The Golden Age of Hollywood: A Pathfinder
Contents
Introduction
Scope
Names to Know
Subject Headings and Call Numbers
Online Databases and
Encyclopedias
Audiovisual: Web-based
Software
Websites
Extension Ideas and Questions
Introduction
What is a golden age? According to Princeton University’s WordNet database
(http://wordnet.princeton.edu) a golden age is, “a time period when some activity or skill
was at its peak.” Some synonyms are prime, peak, and heyday. The Golden Age of
Hollywood was from approximately 1930 to 1948. What was so great about it? Well
first of all, many of the movies our culture still views as the being the best were made
during this time; films like Casablanca, Citizen Kane, and even The Wizard of Oz. Also,
the use of sound in movies had just been perfected. Can you imagine any technological
change that would affect your experience at the movies as much as adding sound? In
addition, the major movie studios had massive control over their directors, their stars,
and their films, including the theatres that ran them. There were five major studios and
three minor ones. These eight studios produced 95% of all the films during this period,
and took home most of the money too. They essentially had a monopoly over the entire
industry. Films that fit into a predetermined genre were popular, and each studio carved
out their own genre niche. For example, MGM is famous for their Golden Age musicals.
The Golden Age of Hollywood ended partially because television gained popularity,
partially because the studios were forced to loosen their grip, and partially because
nothing can last forever. History is fascinating because it can help to explain where we
are today. Film history is no different. If you examine the gangster films of the 30s
perhaps you’ll see The Sopranos or Pulp Fiction in a whole new light.
Source: Voss, Karen (2001). “Classical Hollywood Cinema.” American Film Institute. Retrieved May 28, 2006 from Fathom Online
Learning at http://www.fathom.com/course/10701053/index.html
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Scope
This pathfinder is intended to help you dive into researching all aspects of the Golden
Age of Hollywood, from the stars and the studios to the films. It was designed for high
school upperclassmen, although younger students with good research skills or a
particular interest in the topic certainly may find it useful. Whether you’re already
interested in the classic films of the era or are just intrigued by the glamorous stars and
the powerful film moguls, you should be able to find something here to help you learn
more. Maybe you have no clue about classic Hollywood and want to broaden your
horizons or maybe you just have a report due on some aspect of the 1940s. Again,
whatever your goal, this resource should be helpful. I have included many general and
non-academic sources that will help you gain a base of knowledge about the Golden
Age of Hollywood, as well as some more specific tools that will be able to handle your
focused research needs.
When choosing the inclusion the following materials I asked myself the questions: Is it
relevant? Is it unique? Is it reliable? Is it easy to use? Hopefully you’ll find the answer
to these questions is a resounding yes. I selected only electronic resources, most of
which are completely web-based. This was decided for several reasons. Many school
libraries have limited print materials available on the topic of the Golden Age of
Hollywood because it is not be a mandated part of the curriculum. Therefore electronic
resources might be the only access to information about this era that you have. Webbased materials have the advantage of being accessed from anywhere, being updated
frequently, being free (for the most part), and being able to take you places that you
would not get to go otherwise. That final reason is the most important one; where else
but the web can you listen to Judy Garland sing on a 1940s radio show or look at an
artist’s drawings that eventually became movie sets, all without leaving your chair? The
following web-based resources allow you to supplement what may or may not be in the
school library to gain an appreciation, or at least an understanding, of the Golden Age of
Hollywood.
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Names to Know
These short lists of some of the most famous names from the Golden Age of Hollywood
are a starting point for research. If you have no idea how to begin, you may want to
pick an actor or two or a film and start doing a little digging. There is no specific section
in the pathfinder for films, so if you’re interested in watching classic movies you can also
use these lists as your guide. You should easily find classic films to rent at your local
video store, your public library, or through an online service such as Netflix
(http://www.netflix.com).
Actors
Bing Crosby
Bob Hope
Cary Grant
Clark Gable
Fred Astaire
Humphrey Bogart
Jimmy Stewart
Marx Brothers
Spencer Tracy
Directors
Alfred Hitchcock
Frank Capra
George Cukor
George Stevens
Howard Hawks
John Ford
Orson Welles
Victor Flemming
Vincent Minnelli
Actresses
Betty Davis
Carole Lombard
Ginger Rogers
Greta Garbo
Joan Crawford
Katherine Hepburn
Mae West
Marlene Dietrich
Films
42nd Street- 1933
King Kong- 1933
It Happened One Night1934
The Wizard of Oz- 1939
Gone with the Wind- 1939
The Philadelphia Story1940
Citizen Kane- 1941
Casablanca- 1942
The Big Sleep- 1946
Notorious- 1946
Genres
Gangster Movie
Melodrama
Musical
Screwball Comedy
Western
Studios
MGM
Paramount
RKO
Twentieth Century Fox
Warner Brothers
Sources:
Edlin, April (2003). “The Golden Age of Hollywood: 1930s-1940s.” Retrieved May 25, 2006 from
http://ils.unc.edu/dpr/path/goldenhollywood/major_names.htm
“Motion picture, history of the.” (2006). In Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved May 31, 2006, from Encyclopædia Britannica
Online: http://search.eb.com/eb/article-52153
Voss, Karen (2001). “Classical Hollywood Cinema.” American Film Institute. Retrieved May 28, 2006 from Fathom Online Learning
at http://www.fathom.com/course/10701053/index.html
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Subject Headings and Call Numbers
Although there are no print resources listed in this pathfinder, you may certainly want to
find some print materials to enhance your research. The following Library of Congress
subject headings should be a great help when using your school or public library. If you
type these into a library’s catalog and limit the search to “subject,” it should give you a
list of the materials that the library has available. Once you pull up a book that looks
useful check to see if there are any other subject headings listed. This could point you
in the right direction for finding resources on the exact topic you are looking for.
Hollywood (Los Angeles, Calif.)- History
Motion Picture Industry- History
Motion Picture Studios- California- Los Angeles- History
Motion picture actors and actresses- United States- Biography
Film Genres
Comedy Films
Gangster Films
Melodrama in Motion Pictures
Musical Films
Western Films
Sometimes it is easier to browse the library’s shelves to find the information you need.
Your school and public library most likely use the Dewey Decimal classification system.
The numbers listed below should be the best section to browse for materials on the
Golden Age of Hollywood. These numbers are found in the non-fiction section of the
library.
791.43
791.4392 (for autobiographies/biographies)
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Online Databases and Encyclopedias
You may want to use these resources to gain a general understanding of the history of
American cinema or to look up specific people, studios, and/or films. Use the Names to
Know section as a tool to help you get started.
Biography Resource Center
General: “The Biography Resource Center is a database of biographical information on
more than 185,000 people from throughout history, around the world, and across all
disciplines and subject areas…Search for people based on one or more personal facts
such as birth and death years and places, nationality, ethnicity, occupation or gender, or
combine criteria to create a highly-targeted custom search path.” –Indiana University
Libraries (http://www.libraries.iub.edu/index.php?pageId=400&resourceId=40)
Tips for topic: The basic name search should be all you need to use in this database.
Just type in the name of the person you want to look up. If you chose the “name
contains” search option it does not matter if you put the last name first or not. However
if you select “start of last name,” the last name must be typed in first. When I typed in
“Clark Gable” in the search box and chose “name contains” my search results had three
names, one of whom was the American Golden Age actor I was looking for. But when I
typed “Clark Gable” in the search box and chose “start of last name,” the only record
that came back was Tom Selleck (apparently he was the Clark Gable of the 80s).
Encyclopedia Britannica Online
General: “The equivalent of the printed Encyclopædia Britannica and more. A fully
searchable and browsable collection of authoritative references, including Britannica's
latest article database, hundreds of articles not found in the print Britannica. Thousands
of illustrations; references to biographies, geography and yearbooks.” Indiana University
Libraries (http://www.libraries.iub.edu/index.php?pageId=400&resourceId=85)
Tips for topic: You can use Encyclopedia Britannica Online to read articles on the five
big studios, actors, films, or genres. There are no articles on specific movies, but if you
type a movie title into the basic search field it will bring back articles where the film is
mentioned (searching for Wizard of Oz will bring up a hit for Judy Garland, musical film,
MGM, and Arthur Freed). There is a large and informative article under the search
terms “motion picture,” “motion picture, history of” (especially the section of the article
on the Hollywood studio system), and “Hollywood.”
Internet Movie Database: http://imdb.com
General: “Hundreds of thousands of entries provide detailed information for
movies…’Awards and Reviews’ provides reviews from authoritative sources such as the
New York Times, Roger Ebert, and Slate, as well as reader-supplied evaluations. Movie
information includes directors, producers, actors, plot summaries, character names,
running times, trivia, soundtracks, release dates, box office grosses, alternate versions,
Academy Awards and other awards information, and much more.” – Librarians’ Internet
Index http://lii.org/pub/topic/film
Tips for topic: IMDB is a tool that many of you probably already use. If you go to the
More Searches page (http://imdb.com/search) there numerous options: a movie title
search, a cast/crew name search, a character name search, a keyword search, and
even a “On this day in history” search. I searched for Mae West in the cast/crew search
and the results listed her under each of her occupations (actress, writer, and
miscellaneous crew). But it doesn’t matter which one you chose; I clicked on “actress”
and I still was able to see her writing credits.
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Audiovisual: Web-based
Having access to free audiovisual resources is one of the biggest benefits to doing
research on the web. I did not include non-web-based audiovisual resources, such as
DVDs or CDs because they are so easily accessible; for example you should not need
too much guidance to find a copy of Alfred Hitchcock’s Notorious. Enjoy watching and
listening to the following clips; they are truly a blast from the past.
Archive Classic Movies: http://archiveclassicmovies.com
From the introduction, “This site is dedicated to classic movies and serials from
Hollywood’s Golden Age, and will hopefully provide free and convenient access to some
of these films. All movies on this site are in the public domain, and generously hosted
by archive.org…” (http://www.archiveclassicmovies.com/main.html). You can watch
movies that are being played on the site itself or download movies by podcast. To use
this resource to its full capabilities you must have Quicktime and ITunes (can download
from http://apple.com/quicktime/download.win.html and/or
http://apple.com/itunes/download)
Bogart Film Clips: http://home.mchsi.com/~filmclips
View free clips and theatrical trailers from over a dozen Humphrey Bogart films,
including golden age classics Casablanca, The Big Sleep, and The Maltese Falcon.
Must use RealPlayer to view files (can download free from http://www.real.com).
Judy on Radio: http://www.jgdb.com/rpndx.htm
This resource is a site from the Judy Garland Database:
http://www.jgdb.com/index.html. You can listen to free MP3 files of over 20 Judy
Garland radio appearances, mainly during the 1940s. Includes performances of “The
Trolley Song” from Meet Me in St. Louis and Lux radio shows of The Wizard of Oz and
A Star is Born. Most files are about thirty minutes long, although some are over an
hour. Uses Quicktime player (can download for free at
http://www.apple.com/quicktime/download.win.html).
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Software
CD-ROM software may not be as popular as it once was for research, but these
resources are still worth looking into. If your school or public library does not have
these titles available, they can be purchased through online dealers such as Amazon
(http://www.amazon.com) for very reasonable prices. All of these titles would be a good
complement, or even alternative, to the databases listed earlier (Online Databases and
Encyclopedias).
Britannica Profiles: Hollywood and the World of Movies. Britannica, n.d.
Available for Windows 98 or higher or Macintosh 10.2.2 or higher.
“…takes film lovers on a lively tour of the history of the movie business, from the early
stars to the idols of today. Chronicling the powerful and the beautiful along with the
latest trends of the international motion picture industry, this CD will entertain and
educate the curious fan and the serious film buff.” – Product description from
http://www.amazon.com
Cinemania 97. Microsoft Home, 1996. Available for Macintosh and Windows
computers.
Product features, “Roger Ebert, Leonard Maltin, and Pauline Kael reviews, access to
more than 4,000 biographies of movie professionals….cross-referencing of actors,
filmmakers, and more.” – http://www.amazon.com
Hollywood: 75 Years of the Silver Screen. Atari, 2004. Requires Windows 98 or
higher or Macintosh Mac OS 10.2.2 or higher.
Product features, “Oscar winners gallery; information on Academy Award winners, facts
about Hollywood today and the history that surrounds it, browse articles A-Z or by
subject such as actors or directors, thousands of online magazine articles and videos,
and over 350 photos, 500 biographies, and 220,000 web links.” – Product description
from http://www.amazon.com
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Websites
The following websites are a great cross-section of all that is available on the World
Wide Web about classic movies and the Golden Age of Hollywood. Make sure to check
out the “links” section of the sites that you like; that is one of the best ways to continue
your research on the web. The sites that have an asterisk before the title are from
sources that your teachers should approve of for use in a formal paper. They are from
respected institutes such as the American Film Institute and the Library of Congress.
Those without the asterisk are mostly personal “fan” sites. Your teacher may accept
these as sources as well, but it would be best to check before using them in a formal
project. Even if you cannot officially use the more personal sites, they should still be
extremely valuable for background information, pleasure reading, and their links and
bibliographies.
*AFI’s 100 Years…: http://www.afi.com/tvevents/100years/100yearslist.aspx
"’This is the American Film Institute's list of America's 100 Greatest Movies, selected by
AFI's blue-ribbon panel of more than 1,500 leaders of the American movie community.
Click on movie titles to find out more’ about each film.” – Internet Public Library
http://www.ipl.org/div/subject/browse/ent50.00.00/
*American Masters, PBS, Masters List A-Z:
http://www.pbs.org/wnet/americanmasters/database/index.html
A companion website to the PBS television show of the same name. The mission of
American Masters is to, “examine the lives, works, and creative processes of our most
outstanding cultural artists.”
(http://www.pbs.org/wnet/americanmasters/about/index.html). Many names from the
Golden Age of Hollywood are included, among them are: George Cukor, David O.
Selznick, Alfred Hitchcock, Sam Goldwyn, William Wyler, Judy Garland, Cary Grant,
and Preston Sturges. Each name represented has page devoted to them with an
essay, a list of their major works, other American Masters that are associated with them,
and in some cases, a career timeline.
*Celluloid Skyline, New York and the Movies:
http://www.celluloidskyline.com/main/home.html
This website is a companion to James Sanders’ book of the same name. It explores
representations of New York City in the movies. The section “Visions of the Dream
City” encompasses the Golden Age of Hollywood. Specific films that are referenced
are: Street Scene (1931), Dead End (1937), and Swing Time (1936). There are
beautiful black and white images of the Empire State Building, Central Park, and many
other New York City landmarks. The section “Building the Dream City” has drawings
from RKO Studio’s art department from 1930 to 1950 that are amazing.
Class Act, Those Golden Movie Musicals: http://www.classicmoviemusicals.com
Site creator Jim Johnson says, “Class Act is an attempt to share what I have learned
with others who enjoy the movie musicals. It is not intended to be an exhaustive source
of information….but I think it is a unique resource. Hyperlinks are a wonderful tool for
interconnection of related facts. Class Act allows you to select a movie of interest, read
a few facts about it and view a few pictures, then through hyperlinks, you can follow one
of the cast members through the other movies he/she made and learn about his/her
career…You can select a song by title and follow the hyperlink to find out what movies it
was performed in and who wrote it…” –Class Act, Introduction
http://www.classicmoviemusicals.com/intro1.htm
Classic Movies: http://www.classicmovies.com
“A treasure trove of information and discussion about classic movies from the ‘Golden
Age of Hollywood.’ The author is the former About.com Guide to Classic Movies and his
new site is for ‘fans of classic Hollywood films and old, vintage movies, with hundreds of
pages of content featuring tributes to classic movie stars, actors, actresses, directors,
filmmakers, composers, and other movie people, news about celebrity deaths, and
information about movies for sale, plus other articles on subjects of interest to classic
movie fans’." – Internet Public Library http://www.ipl.org/div/subject/browse/ent50.40.00/
*Costume Designers Guild Hall of Fame:
http://costumedesignersguild.com/halloffame.htm
This site has pictures and brief biographies of several famous Golden Age costume
designers, including Edith Head (Notorious- 1946, The Bells of Saint Mary’s- 1945,
Holiday Inn- 1942) and Walter Plunkett (Gone with the Wind- 1939, The Gay Divorcee1934, Little Women- 1933).
Greatest Films: http://www.filmsite.org
“Site specializing in classic Hollywood films with detailed overviews of many of the
greatest films in cinematic history. Features 100 selected greatest films including
greatest moments, famous scenes, a famous film quotes quiz & hundreds of vintage
movie posters. With a special section on film genres and links to major film search
engines.” – Internet Public Library http://www.ipl.org/div/subject/browse/ent50.00.00/
Moderntimes, Classic Film Pages: http://moderntimes.com/
This site is a portal to six main pages on different aspects of classic movies. Sections
that are especially of interest are: Midnight Ramble
(http://moderntimes.com/palace/black) which is about the role of blacks in Golden Age
movies, Screwball Comedy (http://www.moderntimes.com/screwball/define.html) which
is devoted to this major genre from Golden Age, and Palace Classic Films
(http://www.moderntimes.com/palace) which houses hundreds of images from films
throughout the Golden age. Throughout the entire Moderntimes site are links to other
classic movie sites and useful bibliographies.
*National Film Preservation Board: http://www.loc.gov/film
“This Board ‘works to ensure the survival, conservation and increased public availability
of America's film heritage.’ The site includes the National Film Registry, documents
related to film preservation research, and the directory ‘Public Motion Picture Research
Centers and Film Archives.’ A nice selection of related links in ‘Other Film Resources’
rounds out this site. From the Library of Congress.” – Librarians’ Internet Index
http://lii.org/pub/subtopic/316
Reel Classics, Elizabeth’s Classic Movie Homepage:
http://www.reelclassics.com/index.html
Extensive website with thirteen main sections. Of note are: the Audio/Visual Gallery,
which has both movie clips and music clips, the Articles section, which has current
articles as well as historical articles, and the Stars and Films sections, which has pages
devoted to specific movies, actors, and famous screen teams. The site is still under
construction, but there is enough good information here to make it worth your while.
*Roger Ebert, Great Movies Introduction:
http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/section?category=greatmovies_intro
Famed movie critic Roger Ebert started this bi-weekly feature to review films from the
past. Not all of the films are from the Golden Age of Hollywood, but many are, including
The Adventures of Robin Hood- 1939, The Big Sleep- 1946, Casablanca- 1942, Citizen
Kane- 1941, and Duck Soup- 1933. The reviews for these films are really more like
essays, with personal anecdotes and historical musings. Ebert has published print
editions of his Great Movies series, currently available in two volumes: The Great
Movies and The Great Movies II.
*Turner Classic Movies: http://www.tcm.com
This resource is much more than just a website for a television network. The
multimedia section has numerous theatrical trailers and film clips. There is also a great
database, with over 13,000 titles listed from the 1930s and 1940s. A search for To
Have and Have Not (1945) brings back an overview, the credits, quotes, multimedia
links, a synopsis, and genre information, among other things. You can search for
people (actors, directors, musicians, etc) or film titles.
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Extension Ideas and Questions
You can explore the Golden Age of Hollywood through so many different lenses. Don’t
limit yourself; use the Golden Age of Hollywood as a starting point for an economics
project, a U.S. history paper, or as an inspiration for an piece of art. Here are some
ideas and questions to get you started.
-
Graph Academy Award winners throughout the Golden Age of Hollywood in a
particular category. Are there any particular trends (certain genres, certain
actors, etc)? If you find certain trends, do you think they’re coincidental or can be
explained? What are your theories?
-
Do a comparison study between genre films of the Golden Age and genre films
of the past twenty years. How did we get from westerns like Stagecoach (1939)
or My Darling Clementine (1946) to Unforgiven (1992) or Brokeback Mountain
(2005)?
-
Our culture today is decidedly celebrity obsessed. What was celebrity culture
like during the Golden Age of Hollywood?
-
Can you make any comparisons to the studio system’s monopoly present in
America today?
-
What events would have to occur to usher in a new Golden Age in Hollywood?
What do you think we are living in the golden age of right now?
-
Are “classic” Hollywood films still being made? How do you define “classic”?
-
After viewing theatrical trailers and movie posters from classic films, what do you
think the main advertising strategies were?
-
Do you think it is important to preserve the films from the Golden Age of
Hollywood? Why or why not?
-
Can you see evidence of the Great Depression or World War II in the films of the
Golden Age of Hollywood?
-
Start with two random classic movie cast or crew members from two different
studios. Create webs and try to connect them in the least amount of lines.
-
Who were the Hollywood Ten? Could a similar situation happen today?
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Created by Anne Wartman for L595- Electronic Materials for Children and Young Adults
Created on May 29, 2006, last Updated on June 1st, 2006