City of Nets: A Portrait of Hollywood in the 1940's
by Otto Friedrich
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Description
A dazzling social and cultural history of Hollywood's golden age in the decade from World War II to the Korean War In 1939, fifty million Americans went to the movies every week, Louis B. Mayer was the highest-paid man in the country, and Hollywood produced 530 feature films a year. One decade and five thousand movies later, the studios were faltering. The 1940s became the decade of Hollywood's decline: anticommunist hysteria excommunicated some of its best talent, while a 1948 antitrust show more consent decree ended many of the business practices that had made the studio system so profitable. In this masterful work of cultural history, the legendary Otto Friedrich tells the story of Hollywood's heyday and decline in a vivid narrative featuring an all-star cast of the actors, writers, musicians, composers, producers, directors, racketeers, labor leaders, journalists, and politicians who played major parts in the movie capital during the turbulent decade from World War II to the Korean War. Friedrich draws on sources from celebrity biographies to trade-union history, mingling lively gossip with analysis of Hollywood's seedier business dealings and telling the stories of legendary movies such as Citizen Kane, The Maltese Falcon, Double Indemnity, and All About Eve. A classic portrait of a special place in a special time, City of Nets gives us a singular behind-the-scenes glimpse into a bygone era that still captivates our imaginations. show lessTags
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Member Reviews
This well-written book is a complete view of all the glitz and even the sleaze of Hollywood's golden age of the studio system. Lots about the producers as well as the actors, but it's mostly about the business. That's not to say there aren't a lot of juicy anecdotes here. The Coen brothers read this book in preparation of writing and directing Barton Fink.
Fijn, informatief goed strekkend boek. Houdt de aandacht vast tot het hoofdstuk van de Hollywood blacklist (1949). De Nederlandse vertaling is goed gedaan. Algoeds.
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25+ Works 2,415 Members
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Common Knowledge
- Canonical title*
- City of Nets: a portrait of Hollywood in the 1940's
- Original title
- City of Nets: a portrait of Hollywood in the 1940's
- Original publication date
- 1986
- People/Characters*
- Te veel om op te noemen
- Important places
- Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA
- Epigraph
- People of the same trade seldom meet together, even for merriment and diversion, but the conversation ends in a conspiracy against the public.... --- Adam Smith
Every morning, to earn my bread, /
I go to the market where lies are bought. /
Hopefully /
I take up my place among the sellers. /
--- Bertolt Brecht
It is not unusual in human beings who have witnessed the sack of a city or the falling to pieces of a people to desire to set down what they have witnessed for the benefit of unknown heirs or of generations infinitely remote;... (show all) or, if you please, just to get the sight out of their heads. Someone has said that the death of a mouse from cancer is the whole sack of Rome by the Goths. --- Ford Madox Ford - Dedication
- To Liesel and Molly
- First words
- In 1939, the year of Gone With the Wind, or Ninotchka, of Wuthering Heights and The Wizard of Oz, the leading moviemakers of Hollywood could with some justification regard themselves as conquering heroes. (Foreward)
To the Chamber of Horrors, says the sign. (I, Welcome-1939) - Quotations*
- Mensen die in hetzelfde vak zitten komen zelden bij elkaar, al is het maar ter ontspanning, maar de conversatie eindigt altijd met een samenzwering tegen het publiek. (Adam Smith). Op een ochtend ga ik Om mijn brood te verdie... (show all)nen Naar de markt, waar leugens worden verkocht. Vol goed hoop Neem ik mijn plaats in tussen de verkopers. (Bertolt Brecht). Het is niet ongewoon dat mensen die getuige zijn geweest van het verval van een stad of het uiteenvallen van een volk, het verlangen voelen om vast te leggen wat ze hebben meegemaakt, ten behoeve van onbekende nakomelingen of van generaties in een eindeloos verre toekomst; of, zo u wilt, om het meegemaakte van zich af te schrijven. Iemand heeft gezegd dat de dood van een muis aan kanker even erg is als de plundering van Rome door de Gothen. (Ford Madox Ford).
- Last words
- (Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)By now, Reagan was running for governor of California, and some people said that he had a promising political future. (12, Farewells-1950)
- Publisher's editor
- Horvitz, Marjorie
- Canonical DDC/MDS
- 979.494
- Canonical LCC
- F869.H74
*Some information comes from Common Knowledge in other languages. Click "Edit" for more information.
Classifications
- Genres
- Nonfiction, History, General Nonfiction
- DDC/MDS
- 979.494 — History & geography History of North America Great Basin and Pacific Slope region of United States California Southern Counties City of Los Angeles
- LCC
- F869 .H74 — Local History of the United States, Canada and Latin America United States local history California
- BISAC
Statistics
- Members
- 517
- Popularity
- 57,917
- Reviews
- 3
- Rating
- (3.98)
- Languages
- 6 — Dutch, English, German, Italian, Portuguese, Spanish
- Media
- Paper, Audiobook, Ebook
- ISBNs
- 12
- ASINs
- 4
