American Cinema of the 1920s: Themes and Variations (Screen Decades: American Culture/American Cinema)

During the 1920s, sound revolutionized the motion picture industry and cinema continued as one of the most significant and popular forms of mass entertainment in the world. Film studios were transformed into major corporations, hiring a host of craftsmen and technicians including cinematographers, editors, screenwriters, and set designers. The birth of the star system supported the meteoric rise and celebrity status of actors including Charlie Chaplin, Mary Pickford, Joan Crawford, Greta Garbo, and Rudolph Valentino while black performers (relegated to "race films") appeared infrequently in mainstream movies. The classic Hollywood film style was perfected and significant film genres were established: the melodrama, western, historical epic, and romantic comedy, along with slapstick, science fiction, and fantasy. In ten original essays, American Cinema of the 1920s examines the film industry's continued growth and prosperity while focusing on important themes of the era. During the 1920s, sound revolutionized the motion picture industry and cinema continued as one of the most significant and popular forms of mass entertainment in the world. Film studios were transformed into major corporations, hiring a host of craftsmen and technicians including cinematographers, editors, screenwriters, and set designers. The birth of the star system supported the meteoric rise and celebrity status of actors including Charlie Chaplin, Mary Pickford, Joan Crawford, Greta Garbo, and Rudolph Valentino while black performers (relegated to race films) appeared infrequently in mainstream movies. The classic Hollywood film style was perfected and significant film genres were established: the melodrama, western, historical epic, and romantic comedy, along with slapstick, science fiction, and fantasy.

In ten original essays, American Cinema of the 1920s examines the film industry's continued growth and prosperity while focusing on important themes of the era.

Frontmatter Acknowledgments (page ix) Timeline: The 1920s (page xi) Introduction: Movies and the 1920s (Lucy Fischer, page 1) 1920 | Movies, Margarine, and Main Street (Michael Aronson, page 23) 1921 | Movies and Personality (Mark Lynn Anderson, page 46) 1922 | Movies and the Perilous Future (Sara Ross, page 70) 1923 | Movies and the Changing Body of Cinema (Marcia Landy, page 95) 1924 | Movies and Play (Jennifer M. Bean, page 120) 1925 | Movies and a Year of Change (Gwenda Young, page 143) 1926 | Movies and Divine Stars, Defining Gender (Maureen Turim, page 165) 1927 | Movies and the New Woman as Consumer (Sumiko Higashi, page 188) 1928 | Movies, Social Conformity, and Imminent Traumas (Angela Dalle Vacche, page 211) 1929 | Movies, Crashes, and Finales (Lucy Fischer, page 234) Select Academy Awards, 1927-1929 (page 257) Sources for Films (page 259) Works Cited and Consulted (page 263) Contributors (page 275) Index (page 277) Movies, Margarine, And Main Street / Michael Aronson -- Movies And Personality / Mark Lynn Anderson -- Movies And The Perilous Future / Sara Ross -- Movies And The Changing Body Of Cinema / Marcia Landy -- Movies And Play / Jennifer M. Bean -- Movies And A Year Of Change / Gwenda Young -- Movies And Divine Stars, Defining Gender / Maureen Turim -- Movies And The New Woman As Consumer / Sumiko Higashi -- Movies, Social Conformity, And Imminent Traumas / Angela Dalle Vacche -- Movies, Crashes, And Finales / Lucy Fischer -- Select Academy Awards, 1927-1929. Edited By Lucy Fischer. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 263-274) And Index. Includes Filmography: P. 259-261. In ten original essays, American Cinema of the 1920s examines the film industry's continued growth and prosperity while focusing on important themes of the era that witnessed the birth of the star system that supported the meteoric rise and celebrity status of actors, including Charlie Chaplin, Mary Pickford, Joan Crawford, Greta Garbo, and Rudolph Valentino, while black performers (relegated to "race films") appeared infrequently in mainstream movies