During the Golden Era, Hollywood couldn’t make movies fast enough. Movies were in demand and the Big Five were making money hand-over-fist. They controlled everything that had anything to do with movies from production to exhibition. In 1946 the studios had made an astonishing $121,000,000 in profits. The years after World War II, the film industry changed radically and Hollywood began a period of decline. In 1950, the studios’ soaring profits dropped to $31,000,000 (Lewis, 2008). This paper will take a look at two of the major factors that contributed to the decline of the Golden Era, namely, the Paramount decision and the Hollywood Blacklist.
The Paramount Decision In 1938 The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) brought suit against the …show more content…
During the late 1940’s and early 1950’s, HUAC investigated Communist infiltration in the film industry. They targeted a group of screenwriters and producers and called ten of them into sessions to testify. These ten people are known as the Hollywood Ten. The Hollywood Ten refused to testify about their political beliefs and were sent to prison for a year and blacklisted. Between the years 1947 and 1957, over three hundred writers, directors, producers and actors were blacklisted and were barred from working in the film industry. The HUAC hearings and blacklisting’s discouraged Hollywood from producing politically controversial films for fear they would be regarded as communist propaganda. In 1952, the release of Limelight, by Charlie Chaplin was hurt by a pressure campaign led by the American Legion. Chaplin was accused of both immorality and Communist sympathies. Picketing of other films in the 1950’s put fear into the studios, and led to restrictions on subject matter in Hollywood studio films. Anything to do with social issues, concern for minorities, or criticism of big business, or sympathy for the underdog was suspect and considered problematic (Gale, 1990). Hollywood was encouraged to produce musicals, biblical epics and other politically neutral films ("Post-war Hollywood,"
The Paramount Decision In 1938 The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) brought suit against the …show more content…
During the late 1940’s and early 1950’s, HUAC investigated Communist infiltration in the film industry. They targeted a group of screenwriters and producers and called ten of them into sessions to testify. These ten people are known as the Hollywood Ten. The Hollywood Ten refused to testify about their political beliefs and were sent to prison for a year and blacklisted. Between the years 1947 and 1957, over three hundred writers, directors, producers and actors were blacklisted and were barred from working in the film industry. The HUAC hearings and blacklisting’s discouraged Hollywood from producing politically controversial films for fear they would be regarded as communist propaganda. In 1952, the release of Limelight, by Charlie Chaplin was hurt by a pressure campaign led by the American Legion. Chaplin was accused of both immorality and Communist sympathies. Picketing of other films in the 1950’s put fear into the studios, and led to restrictions on subject matter in Hollywood studio films. Anything to do with social issues, concern for minorities, or criticism of big business, or sympathy for the underdog was suspect and considered problematic (Gale, 1990). Hollywood was encouraged to produce musicals, biblical epics and other politically neutral films ("Post-war Hollywood,"