I never overestimate the audience nor do I

“I never overestimate the audience, nor do I underestimate them. I just have a very rational idea at to who we’re dealing with, and that we’re not making a picture for Harvard Law School, we’re making a picture for middle-class people, the people that you see on the subway, or the people that you see in a restaurant. Just normal people. ” – Billy Wilder, Writer / Director

The End of World War II �WW II ends on May 8, 1945 (Germany surrenders) – September 2, 1945 (Japan surrenders) �International films, like the Italian Neorealistic film – Rome, Open City, were beginning to be recognized �The “Dream Factory” of Hollywood was being questioned �The war was won, but what did we really win?

The Rise of Film Noir � Film Noir is a style of film which displayed a pattern of betrayal, deception, and violence in which no one can be trusted and everything is for sale � Film Noir is derived from the French term – Black Film � Noir films were cheap to make – they emphasized shadows � Double Indemnity (1944) directed by Billy Wilder considered to be the film noir that established the template of future film noir films

Women and Film Noir �During WW 2, women entered the workforce to aid the war effort �After the war, women were expected to give up their job for the returning vets �Some critics believe Film Noir explores the anxiety and fear men had towards strong, independent women �Barbara Stanwyck – Femme Fatale in Double Indemnity

The Collapse of the Studio System �Audiences were beginning to have a different perspective on films after the war �Musicals and comedies began to decline in popularity �In 1944 – the first blow against the Studio system: The de Havilland decision – A U. S. Supreme Court decision dealing with California labor code Section 2855 Olivia de Havilland

The De Havilland Rule � Studio lawyers in the 1920 s-1940 s tried to argue that exclusive personal contracts were suspended during periods when artists were not working (including holidays and weekends) � Olivia de Havilland sued Warner Brothers - 1943 � Allowed actors greater freedom to seek projects with other studios and reduced the power of the studios � Service contracts are no longer valid after seven years

Studio System Collapse: The end of Block Booking � Another blow to the American film studios – � Affects DISTRIBUTION and EXHIBITION � The long approved practice of BLOCK BOOKING meant that a Distributor (in these cases, a movie studio) could force an exhibitor to take an entire slate of films, mostly inferior “B” to “C” films, in order to get more desired “A” films � Zukor introduced BLOCK BOOKING and BLIND BIDDING – the purchase of unseen films Adolph Zukor � FULL-LINE FORCING – Forced theaters to take the major studios’ short films as well

Adolph Zukor – President of Paramount Pictures � Zukor started in theater business – � Zukor created Famous Players Film Company in 1913 � Paramount Pictures Corporation formed in 1914 was originally a distributor film producers � When theaters tried to fight back, Zukor responded by buying theaters � Famous Players – Lasky is the first motion picture company listed on the NY Stock Exchange � Zukor merged with Lasky Corporation then merged with Paramount Pictures � First lawsuit to end block booking was Federal Trade Commission vs Famous Players – Lasky Corporation (1927)

1933 – National Industrial Recovery Act � In 1928, the government filed two more anti -trust lawsuits against ten of the Motion Pictures Producers and Distributors of America (MPPDA) � 1929 – the Great Depression hits the country � After the Great Depression, the film studios sought sanctuary under the NATIONAL INDUSTRIAL RECOVERY ACT in 1933 Pres. Franklin Roosevelt � Franklin Delano Roosevelt, 32 nd President, agreed and did not want to lose the film industry

The Consent Decree of 1940 � 1938 (one year BEFORE Gone With The Wind is released) – the movie industry hit a slump and the Justice Department saw an opportunity to sue the studios again � The Justice Department’s ANTI-TRUST division filed a lawsuit to end BLOCK BOOKING � In 1940, the studios tried to settle the case by signing a consent decree – The Consent Decree of 1940 � It was a compromise that the studios could regulate themselves, but if the government felt that the level of compliance was not satisfactory, another lawsuit could happen � The decree established the following things: � The BIG FIVE studios could no longer block- book short films along with the feature films � The BIG FIVE could continue to block-book features, but only five at a time � Blind Buying be outlawed and replaced with “trade showing” � The creation of an administration board to enforce these requirements Chicago Daily Tribune article circa 10/30/1940 about Consent Decree

The Formation of the SIMPP � The Little Three studios – Universal, United Artists, and Columbia Pictures were against the Consent Decree � They owned no theaters and relied on block booking for their films � Escape clause of the Consent Decree of 1940 – All studios had to agree to the agreement by June 1, 1942 or the Big Five studios could go back to their previous business practices and the government could sue again � The Society of Independent Motion Picture Producers (SIMPP) was formed � Early members included Charlie Chaplin, Orson Welles, Walt Disney, Mary Pickford, and David O. Selznick

The United States v Paramount Pictures (1948) � Because the Little Three did not agree to the Consent Decree of 1940, the 2 nd phase of the lawsuit continues in 1945 � In 1946, the courts decide that Block Booking is bad, but the Big Five can keep their studios � Movies had to be licensed individually as a result � Known as the Paramount Decree � SIMPP pressured the Justice Dept. to appeal the case to the Supreme Court � 1948 – All studios had to end Block Booking AND had to sell theaters they owned � Paramount was split into two: Paramount Pictures and United Paramount Theaters

The Change in the Film Industry � Studios no longer had actors locked into contracts and had no guaranteed exhibitors for the films � Actors signed multi-picture deals (two or three films) � James Stewart became the first actor to receive a percentage of the film’s gross profits – Winchester ‘ 73 and Harvey for Universal (1950) � Why the Paramount Decree was eventually good for the studios – free market James Stewart

HUAC � The House Un-American Activities Committee � Created in 1938 – The HUAC was a government committee investigating Americans who were unwittingly serving Nazi, then later Communist interests � In 1941 – an animators’ strike affected Walt Disney � Frustrated, in 1944, Disney formed the Motion Picture Alliance for the Preservation of American Ideals included John Wayne and gossip columnist Hedda Hopper Walt Disney John Wayne Hedda Hopper

The “Witch Hunt” of HUAC � As the Soviet Union began to expand in Eastern Europe – The Cold War began between the US and the Soviet Uni 0 n � The Cold War was an ideological struggle between the socio-economic systems of the US and the Soviet Union � So, in the US, any “Communist” ideals or sympathizers needed to be “found” � Joseph P. Mc. Carthy – The Mc. Carthy Era � The HUAC had closed-door meetings with the film industry in 1947 for ten days � Essentially, those interviewed were told to name any Communist or Communist sympathizers or be jailed Joseph P. Mc. Carthy

The Hollywood Ten � As many as 300 filmmakers, artists, actors, etc. left the United States – Charlie Chaplin, Orson Welles - to not be involved with the hearings � Some used pseudonyms to continue working � Ten Hollywood directors and writers refused to cooperate and were sent to jail. � November 24, 1947 – Executives, afraid of the government pressure, agreed to fire or suspend pay to the members of the Hollywood Ten � Dalton Trumbo was a blacklisted writer � The Brave One Trailer Dalton Trumbo

The Blacklist � In 1949, the pro-blacklist Motion Picture Industries Council was created by Cecil B. De. Mille, Ronald Reagan, and IATSE (a labor union) chief Roy Brewer � A climate of hysteria fell on Hollywood as people began naming names without any real proof – � If you were named, you were banned from working � If you named names, you continued to work � Pro-America movies became popular � I Was A Communist For The FBI � He May Be A Communist � Big Jim Mc. Lain * Cecil B. Demille Ronald Reagan Roy Brewer

Elia Kazan - Director � Elia Kazan controversy � On the Waterfront - The film is about whether a dockworker should testify against a mob boss � On The Waterfront Taxi scene � Terry talks with Edie � Final Scene Elia Kazan

The Rise of Television �Another blow to the Hollywood movie system was the television �The television was developed in 1939 – but WW II delayed development to a mass market �The effects on Hollywood