American Memoir: A Series of Essays On Our Recent Past: MOVIES

Duration: 12:00

Year Published: 1962

Creator: National Educational Television and Radio Center Chicago

Complete Record: From World Cat: An attempt at constructing early film history, with John Dodds (author of the book of the same name) describing how Hollywood film is art, but an "art incorporated." Successful filmmakers must abide by certain cinematic codes and formulas. He ends by saying that if the public doesn't demand intelligent movies, such movies won't be produced.--Duana Fluffily, 11-94. Half of this film is Dodds speaking. The rest are clips to illustrate his points. THE MOVIES. [One of the series of essays from title.] -- Silent Film clip. Engine headed towards girl tied to track. Classic clip. Features jump cut wherein girl elevates into the arms of her savior. -- Bill Hart movie clip representative of saloon scenes in Westerns. Quick draw, escaping saloon girls, etc. -- Clips from Perils of Pauline, Pearl White -- Koochie dancer. Clip illustrating burlesque. -- Examples of Edison and his kineticscopic results, 1892. -- Clip: Bathers, swimmers. -- Trick motion picture photography examples of entertainment, and 1896 John C. Rice, doing an on-screen kiss. -- Clips from vaudeville shows where pictures shown to clear house between shows. -- 1913, 9,000 American movie houses -- Clip of pantomime including the camera to show how films made. -- Belly dancers clips. -- 1903, The Great Train Robbery clips. -- DW Griffiths, first to exploit many possibilities in film. The Birth of A Nation, clips of North and South fighting. -- Comic clips: Key stone Cops by Sennett; The Chase, slap stick. -- Mabel Norman, Ford Sterling, etc. -- Charlie Chaplin clips Beyond slapstick to universal comedy. -- Matters of morality: Clips of Mary Pickford, Clara Bow, Theda Bara, and the 1920s: Clara Bow as It Girl, etc. wild dancing,etc. leading to The Motion Picture Code of Ethics. Invention of Good/Bad Girl. -- Discussion: Social dimensions of the motion picture: How much did ‘the movie’ reflect American life, or how did it direct standards of how to live the American Life? -- Hollywood is a dream factory. Human dream, a mass-production of an image of life. How to tell counterfeit with real? -- Clip: Little Caesar with Edward G. Robinson 1930 (50 gangster films made in 1930) -- Animal films -- Stills from big production numbers. “Art Incorporated” born in order to make movies of huge budgets and scale.