the way for independent producers.* JAMM 100 Movies History 11/07/04

Postwar changes in society JAMM 100 K. Bird Postwar changes in society Changing patterns of consumption Less disposable income Decreased attendance at downtown movie palaces Returning soldiers Baby boom Suburbanization and new lifestyle Nuclear families with young children JAMM 100 Movies History 11/07/04

THE RISE OF TELEVISION Decline in motion picture attendance JAMM 100 K. Bird THE RISE OF TELEVISION Decline in motion picture attendance Film industry’s technological gimmicks to emphasize the spectacle of the big screen Film industry cooperation with TV Movies on TV became a continuous competitor with theatre for film customers JAMM 100 Movies History 11/07/04

JAMM 100 K. Bird HOLLYWOOD TODAY Marriage of TV and movies: watching movies now takes place on the home VCR and DVD player as well as at the box office. New Hollywood studios produce TV shows as well as feature films. Most new movies flop at the box office, but losses are recouped through video and DVD market. JAMM 100 Movies History 11/07/04

Sources of studio income today JAMM 100 K. Bird Sources of studio income today Box office revenues Video/DVD sales and rentals Distribution of films globally Studio distribution of independent films Product placement in movies JAMM 100 Movies History 11/07/04

The Modern Movie Oligopoly JAMM 100 K. Bird The Modern Movie Oligopoly Warner Brothers Paramount Twentieth Century Fox Universal Columbia Walt Disney JAMM 100 Movies History 11/07/04

JAMM 100 K. Bird Concept of SYNERGY Synergy = the promotion and sale of a media product through the various subsidiaries of a media conglomerate. Movies, books, soundtrack CDs, magazine reviews, toy action figures, T-shirts, posters, web sites, newspapers, TV interviews, cartoons, etc.* JAMM 100 Movies History 11/07/04

For next class Television & the Power of Visual Culture Read Chapters 5 & 6 Complete Chapter 5 Review Questions 12 - 15, Questioning the Media 1, 3 & 5 Complete Chapter 6 all Review Questions Take online quizzes Complete The Ratings Game exercise JAMM 100