Hollywood and the Great Depression - by Iwan Morgan & Philip John Davies (Hardcover)

About the Book

This volume examines how the political, economic and social changes of the Great Depression impacted on Hollywood and how it responded to them.

Book Synopsis

In the popular imagination, 1930s Hollywood was a dream factory producing escapist movies to distract the American people from the greatest economic crisis in their nation's history. But while many films of the period conform to this stereotype, there were a significant number that promoted a message, either explicitly or implicitly, in support of the political, social and economic change broadly associated with President Franklin D. Roosevelt's New Deal programme. At the same time, Hollywood was in the forefront of challenging traditional gender roles, both in terms of movie representations of women and the role of women within the studio system. With case studies of actors like Shirley Temple, Cary Grant and Fred Astaire, as well as a selection of films that reflect politics and society in the Depression decade, this fascinating book examines how the challenges of the Great Depression impacted on Hollywood and how it responded to them.

From the Back Cover

'This stimulating collection energetically revisits and frequently revises the history of Hollywood's political engagements during the height of its cultural influence in the 1930s, offering new insights into the responses of writers, stars, moguls and distributors to the Depression and New Deal, and their expression in some of the decade's most memorable movies.' Richard Maltby, Flinders University In the popular imagination, 1930s Hollywood was a dream factory producing escapist movies to distract the American people from the greatest economic crisis in their nation's history. But while many films of the period conform to this stereotype, there were a significant number that promoted a message, either explicitly or implicitly, in support of the political, social and economic change broadly associated with President Franklin D. Roosevelt's New Deal programme. At the same time, Hollywood was in the forefront of challenging traditional gender roles, both in terms of movie representations of women and the role of women within the studio system. With case studies of actors like Shirley Temple, Cary Grant and Fred Astaire, as well as a selection of films that reflect politics and society in the Depression decade, this fascinating book examines how the challenges of the Great Depression impacted on Hollywood and how it responded to them. Iwan Morgan is Professor of US Studies and Commonwealth Fund Professor of American History at University College London. He is a former chair of the Historians of the Twentieth Century United States, co-founder of the Presidential History Network, British Association of American Studies Honorary Fellow and Honorary Fellow of the Rothermere American Institute, University of Oxford. Philip John Davies, Director of the Eccles Centre for American Studies at the British Library, is the former President of the European Association for American Studies, and has also served as Chair of the American Politics Group of the UK, Chair of the UK Council of Area Studies Associations and Chair of the British Association for American Studies. Cover image: Footlight Parade (1933) directed by Lloyd Bacon Cover design: [EUP logo] edinburghuniversitypress.com ISBN 978-0-7486-9992-6 Barcode

Review Quotes

The articles in this collection serve to bring new information to light, challenge some ideas about Depression-era film and deepen readers' understanding of other aspects of the film industry in the 1930s.--Richard Bodek, College of Charleston "Historical Journal of Film, Radio and Television"

This stimulating collection energetically revisits and frequently revises the history of Hollywood's political engagements during the height of its cultural influence in the 1930s, offering new insights into the responses of writers, stars, moguls and distributors to the Depression and New Deal, and their expression in some of the decade's most memorable movies.'--Professor Richard Maltby, Flinders University

About the Author

Iwan Morgan is Professor of US Studies and Commonwealth Fund Professor of American History at University College London. He is a former chair of the Historians of the Twentieth Century United States, co-founder of the Presidential History Network, British Association of American Studies Honorary Fellow and Honorary Fellow of the Rothermere American Institute, University of Oxford.

Philip John Davies, Director of the Eccles Centre for American Studies at the British Library, is the former President of the European Association for American Studies, and has also served as Chair of the American Politics Group of the UK, Chair of the UK Council of Area Studies Associations and Chair of the British Association for American Studies.